This blog will be quiet for the next few weeks, but will be back in the new year!
Best wishes for the holiday season.
22 December 2009
Publications: Child Asylum Claims, COP15 Roundup, Discrimination Guidelines, Protracted Situations, Top 10 Humanitarian Crises
Combating Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance through a Strategic Approach (UNHCR, Dec. 2009) [text]
- See related press release.
Conclusion on protracted refugee situations, No. 109 (LX) - 2009 (EXCOM, Dec. 2009) [text]
COP15 Roundup from a Climate Change, Migration and Displacement Focus (Towards Recognition, Dec. 2009) [text]
Guidelines on International Protection No. 8: Child Asylum Claims under Articles 1(A)2 and 1(F) of the 1951 Convention and/or 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees (UNHCR, Dec. 2009) [text]
Top Ten Humanitarian Crises of 2009 (MSF, Dec. 2009) [text]
Tagged Publications.
- See related press release.
Conclusion on protracted refugee situations, No. 109 (LX) - 2009 (EXCOM, Dec. 2009) [text]
COP15 Roundup from a Climate Change, Migration and Displacement Focus (Towards Recognition, Dec. 2009) [text]
Guidelines on International Protection No. 8: Child Asylum Claims under Articles 1(A)2 and 1(F) of the 1951 Convention and/or 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees (UNHCR, Dec. 2009) [text]
Top Ten Humanitarian Crises of 2009 (MSF, Dec. 2009) [text]
Tagged Publications.
18 December 2009
Publications: Detention Toolkit, Health Barriers/S. Africa, Humanitarian Space/Somalia, Mapping Climate Change, Social Group/US, Spain & EU Presidency
Creating humanitarian space: a case study of Somalia, New Issues in Refugee Research no. 184 (UNHCR, Dec. 2009) [text]
From principles to action: UNHCR's Recommendations to Spain for its European Union Presidency (January - June 2010) (UNHCR, Dec. 2009) [text]
Humanitarian Implications of Climate Change: Mapping emerging trends and risk hotspots (Care International and Maplecroft, Nov. 2009) [text]
No Healing Here: Violence, Discrimination and Barriers to Health for Migrants in South Africa (Human Rights Watch, Dec. 2009) [text]
Reviving the "Particular Social Group" (IntLawGrrls, Dec. 2009) [text]
Working with refugees and asylum seekers in places of detention: Tools and Resources for Legal Providers (International Detention Coalition, Dec. 2009) [text in WORD]
Tagged Publications.
From principles to action: UNHCR's Recommendations to Spain for its European Union Presidency (January - June 2010) (UNHCR, Dec. 2009) [text]
Humanitarian Implications of Climate Change: Mapping emerging trends and risk hotspots (Care International and Maplecroft, Nov. 2009) [text]
No Healing Here: Violence, Discrimination and Barriers to Health for Migrants in South Africa (Human Rights Watch, Dec. 2009) [text]
Reviving the "Particular Social Group" (IntLawGrrls, Dec. 2009) [text]
Working with refugees and asylum seekers in places of detention: Tools and Resources for Legal Providers (International Detention Coalition, Dec. 2009) [text in WORD]
Tagged Publications.
17 December 2009
Publications: Asylum Stats/EU, EXCOM Conclusions, IDPs/Colombia, Migrants' Rights, Zimbabweans/S. Africa
75 thousand asylum seekers granted protection status in the EU in 2008 (EUROSTAT, Nov. 2009) [text]
Asylum decisions in the EU27: EU Member States granted protection to 76 300 asylum seekers in 2008 (EUROSTAT, Dec. 2009) [text]
Conclusions Adopted by the Executive Committee on the International Protection of Refugees (UNHCR, Dec . 2009) [text]
Labor Market Effects of Migration-Related Supply Shocks: Evidence from Internally Displaced Populations in Colombia, HiCN Working Paper 69 (Households in Conflict Network, Nov. 2009) [text]
Slow Movement: Protection of Migrants’ Rights in 2009 (Human Rights Watch, Dec. 2009) [text]
Violence, Labour and the Displacement of Zimbabweans in De Doorns, Western Cape (Forced Migration Studies Programme, Dec. 2009) [text]
Tagged Publications.
Asylum decisions in the EU27: EU Member States granted protection to 76 300 asylum seekers in 2008 (EUROSTAT, Dec. 2009) [text]
Conclusions Adopted by the Executive Committee on the International Protection of Refugees (UNHCR, Dec . 2009) [text]
Labor Market Effects of Migration-Related Supply Shocks: Evidence from Internally Displaced Populations in Colombia, HiCN Working Paper 69 (Households in Conflict Network, Nov. 2009) [text]
Slow Movement: Protection of Migrants’ Rights in 2009 (Human Rights Watch, Dec. 2009) [text]
Violence, Labour and the Displacement of Zimbabweans in De Doorns, Western Cape (Forced Migration Studies Programme, Dec. 2009) [text]
Tagged Publications.
16 December 2009
Books of the Decade
Editor's note: Here is another installment in the "books of the decade" series. Many thanks to Dr. Shahira Samy at the University of Oxford for her contribution.
Records of Dispossession: Palestinian Refugee Property and the Arab-Israeli Conflict, by Michael Fischbach (Columbia University Press, New York, 2003). ISBN 0-231-12978-5
Michael Fischbach goes on an adventure. He flies to New York, disappears into the UN headquarters, locks himself up in the archives of the United Nations Conciliation Commission for Palestine (UNCCP), pours over some land deeds, leases and documents untouched for decades, and writes a book telling us the whole story. The Indiana Jones-style adventure is not entirely why I chose Records of Dispossession as my most favourite forced migration book for the first decade of the twenty-first century, although admittedly, its archival freshness is what makes it so valuable. The findings unravelled by this book will undoubtedly form the backbone of any peace agreement touching on the fate of the millions of Palestinian refugees, now well into their fourth generation of exile.
