RSC Workshop: Refuge from Syria

The Syrian Humanitarian Disaster: Understanding Perceptions, Aspirations and Behaviour in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey

Wednesday, 09 December 2015
The Garden Room, Oxford Department of International Development, 3 Mansfield Road, Oxford, OX1 3TB
Hosted by Refugee Studies Centre

This one-day workshop will be held on 9 December 2015 to engage researchers and practitioners with findings from recent research into the perceptions, aspirations and behaviour of refugees from Syria, host community members, and practitioners in Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan. Professor Dawn Chatty will present her British Academy funded research on this theme alongside a number of other researchers and practitioners with recent experience in this area. The workshop aims to promote greater understanding of the unique socio-historical context of the Syrian humanitarian disaster in each of the regional hosting countries by addressing specifically changing perceptions and aspirations. In addition the workshop hopes to present examples of good practice and lessons learned from practitioners in all countries bordering on Syria.

The speed with which Syria disintegrated into extreme violence and armed conflict shocked the world and left the humanitarian aid regime in turmoil as agencies struggled to respond to the growing displacement crisis on Syria’s borders. The mass displacement has now  reached Northern Mediterranean shores as well as Central European borders. It has left the neighbouring states of Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan in a quandary as to how to effectively provide protection for these people seeking refuge. None have granted the displaced refugee status; each has established temporary measures to deal with this crisis. In many cases the displaced and the host communities have not been consulted and thus tensions have quickly emerged among host communities, displaced Syrians and humanitarian policy-makers and practitioners. That tension, despair and hopelessness has seen thousands leave the region over the past year in search for survival in dignity. This workshop aims to explore the different perceptions and aspirations of Syria’s refugees, humanitarian assistance practitioners, and the host community. It also seeks to probe what social factors with the host community, will, when circumstances permit, positively contribute to the reshaping and re-integration of Syrian society post-conflict.

Provisional programme now available >>

If you are interested in attending and taking part, kindly contact Ariell Ahearn on ahearn.ariell@gmail.com

 

Events: RSC Workshop: Refuge from Syria, 9 December 2015

RSC Workshop: Refuge from Syria
The Syrian Humanitarian Disaster: Understanding Perceptions, Aspirations and Behaviour in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey

Date: Wednesday, 9 December 2015
Location: The Garden Room, Oxford Department of International Development, 3 Mansfield Road, Oxford, OX1 3TB

This one-day workshop will be held on 9 December 2015 to engage researchers and practitioners with findings from recent research into the perceptions, aspirations and behaviour of refugees from Syria, host community members, and practitioners in Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan. Professor Dawn Chatty will present her British Academy funded research on this theme alongside a number of other researchers and practitioners with recent experience in this area. The workshop aims to promote greater understanding of the unique socio-historical context of the Syrian humanitarian disaster in each of the regional hosting countries by addressing specifically changing perceptions and aspirations. In addition the workshop hopes to present examples of good practice and lessons learned from practitioners in all countries bordering on Syria.

The speed with which Syria disintegrated into extreme violence and armed conflict shocked the world and left the humanitarian aid regime in turmoil as agencies struggled to respond to the growing displacement crisis on Syria’s borders. The mass displacement has now  reached Northern Mediterranean shores as well as Central European borders. It has left the neighbouring states of Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan in a quandary as to how to effectively provide protection for these people seeking refuge. None have granted the displaced refugee status; each has established temporary measures to deal with this crisis. In many cases the displaced and the host communities have not been consulted and thus tensions have quickly emerged among host communities, displaced Syrians and humanitarian policy-makers and practitioners. That tension, despair and hopelessness has seen thousands leave the region over the past year in search for survival in dignity. This workshop aims to explore the different perceptions and aspirations of Syria’s refugees, humanitarian assistance practitioners, and the host community. It also seeks to probe what social factors with the host community, will, when circumstances permit, positively contribute to the reshaping and re-integration of Syrian society post-conflict.

