When the refugee status becomes an economic asset: how Malians in a Burkinabé City negotiate the “refugee” category

ABSTRACT

Since early 2016, part of the Malian urban refugees living in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso, have to “capitalize” on their refugee status to make ends meet. By examining when, why, and how the refugee status transmutes into an economic asset, this article shows how the possibilities to negotiate with the refugee category vary significantly within this group of forced migrants. Indeed, categories are not only imposed on people, but are negotiated by the actors themselves in their interactions and within their social and political economies. My article shows how the refugees’ ability or possibility to participate in the co-construction of their category is shaped by both the social and political context in which they are, as well as by wider intersectional and structural dynamics in which their lives are situated, such as socio-economic class, gender and race.     

“Traveling Pains”: Embodied Metaphors of Suffering Among Southern Sudanese Refugees in Cairo

This paper presents the results of a larger study conducted among Southern Sudanese refugees in Cairo, Egypt. "Illness talk" and body metaphors are the focus of the present work, which is based mainly on an analysis of the illness narratives of people attending a church-run medical clinic. The findings suggest that refugees use certain narrative styles in discussing their illnesses that highlight the interconnection of bodily ills and refugee-related trauma. The refugees narrated the histories of their illnesses in terms consistent and coterminous with their refugee histories, and articulated illness causes in terms of threatening assaults on their sense of self as human beings and as part of a distinct community and culture. The use of embodied metaphors to understand and cope with their current and past traumatic experiences was echoed in narratives that were nonillness related. Metaphors such as "the heart," "blood," and "body constriction" were consistently used to discuss social and cultural losses. Understanding the role that the body plays in experience and communication within a given cultural context is crucial for physicians and others assisting refugees.     

Croatian Muslims--immigrant community of indigenous Europeans

Subject of this paper is muslim population in Croatia. Its unique position as community of muslim immigrants with indigenous European origin give us plenty of research opportunities. Long history of contacts between muslims and christians on Croatian-Bosnian border evolved in many ways and resulted with today's reality that muslims are part of Croatian society. In modern age, since austrian occupation of Bosnia in 1878. bosnian muslims came to Croatia as workers, refugees, members of state apparatus, students etc. Their descendants are now Croatian citizens in third and fourth generation. Muslims managed to establish formal islamic community. On the personal level, they mix their feeling of belonging with feeling of origin. They act as equal part of Croatian society on whole range of social levels.     

Struggling with Imaginaries of Trauma and Trust: The Refugee Experience in Switzerland

This article discusses some effects of migration politics on asylum seekers and refugees and on the Swiss health services. It is based on multisited ethnographic research that tracked interpretative concepts of the refugee experience. Following a grounded theory approach, it identifies imaginaries of trauma and trust as key categories in the field of transnational migration and health. The psychiatric concept of trauma and a more popularized discourse of traumatic memory are strongly emphasized in all of the investigated field sites: the providers of primary health care and psychosocial services and representatives of social welfare agencies and law-making bodies use this "diagnosis" extensively. This leads refugees to develop tactics of a) identifying with the trauma discourse in order to become "good refugees" and achieve legal status in Switzerland; b) struggling with the ascribed pathologies and suffering from retraumatizing effects of these predominant trauma policies; and c) trying to refuse or subvert them by emphasizing the existence of structural violence in the receiving countries. An analysis of the interactions of health providers and refugees shows that it takes place in an environment of social and economic insecurity and in a shared imaginary of (mis)trust, putting at stake the moral economy of recent migration politics and the refugee experience.     

Asymptomatic Malaria in Refugees Living in a Non-Endemic South African City

Background

Asymptomatic malaria infection in refugees is both a threat to the lives of the individuals and the public in the host country. Although South Africa has been experiencing an unprecedented influx of refugees since 1994, data on malaria infection among refugees is lacking. Such information is critical since South Africa is among the countries that have planned to eliminate malaria. The objective of this study was to determine prevalence of asymptomatic malaria infection among a refugee population living in a city of KwaZulu-Natal province, South Africa.

Methods and Findings

A survey was conducted on adult refugee participants who attended a faith-based facility offering social services in a city of KwaZulu-Natal province, South Africa. The participants were screened for the presence of malaria using rapid diagnostic tests and microscopy. Demographic data for the participants were obtained using a closed ended questionnaire. Data was obtained for 303 participants consisting of 51.5% females and 47.5% males, ranging from 19 to 64 years old. More than 95% of them originated from sub-Saharan African countries. Two hundred and ninety participants provided a blood sample for screening of malaria. Of these, 3.8% tested positive for rapid diagnostic test and 5.9% for microscopy. The majority of malaria infections were due to Plasmodium falciparum.