When over 700,000 Palestinians were uprooted from their lands in the late 1940s in the course of the establishment of the state of Israel and the first Arab-Israeli war, most of them were farmers whose livelihood much depended on land and property; assets now lost and subsequently expropriated by the Israeli government. Unlike its meek involvement in the present days, six decades ago, the UN was heavily involved in the politics of peace-making in Palestine. Specifically created to deal with the ramifications of the conflict, including the refugee issue, the UNCCP worked hard on identifying, evaluating lost property and even devising what might constitute viable compensation schemes. This estimation and evaluation work is the most accurate and comprehensive that has ever been undertaken. The problem is that we knew nothing about its scope, details and findings until Fischbach told us the story in his book.
These records form the backbone of any compensation package that will be offered to the refugees as part of a settlement to the conflict covering the displacement and dispossession issue. The international community often thinks of refugee matters in terms of humanitarian needs or within the regime of durable solutions weighing between options of return, resettlement and local integration. But what about losses? Restitution of property? Material reparations? Here is where the property issue and ensuing compensation schemes gain significance. Since the book also incorporates the story of the expropriation of the lost Palestinian property, it goes straight into how property restitution issues are incorporated into negotiating forms of redress to displacement problems and fostering demands for lost rights between parties to a conflict.
Decades on, the UNCCP is totally dead but not officially so. By telling the story, Records of Dispossession has reminded us of the history of its involvement, its early efforts, its struggle and why it has failed to achieve peace. With the records of these early efforts now out, the question arises as to whether this early failure may pave the way for a future success in redressing the displacement and dispossession of Palestinian refugees.
Dr. Shahira Samy
Jarvis Doctorow Junior Research Fellow in International Relations
and Conflict Resolution in the Middle East
St Edmund Hall & the Department of Politics and International Relations
University of Oxford
Access details:
- Publisher info
- Amazon
- Find the book in a library
Related posts:
http://fm-cab.blogspot.com/2009/12/books-of-decade.html
http://fm-cab.blogspot.com/2009/12/more-books-of-decade.html
Tagged Publications.
Records of Dispossession: Palestinian Refugee Property and the Arab-Israeli Conflict, by Michael Fischbach (Columbia University Press, New York, 2003). ISBN 0-231-12978-5
Michael Fischbach goes on an adventure. He flies to New York, disappears into the UN headquarters, locks himself up in the archives of the United Nations Conciliation Commission for Palestine (UNCCP), pours over some land deeds, leases and documents untouched for decades, and writes a book telling us the whole story. The Indiana Jones-style adventure is not entirely why I chose Records of Dispossession as my most favourite forced migration book for the first decade of the twenty-first century, although admittedly, its archival freshness is what makes it so valuable. The findings unravelled by this book will undoubtedly form the backbone of any peace agreement touching on the fate of the millions of Palestinian refugees, now well into their fourth generation of exile.When over 700,000 Palestinians were uprooted from their lands in the late 1940s in the course of the establishment of the state of Israel and the first Arab-Israeli war, most of them were farmers whose livelihood much depended on land and property; assets now lost and subsequently expropriated by the Israeli government. Unlike its meek involvement in the present days, six decades ago, the UN was heavily involved in the politics of peace-making in Palestine. Specifically created to deal with the ramifications of the conflict, including the refugee issue, the UNCCP worked hard on identifying, evaluating lost property and even devising what might constitute viable compensation schemes. This estimation and evaluation work is the most accurate and comprehensive that has ever been undertaken. The problem is that we knew nothing about its scope, details and findings until Fischbach told us the story in his book.
These records form the backbone of any compensation package that will be offered to the refugees as part of a settlement to the conflict covering the displacement and dispossession issue. The international community often thinks of refugee matters in terms of humanitarian needs or within the regime of durable solutions weighing between options of return, resettlement and local integration. But what about losses? Restitution of property? Material reparations? Here is where the property issue and ensuing compensation schemes gain significance. Since the book also incorporates the story of the expropriation of the lost Palestinian property, it goes straight into how property restitution issues are incorporated into negotiating forms of redress to displacement problems and fostering demands for lost rights between parties to a conflict.
Decades on, the UNCCP is totally dead but not officially so. By telling the story, Records of Dispossession has reminded us of the history of its involvement, its early efforts, its struggle and why it has failed to achieve peace. With the records of these early efforts now out, the question arises as to whether this early failure may pave the way for a future success in redressing the displacement and dispossession of Palestinian refugees.
Dr. Shahira Samy
Jarvis Doctorow Junior Research Fellow in International Relations
and Conflict Resolution in the Middle East
St Edmund Hall & the Department of Politics and International Relations
University of Oxford
Access details:
- Publisher info
- Amazon
- Find the book in a library
Related posts:
http://fm-cab.blogspot.com/2009/12/books-of-decade.html
http://fm-cab.blogspot.com/2009/12/more-books-of-decade.html
Tagged Publications.
15 December 2009
New Issues of Disasters, E&RS, Ref. Rts. News
Disasters, vol. 34, no. 1 (Jan. 2010) [free full-text]- The editorial notes that in order to address the backlog of accepted articles, Disasters will be publishing longer issues and thematic supplements throughout 2010. This current issue includes a mix of 16 articles and a book review.
Disasters, vol. 34, supp. 1 (Jan. 2010) [contents]
- This first supplement of the year provides a "review of emerging patterns of reconstruction in post-conflict states."
Disasters, virtual ed. (Sept. 2009) [contents]
- This online-only edition focused on Ethiopia, bringing together previously-published articles from over 30 years of Disasters' history.
Ethnic and Racial Studies, vol. 33, no. 1 (2010) [contents]
- Special issue on "Migrant Politics and Mobilization: Exclusion, Engagements, Incorporation."
Refugee Rights News, vol. 5, no. 5 (Nov. 2009) [full-text]
- From the International Refugee Rights Initiative.
Note: Free articles are now available from Oxford University Press' three refugee journals: International Journal of Refugee Law (IJRL)*, Journal of Refugee Studies (JRS), and Refugee Survey Quarterly (RSQ).