A programme of the workshop speakers and timetable will be made available shortly. If you are interested in attending and taking part, kindly contact Dawn.Chatty@qeh.ox.ac.uk or Tamsin.Kelk@qeh.ox.ac.uk

Details online at: www.rsc.ox.ac.uk/events/rsc-workshop-refuge-from-syria

Forced Migration Review issue 47, entitled ‘The Syria crisis, displacement and protection’, is now online

Forced Migration Review issue 47, entitled ‘The Syria crisis, displacement and protection’, is now online at www.fmreview.org/syria

The 6.45 million displaced people inside Syria make this the largest IDP crisis in the world, with possibly also the largest number of people who are ‘trapped’. In addition, the number of refugees from Syria continues to increase. The international community has an opportunity to set up, from now, an effective response to what will clearly become protracted displacement. The authors of the 20 articles in this latest issue of FMR offer observations that could be of value in increasing the level of protection for the displaced and in shaping assistance to both the displaced and the countries and communities that are ‘hosting’ them.

The full list of contents, with web links, is given at the end of this page.

________________________________________

FMR 47 will be available online and in print in English, Arabic, French and Spanish.

An expanded contents Listing for this issue is also available, at www.fmreview.org/syria/FMR47listing.pdf

Requesting copies: If you do not regularly receive a print copy of FMR and would like to receive a print copy of FMR 47 or the Listing for your organisation, or multiple copies for onward distribution or for use in training or at conferences, please contact us as soon as possible at fmr@qeh.ox.ac.uk. Please state how many copies you need (of full issue and/or Listing) in which languages, and provide a full postal address.

Please help disseminate this issue as widely as possible by circulating to networks, posting links, blogging, mentioning it on Twitter and Facebook and adding it to resources lists.

This issue has been published with the assistance of the Regional Development and Protection Programme, a three-year regional initiative for Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq, led by Denmark and with contributions from the EU, Denmark, Ireland, the Netherlands, UK and the Czech Republic.

See www.fmreview.org/forthcoming for details of forthcoming FMR issues.

If you no longer wish to continue receiving our occasional email alerts, please let us know.

With thanks and best wishes
Marion Couldrey & Maurice Herson
FMR Editors
fmr@qeh.ox.ac.uk

Follow FMR on Facebook and Twitter

FMR 47 The Syria crisis, displacement and protection – contents with web links

The inheritance of loss
Nigel Fisher (United Nations)
www.fmreview.org/syria/fisher

Development and protection challenges of the Syrian refugee crisis
Roger Zetter (Refugee Studies Centre) and Héloïse Ruaudel (independent)
www.fmreview.org/syria/zetter-ruaudel

The refugee crisis in Lebanon and Jordan: the need for economic development spending
Omar Dahi (Hampshire College/Carnegie Middle East Center, Beirut)
www.fmreview.org/syria/dahi

Syrians contributing to Kurdish economic growth
Anubha Sood and Louisa Seferis (Danish Refugee Council)
www.fmreview.org/syria/sood-seferis

The role of host communities in north Lebanon
Helen Mackreath (American University of Beirut)
www.fmreview.org/syria/mackreath

Refugee activists’ involvement in relief effort in Lebanon
Frances Topham Smallwood (University of Amsterdam)
www.fmreview.org/syria/smallwood

Limited legal status for refugees from Syria in Lebanon
Dalia Aranki and Olivia Kalis (Norwegian Refugee Council)
www.fmreview.org/syria/aranki-kalis

Coping strategies among self-settled Syrians in Lebanon
Cathrine Thorleifsson (University of Oslo)
www.fmreview.org/syria/thorleifsson

Refugee by association
Blanche Tax (UNHCR)
www.fmreview.org/syria/tax

Protection challenges of mobility
Melissa Phillips and Kathrine Starup (Regional Mixed Migration Secretariat/Danish Refugee Council)
www.fmreview.org/syria/phillips-starup