Conclusions

The study confirms the presence of asymptomatic malaria infections among a refugee population residing in a city of KwaZulu-Natal province that is not endemic for malaria. The results have important implications for both public health and malaria control in South Africa, particularly since the country has decided to eliminate malaria by 2018. To achieve this goal, South Africa needs to expand research, surveillance and elimination activities to include non-endemic areas, particularly with high refugee populations. We further recommend use of powerful diagnostic tests such as PCR for these interventions.     

Refugees' perspectives on barriers to communication about trauma histories in primary care

Objective This study explores refugees'' perspectives regarding the nature of communication barriers that impede the exploration of trauma histories in primary care.Method Brief interviews were conducted with 53 refugee patients in a suburban primary care clinic in the Midwest USA. Participants were asked if they or their doctors had initiated conversations about the impact of political conflict in their home countries. Qualitative data analysis was guided by grounded theory. Peer debriefings of refugee healthcare professionals were incorporated into the analysis.Results Two-thirds of refugee patients reported that they never shared how they were affected by political conflict with their doctors and that their doctors never asked them about it. Most refugees stated that they would like to learn more about the impact of trauma on their health and to discuss their experiences with their doctors.Conclusion Refugees are hesitant to initiate conversations with physicians due to cultural norms requiring deference to the doctor''s authority. They also lack knowledge about how trauma affects health. Physicians should be educated to inquire directly about trauma histories with refugee patients. Refugees can benefit from education about the effects of trauma on health and about the collaborative nature of the doctor–patient relationship.     

“I should not forget!”: qualitative evidence of social and cultural transnationalism among refugees who are disconnected from home

Adding to the growing body of literature exploring the ways in which forced migrant populations engage in transnationalism, we operationalize transnational cultural reference points within a refugee community in an agricultural US mountain-west town. We present qualitative evidence of ways in which refugees retain strong symbolic ties to their homeland while also integrating into the new host culture. Data drawn from interviews and field observations with recently resettled Karen and Karenni refugees yield evidence of cultural transnationalism in self-identification, native language use, clothing, and other symbolic ties to home. The transnational optic as applied in this study reveals the broadening application of the theory to include transnational cultural reference points among migrants who are disconnected from their origin cultures.     

When "humanitarianism" becomes "development": the politics of international aid in Syria's Palestinian refugee camps

In recent years, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has attempted to go beyond its role as a provider of relief and basic services in Palestinian refugee camps and emphasize its role as a development agency. In this article, I focus on the Neirab Rehabilitation Project, an UNRWA-sponsored development project taking place in the Palestinian refugee camps of Ein el Tal and Neirab in northern Syria. I argue that UNRWA's role as a relief-centered humanitarian organization highlights the everyday suffering of Palestinian refugees, suffering that has become embedded in refugees’ political claims. I show that UNRWA's emphasis on “development” in the refugee camps is forcing Palestinian refugees in Ein el Tal and Neirab to reassess the political narrative through which they have understood their relationship with UNRWA.     

Welfare state type,labour markets and refugees: a comparison of Jews from the former Soviet Union in the United States and the Federal Republic of Germany

The massive exodus of Jews from the former Soviet Union [FSU] has been accompanied by welfare state retrenchment and labour market restructuration in the two preferred destination countries of refugee resettlement: the United States and Germany. This study compares the resettlement policies and outcomes of FSU Jews and shows how the context of resettlement, viz. differences in welfare state type, labour market formation and host ethnic community, yield marked differences in formal job market adaptation. FSU Jews in Germany are almost twice as likely as their American counterparts to rely on some form of refugee cash assistance for their primary means of support, whereas the American cohort is twice as likely to be employed in the formal labour market. However, informal labour market adaptation is quite similar. Findings suggest unwitting system convergence, each exercising a different form of social exclusion - welfare stigma and under employment for refugees in the United States, and high labour market regulation in Germany.     

Health of returnees in Osijek Region and required special measures of health care and community organization

Many citizens from the Osijek-Baranja County, in order to survive, left their homes during the 1991/92 war in Croatia and spent between 5 and 7 years in exile. The aim of this pilot research was to assess the health status (physical, mental and social) of refugee /returnee population and their use of health services, to identify the factors influencing their adaptation, and to propose the health programs, psychological and social support, which could help foster integration into the social and community life, education and employment. The study was done on a randomized sample of 589 respondents using the 2003 Croatian Health Survey with an additional questionnaire related to the problems of returnees. The results of the study show good organization of health service in returnees' communities, with exception of gynecological and dental services. There was also a presence of health transportation problem and the problem in the supply of medicines. Finally, the results show that the returnees' communities were dominated by social problems such as lack of employment, lack of support for elderly, poverty, and concerns for children's prospects. This implies the necessity for intervention in both mental and social aspects. Measures to be undertaken in the next stage of the Project will be aimed at the work in the refugee communities and based on public health working methods such as organization of the community by stimulating intergenerational solidarity, education and raising awareness of self-help.     