*As of this writing, the links to the free access articles currently do not go to the full-text, but keep checking as I imagine the problem will be rectified at some point!
Tagged Periodicals.
14 December 2009
More books of the decade
Following on from Jeff Crisp's recommendations for books from the 2000s that he admires, here are a couple of my own. They fall under two very different categories, however: children's books and reference books.
1. Children's books
Earlier in the year, I undertook a survey of kids' literature that relates to refugees and forced migration. I looked at both picture books for younger readers and chapter books for older readers. The bibliography I ultimately compiled included listings of both - 24 titles to be exact. However, one in particular has stayed with me: Home of the Brave (Feiwel and Friends, 2007), by Katherine Applegate. It's about Kek, who arrives in the middle of winter in Minneapolis, Minnesota from Sudan. He must contend with adjusting to the strangeness of his new home, anxiety about the fate of his missing mother, and feelings of sadness for all that he has lost. He finds comfort in a cow that he befriends, and in the memories of his family. The author wrote the story in free verse, producing a spare, but visually-rich and very accessible text. Here's an example, when Kek first meets the cow he eventually cares for:
She moos,
a harsh and mournful sound.
It isn't the fault of the cow.
She doesn't know another way to talk.
She can't learn
the way I am learning,
word
by slow, slow
word.
I stroke her cold, wet coat,
and for a moment I hold
all I've lost
and all I want
right there in my hand.
For more information, visit the publisher's web site; see also which libraries carry the book.
2. Reference books
As an information specialist, I regularly keep an eye out for new reference materials to include in my forced migration research guide. While not many have actually been published, I was most happy to learn about Immigration and Asylum: From 1900 to the Present, a three-volume encyclopedia edited by Matthew Gibney (Refugee Studies Centre) and Randall Hansen (Univ. of Oxford) and published by ABC-CLIO (2005). The editors approach immigration and asylum issues from an historical and political perspective. Entries were selected on the basis of the following themes: asylum law and procedures; immigration policy; refugee countries of origin; major migrant groups; historical movements; and the politics of migration focusing particularly on the U.S. The almost 200 essays are accompanied by "see also" references and bibliographies. The third volume reproduces major international and regional instruments, UN resolutions, and national legislation.
It's incredibly useful to have an authoritative resource that provides an introduction to or an explanation of so many of the issues that arise in the asylum context. It's also fascinating to browse through, to open a page randomly and learn something new about such a diverse and complex subject area.
For more information, visit the publisher's web site; see also which libraries carry the work.
Tagged Publications.
1. Children's books
Earlier in the year, I undertook a survey of kids' literature that relates to refugees and forced migration. I looked at both picture books for younger readers and chapter books for older readers. The bibliography I ultimately compiled included listings of both - 24 titles to be exact. However, one in particular has stayed with me: Home of the Brave (Feiwel and Friends, 2007), by Katherine Applegate. It's about Kek, who arrives in the middle of winter in Minneapolis, Minnesota from Sudan. He must contend with adjusting to the strangeness of his new home, anxiety about the fate of his missing mother, and feelings of sadness for all that he has lost. He finds comfort in a cow that he befriends, and in the memories of his family. The author wrote the story in free verse, producing a spare, but visually-rich and very accessible text. Here's an example, when Kek first meets the cow he eventually cares for:She moos,
a harsh and mournful sound.
It isn't the fault of the cow.
She doesn't know another way to talk.
She can't learn
the way I am learning,
word
by slow, slow
word.
I stroke her cold, wet coat,
and for a moment I hold
all I've lost
and all I want
right there in my hand.
For more information, visit the publisher's web site; see also which libraries carry the book.
2. Reference books
As an information specialist, I regularly keep an eye out for new reference materials to include in my forced migration research guide. While not many have actually been published, I was most happy to learn about Immigration and Asylum: From 1900 to the Present, a three-volume encyclopedia edited by Matthew Gibney (Refugee Studies Centre) and Randall Hansen (Univ. of Oxford) and published by ABC-CLIO (2005). The editors approach immigration and asylum issues from an historical and political perspective. Entries were selected on the basis of the following themes: asylum law and procedures; immigration policy; refugee countries of origin; major migrant groups; historical movements; and the politics of migration focusing particularly on the U.S. The almost 200 essays are accompanied by "see also" references and bibliographies. The third volume reproduces major international and regional instruments, UN resolutions, and national legislation.It's incredibly useful to have an authoritative resource that provides an introduction to or an explanation of so many of the issues that arise in the asylum context. It's also fascinating to browse through, to open a page randomly and learn something new about such a diverse and complex subject area.
For more information, visit the publisher's web site; see also which libraries carry the work.
Tagged Publications.
Multimedia: Climate Change Photos/Film, Doctors without Borders Film, FIC Photos, Harrell-Bond Lecture
Annual Harrell-Bond Lecture 2009: Beyond Blankets: in search of political deals and durable solutions for the displaced (FMO, Nov. 2009) [access]
- Podcast of the lecture.
"Climate change brings on refugees, exiles and terror? - slide show," Examiner.com, 12 Dec. 2009 [access]
- Focus is on Bangladesh. (HT: Seeking Asylum)
Climate Refugees Documentary Film [info]
- Info. about a film that will be screened at COP15. (HT: Seeking Asylum)
The First Week of COP15 (Towards Recognition, Dec. 2009) [access]
- Photos from various events attended in Copenhagen for the climate change conference.
Living in Emergency: Stories of Doctors without Borders [info]
- Showing in select theatres on 14 Dec. 2009.
Traveling Photo Exhibition in the Karamoja Cluster (Feinstein International Center, Nov. 2009) [access]
- The exhibit "features the work of traditional seers in these pastoral communities" and is "part of a project titled 'Seers as War Makers, Peace Makers, and Leaders within the Karamoja Cluster'."
Tagged Events & Opportunities and Web Sites/Tools.
- Podcast of the lecture.