A duty and a burden on Jordan
Saleh Al-Kilani (Jordanian Ministry of Interior)
www.fmreview.org/syria/alkilani

For beneficiary-led protection programming in Jordan
Sinead McGrath (International Catholic Migration Commission in Jordan)
www.fmreview.org/syria/mcgrath

If Israel accepted Syrian refugees and IDPs in the Golan Heights
Crystal Plotner (Al-Marsad, Arab Human Rights Centre in Golan Heights)
www.fmreview.org/syria/plotner

Gender, conscription and protection,and the war in Syria
Rochelle Davis, Abbie Taylor and Emma Murphy (Georgetown University)
www.fmreview.org/syria/davis-taylor-murphy

The vulnerability of Palestinian refugees from Syria
Leah Morrison (Oxford Brookes University)
www.fmreview.org/syria/morrison

The impact of displacement on disabled, injured and older Syrian refugees
Marcus Skinner (HelpAge International)
www.fmreview.org/syria/skinner

The mental health of Syrian refugee children and adolescents
Leah James, Annie Sovcik, Ferdinand Garoff and Reem Abbasi (Center for Victims of Torture)
www.fmreview.org/syria/james-sovcik-garoff-abbasi

The inside story: internal displacement in Syria
Erin Mooney (ProCap)
www.fmreview.org/syria/mooney

How the crisis is altering women’s roles in Syria
Zerene Haddad (Jesuit Refugee Service, Middle East and North Africa)
www.fmreview.org/syria/haddad

Mobility as a solution
Lucas Oesch (Groupe de recherches et d’études sur la Méditerranée et le Moyen Orient)
www.fmreview.org/syria/oesch

 

Events: Crisis in Syria: Conflict & Refugees (short films and panel discussion)

The Refugee Council, in collaboration with the Refugee Law Initiative at the School of Advanced Study, is hosting a film screening and panel discussion entitled ‘Crisis in Syria: Conflict & Refugees’. Four short documentary films on the Syrian crisis will be shown, followed by an expert panel discussion.

The panel discussion will include: Roland Schilling (UK representative, UNHCR), Olly Lambert (Filmmaker), Maurice Wren (CEO, Refugee Council and panel Chair), Sonia Koury (Syrian refugee doctor) and further speakers (TBC).

Date and time: Friday 22nd November, 6.30 – 9.00pm (refreshments will be served).

Location: Chancellor’s Hall, Senate House, Malet Street, London, WC1E 7HU.

To book your free tickets please RSVP to rebecca.lancaster@refugeecouncil.org.uk.

www.refugeecouncil.org.uk/syria

 

Event: The Middle East: News and Narratives – City University’s Olive Tree Forum at the Inside Out Festival

Event:

The Middle East: News and Narratives – City University’s Olive Tree Forum at the Inside Out Festival

Thursday 24 October 2013, 7pm to 8.30pm. Doors open 6.30pm.

FREE but booking is essential.

College Chapel, King’s College London, Strand Campus, London WC2R 2LS

www.insideoutfestival.org.uk/2013/events/the-middle-east-news-and-narratives-city-universitys-olive-tree-forum-at-the-inside-out-festival/

How do we disentangle ‘news’ from media reports which are framed in terms of one or other of the competing ‘narratives’ about what’s happening in the Middle East? How do we decide whether the Syrian regime, the rebels or the Americans can be believed? Whose ‘narrative’ is the more compelling – the Israeli one or the Palestinian one, if we are to understand what drives their conflict?

Time was, we did not even talk in terms of ‘narratives’ at all. But since the 1990s it has become common parlance. Academics use the term to describe the mental maps that we all absorb as we grow up (from history lessons, literature, politics and family stories) that frame our understanding of who we are and our place in the world. Politicians talk about competing with each other and the media to ‘frame the national narrative’ so that it reinforces their view of the world and serves their interests.

We invite you to come and discuss what’s at stake in understanding the contemporary Middle East.