Nutritional status and mortality of refugee and resident children in a non-camp setting during conflict: follow up study in Guinea-Bissau

ObjectiveTo study the effects on children of humanitarian aid agencies restricting help to refugee families (internally displaced people).DesignFollow up study of 3 months.SettingPrabis peninsular outside Bissau, the capital of Guinea-Bissau, which has functioned as a refugee area for internally displaced people in the ongoing war, and the study area of the Bandim health project in Bissau.Participants422 children aged 9-23 months in 30 clusters.ResultsDuring the refugee situation all children deteriorated nutritionally, and mortality was high (3.0% in a 6 week period). Rice consumption was higher in families resident in Prabis than in refugees from Bissau but there was no difference in food expenditure. Nutritional status, measured by mid- upper arm circumference, was not associated with rice consumption levels in the family, and the decline in circumference was significantly worse for resident than for refugee children; the mid-upper arm circumference of refugee children increased faster than that of resident children. For resident children, mortality was 4.5 times higher (95% confidence interval 1.1 to 30.0) than for refugee children. Mortality for both resident and refugee children was 7.2 times higher (1.3 to 133.9) during the refugee’s stay in Prabis compared with the period after the departure of the refugees.ConclusionIn a non-camp setting, residents may be more malnourished and have higher mortality than refugees. Major improvements in nutritional status and a reduction in mortality occurred in resident and refugee children as soon as refugees returned home despite the fact that there was no improvement in food availability.

Key messages

• During the war in Guinea-Bissau, most of the population fled from the capital and moved in with relatives, friends, or strangers
• International agencies insisted on only providing help to refugees (internally displaced people)
• During the first month of conflict, there were already profound effects on the nutritional status and mortality of young children
• Food consumption was higher in resident families, but resident children were more malnourished and had higher mortality than refugee children
• Nutritional status and survival improved for both refugee and resident children once the refugees returned to Bissau

     

Knowledge,Attitudes and Practices of Contraception among Afghan Refugee Women in Pakistan: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background

During the 1980s, approximately three million people migrated from Afghanistan to Pakistan and sought refuge in several cities including the city of Karachi. After the initial settlement of the refugees, the international organizations transitioned the health care of these refugees to the two local non-profit service agencies in Karachi. One of these agencies subsidized health care to the refugees under their care and the other agency encouraged the refugees under their care to utilize governmental and non-governmental private health resources at the disposal of general public. Our objective was to measure the effect of health subsidy on the uptake of contraception among Afghan refugee women and compare them to the group of Afghan women without such a subsidy.

Methodology/Principal Findings

A randomly selected group of 650 married Afghan women-325 women in each group-participated in a detailed survey regarding the knowledge, attitude and practices of family planning and contraceptive use. 90 percent of the women in the health subsidy group had had heard of family planning, compared to the 45 percent in the non-subsidized group. The use of contraceptives was greater than two-fold in the former versus the latter. Results of logistic regression analysis revealed that the refugee women who had had access to subsidized healthcare were significantly more likely to use the contraceptive methods with advancing age as compared to the women in the non-health subsidy group. The difference remained significant after adjusting for other variables.

Conclusions/Significance

Refugee women who are provided subsidized healthcare are more inclined to use contraceptives. It is therefore important that Afghan refugee women living elsewhere in Pakistan be provided healthcare subsidy, whereby their reproductive health indicators could improve with reduced fertility. We strongly encourage facilities introducing such subsidies to refugees in resource poor settings to assess the impact through similar inquiry.     

Racial boundaries,stigma, and the re-emergence of “always being foreigners”: Iranians and the refugee crisis in Germany

The 2015 refugee crisis is at the center of public and political discourse across Europe, especially among nations that have accepted refugees. Utilizing ethnographic fieldwork and 48 in-depth interviews conducted in 2011 and 2016 with Iranians in Hamburg, Germany, this paper considers how the refugee crisis impacts the racial boundaries between Germans and immigrant communities. It details how the crisis has made ethnic nationalism, Islamophobia, anti-foreigner prejudice and racism more pronounced and salient throughout Germany. The interviews demonstrate that this climate affects Iranians in several ways: they cite feeling more threat and stigma, as well as experiences of marginality, perpetual foreignness, and discrimination. This research contributes to sociological scholarship on migration and race by examining how critical international events influence and shape processes of racialization, identity and belonging, and social boundaries and hierarchies.     