"Climate change brings on refugees, exiles and terror? - slide show," Examiner.com, 12 Dec. 2009 [access]
- Focus is on Bangladesh. (HT: Seeking Asylum)
Climate Refugees Documentary Film [info]
- Info. about a film that will be screened at COP15. (HT: Seeking Asylum)
The First Week of COP15 (Towards Recognition, Dec. 2009) [access]
- Photos from various events attended in Copenhagen for the climate change conference.
Living in Emergency: Stories of Doctors without Borders [info]
- Showing in select theatres on 14 Dec. 2009.
Traveling Photo Exhibition in the Karamoja Cluster (Feinstein International Center, Nov. 2009) [access]
- The exhibit "features the work of traditional seers in these pastoral communities" and is "part of a project titled 'Seers as War Makers, Peace Makers, and Leaders within the Karamoja Cluster'."
Tagged Events & Opportunities and Web Sites/Tools.
11 December 2009
From "climate refugees" to "climate change-induced displacees"?
See IRIN's "Good news for climate change migrants" for an update on discussions in Copenhagen. Apparently, there is agreement on "the need to consider planned relocation for people displaced by climate change, with 'interstate cooperation' to respond to their needs."The article also notes that the "term 'climate refugees' was first mentioned in the adaptation text at talks in Bonn, Germany, in June. The term has been dropped, but the need to help people who 'either cross an international border as a result of, or find themselves abroad and are unable to return owing to, the effects of climate change' has gained prominence." The new term under consideration to refer to such people is "climate change-induced displacees."
Worldbridge, Refugees International's blog, had an interesting post on the increased use in the media of the phrase "climate refugees." Noting that under international law one cannot be termed a "refugee" when natural disaster is the cause of flight, the author ponders possible alternatives and their acronyms: "People displaced by climate change (PDCCs)? Climate displaced people (CDPs)? People affected by climatic events (PACEs)?".
In contrast, an article I referenced earlier in the year highlights the fact that in Tuvalu and Kiribati, two Pacific nations under great pressure from climate change, there is a "a wholesale rejection of the 'refugee' label, at both the political and community levels."
[Photo credit: Mirwais Bezhan/IRIN]
Tagged Events & Opportunities and Publications.
Publications: Burmese/India, Climate Change & UNHCR, EU Asylum Directives, Information Technologies & Emergencies, Refugees/Israel
Asylum directives: scrutiny of the opt-in decisions (UK House of Lords European Union Committee, Dec. 2009) [text]
"Bracing for the Flood," NYT (10 Dec. 2009) [text]
- See also UNHCR's climate change web pages.
India: Close the Gap for Burmese Refugees (Refugees International, Dec. 2009) [text]
New Technologies in Emergencies and Conflicts: The Role of Information and Social Networks (UN Foundation, Dec. 2009) [text via ReliefWeb]
A promised land for refugees? Asylum and migration in Israel, New Issues in Refugee Research no. 183 (UNHCR, Dec. 2009) [text]
Tagged Publications.
"Bracing for the Flood," NYT (10 Dec. 2009) [text]
- See also UNHCR's climate change web pages.
India: Close the Gap for Burmese Refugees (Refugees International, Dec. 2009) [text]
New Technologies in Emergencies and Conflicts: The Role of Information and Social Networks (UN Foundation, Dec. 2009) [text via ReliefWeb]
A promised land for refugees? Asylum and migration in Israel, New Issues in Refugee Research no. 183 (UNHCR, Dec. 2009) [text]
Tagged Publications.
10 December 2009
December 10: Human Rights Day
Today is Human Rights Day. The focus this year is on "non-discrimination," with the tag line "Embrace diversity, end discrimination." For more information on the day and its theme, visit the relevant pages and messages on the following web sites:- Dag Hammarskjöld Library [access]
- Europa [access]
- Human Rights Watch [access]
- IntLawGrrls [access]
- Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights [access]
- United Nations [access]
Tagged Events & Opportunities and Web Sites/Tools.
09 December 2009
Pubs: Child Refugees, Housing Rts./Burma, IDP Prot./Colombia, Justice & Displ., Refugee Guide/SA, Top 10 Migr. Issues, Voting Rts./Georgia
Election-Related Rights and Political Participation of Internally Displaced Persons: Protection During and After Displacement in Georgia (Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement, Nov. 2009) [text]Housing, Land and Property Rights in Burma: The Current Legal Framework (Displacement Solutions, Nov. 2009) [text]
Judicial Protection of Internally Displaced Persons: The Colombian Experience (Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement, Nov. 2009) [text]
Justice, Accountability, and the Protection of Displaced Persons (Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement, Dec. 2009) [text]
Refugee Survival Guide 2009 (Lawyers for Human Rights, 2009) [access]
Seeking Support: A Guide to the Rights and Entitlements of Separated Refugee and Asylum Seeking Children (Children's Legal Centre, Nov. 2009) [text]
Top 10 Issues of 2009 (Migration Information Source, Dec. 2009) [access]
- Issue 7 focuses on climate change and migration and Issue 10 examines the harder line governments are taking towards asylum-seekers.
[Photo credit: Julia Komissaroff/IDP Voices]
Tagged Publications.
HC Dialogue: Urban Refugees
The third High Commissioner's Dialogue on Protection Challenges began today in Geneva and will continue tomorrow. The theme of the meeting is "Challenges for Persons of Concern to UNHCR in Urban Settings." The agenda notes that participants will divide into four groups to explore the following:- Identifying populations of concern in urban settings and responding to vulnerabilities and risks;
- Securing “protection space” in urban settings;
- Livelihoods and self-reliance;
- Challenges for municipalities and authorities.
- Challenges for Persons of Concern to UNHCR in Urban Settings, UNHCR/DPC/2009/Doc. 02/Rev.1 (HC Dialogue, Dec. 2009) [text]
- Concept Paper (UNHCR, May 2009) [text]
- UNHCR policy on refugee protection and solutions in urban areas (UNHCR, Sept. 2009) [text]
For more general news/media advisories and photos, visit the UNHCR page on "urban refugees."
[photo credit: UNHCR/Zalmaï]
Tagged Events & Opportunities and Publications.