Panel

Rosemary Hollis – Professor of Middle East Policy Studies and Director of the Olive Tree Programme, City University London. Her book on Britain and the Middle East in the 9/11 Era was published in 2010, RIIA and Wiley Blackwell.

Dr James Rodgers – Academic (City University London) and journalist. During his BBC career (1995-2010), his postings included Moscow, Brussels, and Gaza where, from 2002-04, he was the only international journalist based in the territory. He is the author of No Road Home: Fighting for Land and Faith in Gaza (Abramis, 2013), and Reporting Conflict (Palgrave Macmillan, 2012).

Yoav Galai – Olive Tree scholar at City University London (2008-11) and prior to that Jerusalem-based photojournalist.

Bahaa Milhem – Palestinian journalist and TV presenter, Olive Tree scholar at City University London (2010-13)

New Reports and Publications, inc. RSC Working Papers, World of Work report 2013, Update on Syria

World of Work Report 2013: “Repairing the economic and social fabric”
Published by the International Labour Office, (ILO)

The study analyses the global employment situation five years after the start of the global financial crisis. It looks at labour market performance and projections both at the global and regional levels.

Download the full report (PDF in English only)
Download the summary (PDF)
See Also: United Nations News Centre Press Release and also an Independent Press Story.

Special Issue of The Citizen Artist News: ‘commemorating the University’s transformation into a Border Regime’
Access:  [Download Here]

The two worlds of humanitarian innovation
RSC Working paper 94
By Louise Bloom and Dr Alexander Betts

This paper considers the role innovation can play in making humanitarian action more sustainable and efficient while reducing dependency. Many organisations have begun to examine how innovation can help them deliver better services. However, this ‘top-down’ focus on organisational improvement, while vital, neglects the possibilities of ‘bottom-up’ innovation: the ways in which beneficiary populations can use their own talents and skills to foster self-reliance and long term solutions to their situations. The paper draws on innovation theory, design theory and participatory development approaches to build a research framework for examining this kind of innovation. Rather than viewing beneficiary populations solely as recipients of aid, the authors see them as actors with agency who can use their aspirations, skills and community resources to help craft sustainable and appropriate humanitarian solutions.

The authors are both part of the Humanitarian Innovation Project at the Refugee Studies Centre, where Dr Betts is Director and Ms Bloom is a Research Officer. Find out more about the Project at http://www.oxhip.org/.

[Access and Download Working Paper]

Writing the ‘Other’ into humanitarian discourse: Framing theory and practice in South-South humanitarian responses to forced displacement
RSC Working Paper 93
By Julia Pacitto and Elena Fiddian-Qasmiyeh

This paper addresses the dearth of academic research into humanitarian responses by actors of the global South. It challenges the deeply-held assumption among both academics and practitioners that humanitarianism is chiefly a product of Enlightenment thinking and the nineteenth century missionary activity of Western religious groups. There is a great deal of academic literature on responses to humanitarian crises by institutions and actors of the global North. However, there is comparatively little on those responses by the global South, and in particular almost none on Southern responses to crises of forced displacement.

The paper argues in favour of a more nuanced conceptualisation of humanitarianisms, calling for more academic study of the various humanitarianisms of the South, and encouraging academics and practitioners to critically engage with the many different solidarities which can drive humanitarian action. It cites specific examples of South-South humanitarian responses to forced displacement in Asia, Latin America, Africa and the Middle East, including those of faith-based humanitarianism.