Migration as a determinant of marriage pattern: preliminary report on consanguinity among Afghans

Two sample populations, one refugee and one resident, were studied. The frequencies of consanguineous marriages came out to be 49.8%and 55.4%, respectively, for the refugees and the residents. Caste endogamy was dominant both in the residents and the refugees. The mean coefficient of inbreeding was calculated to be 0.0303 for the refugee population and 0.0332 for the resident population samples. First cousin marriage was the dominant type of marriage in both samples; father's brother's daughter (FBD) marriage was more frequent among the refugees while mother's brother's daughter(MBD) marriage was more frequent among the residents. Education has no decreasing effect on the incidence of consanguineous marriages. A significant difference in the pattern of marriages in the refugees is observed after the Saur Revolution of 1979.     

“Second generation” refugees and multilingualism: identity,race and language transmission

This paper explores the language practices, attitudes to languages and the inter-generational transmission of heritage languages amongst the UK-born adult children of refugee parents. The paper draws on empirical data from a research project based on 45 qualitative interviews with three groups of “second generation” refugees, whose parents came as Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka, Kurdish refugees from Turkey and as refugees from Vietnam. The paper explores the ways in which language is central to political discussions and to national policies on race, cohesion, diversity, “Britishness” and citizenship. These debates and policies ignore and often silence the positive role of heritage languages. This paper highlights the importance of heritage languages as a signifier for a number of wider issues of identity, which intersect with race and refugee backgrounds in complex ways.     

Health issues of Afghan refugees in California.

Since the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, more than 6 million Afghan refugees have become the world''s largest refugee population. Although refugees in Pakistan and Iran are now beginning to repatriate, continuing political turmoil in Afghanistan and children''s acculturation and educational opportunities will keep many Afghans in the United States permanently. Although there are no accurate statistics, local resettlement agencies and Afghan community leaders estimate that there are 10,000 to 35,000 Afghans in northern California. They suffer from a variety of problems common to refugees: language, economic and occupational problems, and substantial challenges in psychological, family, social, and cultural adjustment to the United States. Although many Afghans are doing well, many others have depression, psychosomatic symptoms, and posttraumatic stress disorder.     

Watching Photos in Shatila: Visualizing Politics in the 2011 March of Return

This article focuses on the 2011 March of Return in Lebanon and explores the epistemic gap between image and event, examining how nationalist iconography of the Israel–Palestine conflict informs and distorts popular understanding of the political concerns of refugees. News outlets and social media distilled the march’s political symbolism into one of determination and resolve, with refugee claims directed exclusively at Israel. Camp discussions meanwhile revealed fractured and equivocal motives, including sharp if variously veiled critiques of the Palestinian factions, the Shia political party Hezbollah, and the Lebanese State. Local debates about representation—about the production, dissemination, and interpretation of political images—are significant in their skepticism about the democratizing effects of social media, and in their suggestiveness about emergent forms of political life and aspiration for which no visual grammar yet exists.     

Updating Images of South Sudan

In this essay, I compare and contrast two recent films that update the anthropological record on what has become of Nuer and Dinka people of southern Sudan by documenting their resettlement in the United States as refugees. Lost Boys of Sudan and A Great Wonder: Lost Children of Sudan Resettling in America trace the displacement of Sudanese youth by the civil war and their adaptation to U.S. life. Both films provide an alternative way of viewing these youth that challenges the "uprooted" and "denuded" refugee stereotype. By examining Nuer and Dinka within a refugee migration framework, these films engage broader theoretical questions about the tension between refugees as victims of larger structural events beyond their control and their adaptive strategies in negotiating complex and shifting circumstances.     

Forced migration: morality and politics

Thomas Faist’s contribution lies in wishing to deconstruct political perceptions around forced migration that reduce the protection that refugees can access. One important task we have as academics is exactly to challenge dominant discourses that function to oppress or control, serving the interests of some at the costs of others, and to be aware of our own role in perpetuating such discourses. One important area where Faist’s account fails to deconstruct existing discourse on forced migration is related to the political subjecthood of refugees and the political nature of their experiences. The reasons for flight are highly political, refugees are conscious political subjects, and refugee flows have always been a matter of high politics.     

On German-Croatian and Italian-Croatian language contact

Croatia has always been a multilingual environment. The influence of German and Italian was empowered through direct political influence. During the second part of the 18th and in the 19th century native speakers of German and Italian used Croatian as a second language carrying out their duties at work. This bilingualism can tentatively be referred to as bureaucratic bilingualism. Native Croatian speakers used Italian and German as a second language in certain social areas. Such bilingualism can tentatively be called civic bilingualism. It can be assumed that starting with the 1960s civic German and Italian bilingualism no longer existed. Language contact within the daily life results in German and Italian loan words in Croatian which are still actively present and used in daily communication.