08 December 2009
Research Rpts. & Working Papers: Climate Change & Displ./Africa, Humanit. Action/Georgia, Iraqi Refugees, Sexual Orientation & Asylum, UNGA & UNHCR
Anatomy of a Resolution: the General Assembly in UNHCR history, New Issues in Refugee Research, no. 182 (UNHCR, Dec. 2009) [text]
Climate change, disaster, displacement and migration: initial evidence from Africa, New Issues in Refugee Research, no. 180 (UNHCR, Dec. 2009) [text]
Fleeing for love: asylum seekers and sexual orientation in Scandinavia, New Issues in Refugee Research, no. 181 (UNHCR, Dec. 2009) [text]
Iraq's Refugees - Beyond 'Tolerance', RSC Policy Briefing no. 4 (RSC, Dec. 2009) [text]
Politics and Humanitarian Action in the Georgia Conflicts: Humanitarian Agenda 2015 (Feinstein International Center, Nov. 2009) [text]
Tagged Publications.
Climate change, disaster, displacement and migration: initial evidence from Africa, New Issues in Refugee Research, no. 180 (UNHCR, Dec. 2009) [text]
Fleeing for love: asylum seekers and sexual orientation in Scandinavia, New Issues in Refugee Research, no. 181 (UNHCR, Dec. 2009) [text]
Iraq's Refugees - Beyond 'Tolerance', RSC Policy Briefing no. 4 (RSC, Dec. 2009) [text]
Politics and Humanitarian Action in the Georgia Conflicts: Humanitarian Agenda 2015 (Feinstein International Center, Nov. 2009) [text]
Tagged Publications.
UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen
(updated)
Dan DaSilva of Towards Recognition is in Copenhagen for the climate change conference. He has listed some of the events scheduled to take place that focus on migration and/or displacement, and hopefully, will be updating readers on some of the relevant discussions. This would be helpful since the official web site for the conference is somewhat daunting to navigate! However, a more user-friendly "Daily Programme" is available and worth checking. In addition, numerous multimedia options are provided, including webcasts, YouTube videos, Flickr photos, and more.
In the interim, here are some random climate-related resources I've come across recently:
Climate Change Displaced Persons and Housing, Land and Property Rights: Preliminary Strategies for Rights-Based Planning and Programming to Resolve Climate-induced
Displacement (Displacement Solutions, Nov. 2009) [text]
- New report.
Climate Changed: People Displaced (Norwegian Refugee Council, Dec. 2009) [text]
Forced Displacement Must Be Included in Copenhagen Climate Agreement (Refugees International, Dec. 2009) [text]
Géopolitique du changement climatique, by François Gemenne (Armand Colin, Nov. 2009) [info]
- New book, which includes a chapter on displacement.
Migration, Environment and Climate Change: Assessing the Evidence (IOM, Dec. 2009) [text via ReliefWeb]
Native Land, Stop Eject [access]
- Multimedia exhibition.
Norwegian Refugee Council's Climate Negotiations page [access]
- Nothing currently from Copenhagen, but see also presentations at the Barcelona negotiation session side event on "Climate Adaptation, Human Migration and Displacement," 4 November 2009.
Tagged Events & Opportunities, Publications and Web Sites/Tools.
Dan DaSilva of Towards Recognition is in Copenhagen for the climate change conference. He has listed some of the events scheduled to take place that focus on migration and/or displacement, and hopefully, will be updating readers on some of the relevant discussions. This would be helpful since the official web site for the conference is somewhat daunting to navigate! However, a more user-friendly "Daily Programme" is available and worth checking. In addition, numerous multimedia options are provided, including webcasts, YouTube videos, Flickr photos, and more.
In the interim, here are some random climate-related resources I've come across recently:
Climate Change Displaced Persons and Housing, Land and Property Rights: Preliminary Strategies for Rights-Based Planning and Programming to Resolve Climate-induced
Displacement (Displacement Solutions, Nov. 2009) [text]
- New report.
Climate Changed: People Displaced (Norwegian Refugee Council, Dec. 2009) [text]
Forced Displacement Must Be Included in Copenhagen Climate Agreement (Refugees International, Dec. 2009) [text]
Géopolitique du changement climatique, by François Gemenne (Armand Colin, Nov. 2009) [info]
- New book, which includes a chapter on displacement.
Migration, Environment and Climate Change: Assessing the Evidence (IOM, Dec. 2009) [text via ReliefWeb]
Native Land, Stop Eject [access]
- Multimedia exhibition.
Norwegian Refugee Council's Climate Negotiations page [access]
- Nothing currently from Copenhagen, but see also presentations at the Barcelona negotiation session side event on "Climate Adaptation, Human Migration and Displacement," 4 November 2009.
Tagged Events & Opportunities, Publications and Web Sites/Tools.
07 December 2009
Books of the decade
Editor's note: Ten years ago, Forced Migration Review (FMR) published a feature entitled “issues of the new millennium” in which eight individuals gave their recommendations for the most significant books of the 1990s. I was interested in soliciting similar recommendations, but for books that have been written since the start of the new millennium instead. Here is the first submission, from Jeff Crisp, Head of UNHCR's Policy Development and Evaluation Service. Information on how to access the books can be found below.
While my two principal books of the decade both provide illuminating and highly readable overviews of the global refugee situation, their style and intended audience are very different.
The Price of Indifference: Refugees and Humanitarian Action in the New Century (Oxford University Press, 2002) was written by the late Arthur Helton, just a year before his tragic death in the bombing of the UN headquarters in Baghdad. Helton’s objective is an ambitious one – to make some sense of the complex interplay between international politics and humanitarian action in the years that followed the end of the Cold War, a period when millions of people throughout the world were uprooted by communal conflicts, genocide and ethnic cleansing.
Targeted primarily at the policymaking and academic communities, the book draws on Helton’s first-hand experience of humanitarian crises and mass population displacements throughout the world and calls on the international community (and more specifically the USA) to ‘imagine better refugee policy’.
Arguing that ‘the current system for international humanitarian action is fundamentally flawed’, Helton goes on to suggest that ‘refugee policy should surely be more than the administration of misery’, and sets out his vision for an alternative approach, based on the notion of ‘proactive and preventive action’. In this context, it is not difficult to imagine how Helton would have viewed the failure of states to anticipate the violence and mass displacements that took place in Iraq in the years that followed his untimely demise in that country.
Written for a much broader audience, Caroline Moorehead’s Human Cargo: A Journey Among Refugees (Chatto and Windus, 2005) is journalism of the very highest quality. Based on visits to war zones, refugee camps, prisons and detention centres throughout the world, Moorehead’s highly readable book combines the stories of individual refugees and asylum seekers with a historical account of the way that states, international organizations and NGOs have responded to the plight of the displaced.
Whether describing the life of Liberian refugees in Cairo, an Iranian detained in Australia, Mexicans who are hoping to cross the border into the USA or a Palestinian who has lived in exile for more than 50 years, Moorehead’s book provides an extremely effective riposte to those politicians who are unable to utter the word ‘refugee’ or ‘asylum seeker’ without adding the adjective ‘bogus’. Human Cargo should be compulsory reading for all border guards, immigration officials, asylum adjudicators – and UNHCR staff members.
I particularly enjoyed reading four other books, all of which succeed in enhancing our understanding of refugee and asylum issues, while simultaneously conveying the harsh and human reality of displacement.
Cindy Horst’s, Transnational Nomads: How Somalis Cope with Refugee Life in the Dadaab Camps of Kenya (Berghahn Books, 2006) provides an excellent example of contemporary anthropology, mercifully free of the impenetrable post-modernism that now plagues this academic discipline. It is by far the best account of what has become known as a ‘protracted refugee situation’ and is especially incisive in analyzing the extensive social networks that link the apparently isolated residents of Dadaab to Somali communities in Nairobi and the wider world.
Peter Showler draws upon his extensive experience as Chair of the Canadian Immigration and Refugee Board to uncover the truth about refugee status determination procedures in Refugee Sandwich: Stories of Exile and Asylum (McGill-Queen's University Press, 2006). Based on 13 fictional (but fact-based) vignettes, the book lives up to the publisher’s claim that it ‘tells us more about Canada’s refugee system than any academic treatise’. A book that stands out for its humanity, originality and sense of irony.
I read Behzad Yaghmaian’s fascinating Embracing the Infidel: Stories of Muslim Migrants on the Journey West (Random House, 2006) from cover to cover in a single sitting. Focusing on the movement of asylum seekers and migrants from countries such as Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq and Sudan, the book provides a gripping and often heart-wrenching account of their efforts to find safety in Europe, focusing particularly on their tough treatment in transit countries such as Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey.
David Corlett’s moving volume Following Them Home: The Fate of the Returned Asylum Seekers (Black Inc. Books, 2005), has been curiously neglected by both the refugee studies and advocacy communities. Travelling to countries such as Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan and Thailand, Corlett examines the plight of unsuccessful asylum seekers who have been returned from Australia, often after a prolonged period of detention. The book provides an extremely persuasive indictment of Australia’s asylum policy under the Howard administration and remains highly relevant to the uncertain fate of ‘rejected cases’ in the industrialized states.
Access details:
The Price of Indifference: Refugees and Humanitarian Action in the New Century (OUP, 2002)
- Publisher info
- Google Books preview
- Amazon
- Find the book in a library
Human Cargo: A Journey Among Refugees (Chatto and Windus, 2005)
- Publisher info
- Google Books preview
- Amazon
- Find the book in a library
Transnational Nomads: How Somalis Cope with Refugee Life in the Dadaab Camps of Kenya (Berghahn Books, 2006)
- Publisher info
- Google Books preview
- Amazon
- Find the book in a library
Refugee Sandwich: Stories of Exile and Asylum (McGill-Queen's University Press, 2006)
- Publisher info
- Amazon
- Find the book in a library
Embracing the Infidel: Stories of Muslim Migrants on the Journey West (Random House, 2006)
- Publisher info
- Amazon
- Find the book in a library
Following Them Home: The Fate of the Returned Asylum Seekers (Black Inc. Books, 2005)
- Publisher info
- Find the book in a library
Tagged Publications.
While my two principal books of the decade both provide illuminating and highly readable overviews of the global refugee situation, their style and intended audience are very different.
The Price of Indifference: Refugees and Humanitarian Action in the New Century (Oxford University Press, 2002) was written by the late Arthur Helton, just a year before his tragic death in the bombing of the UN headquarters in Baghdad. Helton’s objective is an ambitious one – to make some sense of the complex interplay between international politics and humanitarian action in the years that followed the end of the Cold War, a period when millions of people throughout the world were uprooted by communal conflicts, genocide and ethnic cleansing.Targeted primarily at the policymaking and academic communities, the book draws on Helton’s first-hand experience of humanitarian crises and mass population displacements throughout the world and calls on the international community (and more specifically the USA) to ‘imagine better refugee policy’.
Arguing that ‘the current system for international humanitarian action is fundamentally flawed’, Helton goes on to suggest that ‘refugee policy should surely be more than the administration of misery’, and sets out his vision for an alternative approach, based on the notion of ‘proactive and preventive action’. In this context, it is not difficult to imagine how Helton would have viewed the failure of states to anticipate the violence and mass displacements that took place in Iraq in the years that followed his untimely demise in that country.
Written for a much broader audience, Caroline Moorehead’s Human Cargo: A Journey Among Refugees (Chatto and Windus, 2005) is journalism of the very highest quality. Based on visits to war zones, refugee camps, prisons and detention centres throughout the world, Moorehead’s highly readable book combines the stories of individual refugees and asylum seekers with a historical account of the way that states, international organizations and NGOs have responded to the plight of the displaced.Whether describing the life of Liberian refugees in Cairo, an Iranian detained in Australia, Mexicans who are hoping to cross the border into the USA or a Palestinian who has lived in exile for more than 50 years, Moorehead’s book provides an extremely effective riposte to those politicians who are unable to utter the word ‘refugee’ or ‘asylum seeker’ without adding the adjective ‘bogus’. Human Cargo should be compulsory reading for all border guards, immigration officials, asylum adjudicators – and UNHCR staff members.
I particularly enjoyed reading four other books, all of which succeed in enhancing our understanding of refugee and asylum issues, while simultaneously conveying the harsh and human reality of displacement.
Cindy Horst’s, Transnational Nomads: How Somalis Cope with Refugee Life in the Dadaab Camps of Kenya (Berghahn Books, 2006) provides an excellent example of contemporary anthropology, mercifully free of the impenetrable post-modernism that now plagues this academic discipline. It is by far the best account of what has become known as a ‘protracted refugee situation’ and is especially incisive in analyzing the extensive social networks that link the apparently isolated residents of Dadaab to Somali communities in Nairobi and the wider world.
Peter Showler draws upon his extensive experience as Chair of the Canadian Immigration and Refugee Board to uncover the truth about refugee status determination procedures in Refugee Sandwich: Stories of Exile and Asylum (McGill-Queen's University Press, 2006). Based on 13 fictional (but fact-based) vignettes, the book lives up to the publisher’s claim that it ‘tells us more about Canada’s refugee system than any academic treatise’. A book that stands out for its humanity, originality and sense of irony.
I read Behzad Yaghmaian’s fascinating Embracing the Infidel: Stories of Muslim Migrants on the Journey West (Random House, 2006) from cover to cover in a single sitting. Focusing on the movement of asylum seekers and migrants from countries such as Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq and Sudan, the book provides a gripping and often heart-wrenching account of their efforts to find safety in Europe, focusing particularly on their tough treatment in transit countries such as Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey.
David Corlett’s moving volume Following Them Home: The Fate of the Returned Asylum Seekers (Black Inc. Books, 2005), has been curiously neglected by both the refugee studies and advocacy communities. Travelling to countries such as Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan and Thailand, Corlett examines the plight of unsuccessful asylum seekers who have been returned from Australia, often after a prolonged period of detention. The book provides an extremely persuasive indictment of Australia’s asylum policy under the Howard administration and remains highly relevant to the uncertain fate of ‘rejected cases’ in the industrialized states.
Jeff Crisp
Head, Policy Development and Evaluation Service
UNHCR
Head, Policy Development and Evaluation Service
UNHCR
Access details:
The Price of Indifference: Refugees and Humanitarian Action in the New Century (OUP, 2002)
- Publisher info
- Google Books preview
- Amazon
- Find the book in a library
Human Cargo: A Journey Among Refugees (Chatto and Windus, 2005)
- Publisher info
- Google Books preview
- Amazon
- Find the book in a library
Transnational Nomads: How Somalis Cope with Refugee Life in the Dadaab Camps of Kenya (Berghahn Books, 2006)
- Publisher info
- Google Books preview
- Amazon
- Find the book in a library
Refugee Sandwich: Stories of Exile and Asylum (McGill-Queen's University Press, 2006)
- Publisher info
- Amazon
- Find the book in a library
Embracing the Infidel: Stories of Muslim Migrants on the Journey West (Random House, 2006)
- Publisher info
- Amazon
- Find the book in a library
Following Them Home: The Fate of the Returned Asylum Seekers (Black Inc. Books, 2005)
- Publisher info
- Find the book in a library
Tagged Publications.
04 December 2009
New Issues of Human Rts. Law Rev., IMR, Intercult. Human Rts. Law Rev., JIRS, NQHR
Human Rights Law Review, vol. 9, no. 4 (2009) [contents]- Mix of articles.
Intercultural Human Rights Law Review, vol. 4 (2009) [contents]
- Includes papers from a symposium on human trafficking.
International Migration Review, vol. 43, no. 4 (Winter 2009) [contents]
- Mix of articles including "What Determines the Embeddedness of Forced-Return Migrants? Rethinking the Role of Pre- and Post-Return Assistance."
Journal of Immigrant and Refugee Studies, vol. 7, no. 4 (2009) [contents]
- Mix of articles.
Netherlands Quarterly of Human Rights, vol. 27, no. 3 (Dec. 2009) [contents]
- Mix of articles.
Tagged Periodicals.
03 December 2009
Publications: Children & Detention, Irregular Migration/Italy, Protection & Armed Conflict, Resettled Refugees & Coping/NZ, Resettlement/Australia
The coping processes of adult refugees resettled in New Zealand, New Issues in Refugee Research, no. 179 (UNHCR, Nov. 2009) [text]
Detention and Best Interests of the Child (Canadian Council for Refugees, Nov. 2009) [text]
Professional Standards for Protection Work: Carried Out by Humanitarian and Human Rights Actors in Armed Conflict and Other Situations of Violence (ICRC, Oct. 2009) [text via ReliefWeb]
Refugee resettlement, family separation and Australia's humanitarian programme, New Issues in Refugee Research, no. 178 (UNHCR, Nov. 2009) [text]
States of exception: securitisation and irregular migration in the Mediterranean, New Issues in Refugee Research, no. 177 (UNHCR, Nov. 2009) [text]
Tagged Publications.
Detention and Best Interests of the Child (Canadian Council for Refugees, Nov. 2009) [text]
Professional Standards for Protection Work: Carried Out by Humanitarian and Human Rights Actors in Armed Conflict and Other Situations of Violence (ICRC, Oct. 2009) [text via ReliefWeb]
Refugee resettlement, family separation and Australia's humanitarian programme, New Issues in Refugee Research, no. 178 (UNHCR, Nov. 2009) [text]
States of exception: securitisation and irregular migration in the Mediterranean, New Issues in Refugee Research, no. 177 (UNHCR, Nov. 2009) [text]
Tagged Publications.
02 December 2009
Human Trafficking
December 2nd marks the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery. This was the date of the adoption of the UN Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others, in 1949.My web statistics show that "human trafficking" is one of the most common issues that brings users to both this blog and its companion wiki, "Researching Forced Migration." On the former, visitors can track references to "human trafficking" by browsing the posts that have been assigned the subject label "human trafficking" and by subscribing to the RSS feed for the same subject label. On the latter resource, visitors can browse references highlighted on the human trafficking subject category page.
In addition, those interested in monitoring this issue should keep an eye on the sidebar of this blog. This is where new journal articles and new law articles and papers are listed. These two listings are generated through my delicious bookmarks, and in both, "human trafficking" is a regularly discussed topic.
Tagged Publications.
Publications: Complex Emergencies/Africa, Detention of Children/UK, Displaced Iraqis, EU Resettlement Prog., HIV & Crises, Refugees/Kazak. & Kyrgyz.
Comments on the European Commission Communication on the establishment of a Joint EU Resettlement Programme and the European Commission Proposal for the amendment of Decision No 573/2007/EC establishing the European Refugee Fund for the period 2008 to 2013 (UNHCR, Oct. 2009) [text]
Confronting complex emergencies in Africa: Imperatives of a search for a new doctrine of humanitarian ‘security’ interventions (Institute for Security Studies, Nov. 2009) [text via Human Security Gateway]
The Detention of Children in the Immigration System (UK House of Commons, Nov. 2009) [text]
Kazakhstan/Kyrgyzstan: Exploitation of Migrant Workers, Protection Denied to Asylum Seekers and Refugees (International Federation for Human Rights, Oct. 2009) [text via Refworld]
The loss of the middle ground: the impact of crises and HIV and AIDS on ‘skipped-generation’ households (ODI, Nov. 2009) [text]
What Does the Future Hold for the Millions of Iraqi Refugees and Displaced Persons? (Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement, Nov. 2009) [text]
Tagged Publications.
Confronting complex emergencies in Africa: Imperatives of a search for a new doctrine of humanitarian ‘security’ interventions (Institute for Security Studies, Nov. 2009) [text via Human Security Gateway]
The Detention of Children in the Immigration System (UK House of Commons, Nov. 2009) [text]
Kazakhstan/Kyrgyzstan: Exploitation of Migrant Workers, Protection Denied to Asylum Seekers and Refugees (International Federation for Human Rights, Oct. 2009) [text via Refworld]
The loss of the middle ground: the impact of crises and HIV and AIDS on ‘skipped-generation’ households (ODI, Nov. 2009) [text]
What Does the Future Hold for the Millions of Iraqi Refugees and Displaced Persons? (Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement, Nov. 2009) [text]
Tagged Publications.
More Resources on Women
Following on from this earlier post, here are several additional resources that focus on women:
15 Years of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, its Causes and Consequences (1994-2009): A Critical Review (UN, 2009) [text]
- See related press release.
Iraqi Refugees: Women on the Margins (World Bridge Blog, Nov. 2009) [text]
- Part of the blog's "16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence" series.
Seeking Refuge? A Handbook for Asylum-Seeking Women (Rights of Women, Nov. 2009) [text]
Women's Asylum News, no. 88 (Nov./Dec. 2009) [text via Refworld]
Tagged Publications and Periodicals.
15 Years of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, its Causes and Consequences (1994-2009): A Critical Review (UN, 2009) [text]
- See related press release.
Iraqi Refugees: Women on the Margins (World Bridge Blog, Nov. 2009) [text]
- Part of the blog's "16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence" series.
Seeking Refuge? A Handbook for Asylum-Seeking Women (Rights of Women, Nov. 2009) [text]
Women's Asylum News, no. 88 (Nov./Dec. 2009) [text via Refworld]
Tagged Publications and Periodicals.
01 December 2009
Publications on Africa: African Australians, Cote d'Ivoire, Darfur, East Africa, Zimbabweans
Addressing Armed Violence in East Africa: A Report on World Vision Peacebuilding, Development and Humanitarian Assistance Programmes (Project Ploughshares, Nov. 2009) [text]
Between Belonging and Discrimination: The Experiences of African Australians from Refugee Backgrounds (La Trobe Refugee Research Centre, Aug. 2009) [text]
“Resilience in Darfur,” HAP Newsletter, no. 13 (Nov. 2009) [text]
- Scroll to p. 2.
Whose land is this? Land disputes and forced displacement in the western forest area of Côte d’Ivoire (IDMC, Nov. 2009) [access]
- English and French versions of the report are available, along with summaries and press releases.
Zimbabwean Migration into Southern Africa: New Trends and Responses (FMSP, Nov. 2009) [text]
Tagged Publications.
Between Belonging and Discrimination: The Experiences of African Australians from Refugee Backgrounds (La Trobe Refugee Research Centre, Aug. 2009) [text]
“Resilience in Darfur,” HAP Newsletter, no. 13 (Nov. 2009) [text]
- Scroll to p. 2.
Whose land is this? Land disputes and forced displacement in the western forest area of Côte d’Ivoire (IDMC, Nov. 2009) [access]
- English and French versions of the report are available, along with summaries and press releases.
Zimbabwean Migration into Southern Africa: New Trends and Responses (FMSP, Nov. 2009) [text]
Tagged Publications.
New Issues of Asia Pacific J Anthro., Austr. Rev. African Studies, Intl. Migration, J. Conflict & Security Law, J. Human Rts. & Civil Soc.
Asia Pacific Journal of Anthropology, vol. 10, no. 4 (2009) [contents]- Special issue on "Displacement and Resettlement."
Australasian Review of African Studies, vol. 20, no. 2 (Dec. 2009) [contents]
- Includes several articles on refugee resettlement.
International Migration, vol. 47, no. 5 (Dec. 2009) [contents]
- Mix of articles.
Journal of Conflict & Security Law, vol. 14, no. 2 (Summer 2009) [contents]
- Mix of articles, including one on the "Applicability of IHL in Mixed Situations of Disaster and Conflict."
Protection Project Journal of Human Rights and Civil Society, no. 2 (Fall 2009) [full-text]
- Focus is on "the subject of trafficking in persons from a multidisciplinary perspective... ." Includes an annotated legal bibliography on human trafficking.
Tagged Periodicals.