[Access and Download Working Paper]

UN Human Rights Council: Report of the independent international
commission of inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic
Published 16 August 2013
[Download Report]

 

New Regional Publications on Europe; Syria; and Australia & New Zealand

Details of these new publications were originally circulated by Elisa Mason on the incredibly useful: Forced Migration Current Awareness Blog.  Further details can be found on the website at:  http://fm-cab.blogspot.co.uk/

New Regional Publications on Europe

Annual Report on the Situation of Asylum in the European Union 2012 (EASO, 2013) [text via Refworld]

Brief Information Note on the Main Asylum-Related Legal Changes in Hungary as of 1 July 2013 (Hungarian Helsinki Committee, July 2013) [text via Refworld]

An EU-Turkey Readmission Agreement: Undermining the Rights of Migrants, Refugees and Asylum Seekers? (Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network, June 2013) [text via Oppenheimer Chair]

Frontier Europe: Human Rights Abuses on Greece’s Border with Turkey (Amnesty International, July 2013) [text]

Pope Francis Visits Lampedusa in Solidarity with Migrants and Residents (ICMC, July 2013) [text]

Sweden and Immigration: From Economic Migrants to Humanitarians (SSRN, Nov. 2012) [text]

UNHCR Comments and Recommendations on the Proposed Act Amending the International Protection Act (EVA 2013-1711-00240) (UNHCR, June 2013) [text]

UNHCR Comments and Recommendations on the Proposed Amendments to the Aliens Act in Slovenia (UNHCR, 2013?) [text]

New Regional Publications on Syria

Failing Syrian Refugees in Iraq’s Kurdish Region: International Actors Can Do More (Norwegian Refugee Council, June 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]

Iraq/Jordan/Turkey: Syrians Blocked from Fleeing War (Human Rights Watch, July 2013) [text]

Lebanese Contradictory Responses to Syrian Refugees Include Stress, Hospitality, Resentment, Policy Brief (Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs & Fafo, June 2013) [text]
– See also other materials related to this project.

Nowhere People: The Refugees of Syria by Moises Saman (Time Magazine LightBox, July 2013) [access]
– Photo essay.

Syria’s Spinoff Crisis (Brown Political Review, June 2013) [text]

Syrian Refugee Crisis: Can the Breaking Point Be Prevented? (Brookings-LSE Project on Internal Displacement, June 2013) [text]

Syrian Refugees in Turkey: The Limits of an Open Door Policy (UpFront Blog, June 2013) [text]

New Regional Publications on Australia & New Zealand

Opportunity:

Refugees & Australia, 1972-2012 [info]
– Special exhibit that runs until 12 May 2014 at the Migration Museum in Adelaide, Australia.

Publications:

A Better Way: Regional Cooperation, Policy Brief (Refugee Council of Australia, June 2013) [text]

Bob Carr and the Ghost of Philip Ruddock (Inside Story, July 2013) [text]

FactCheck: Are Asylum Seekers Really Economic Migrants? (The Conversation, July 2013) [text]

Just Hook around Tasmania and Pop across the Tasman (Inside Story, June 2013) [text]

No Country is an Island (Inside Story, June 2013) [text]

“Pragmatic Answers to the Asylum Seeker Question,” Eureka Street Extra (June 2013) [text]

Pushed to the Margins: Building Pathways towards Greater Social Inclusion for Refugee Women in Australia (Australian Centre for Leadership for Women, June 2013) [text via BroCAP]

“Why Bob Carr is Kidding Himself about Refugees,” Eureka Street, vol. 23, no. 13 (July 2013) [text]

World Refugee Day: New Zealand at Risk of Abusing Human Rights in the Name of Border Control (Amnesty International, June 2013) [text]

World Refugee Day 2013: Mangere Refugee Resettlement Centre (NZ Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, June 2013) [text]

 

 

New Regional Publications on Asia, esp. Myanmar and Syria/Syrians

Details of these new publications were originally circulated by Elisa Mason on the incredibly useful: Forced Migration Current Awareness Blog.  Further details can be found on the website at:  http://fm-cab.blogspot.co.uk/

New Regional Publications on Asia, esp. Myanmar

Bridging the Housing, Land and Property Gap – The Need to Effectively Address Housing, Land and Property Rights during Peace Negotiations and in the Context of Refugee/IDP Return: Preliminary Recommendations to the Government of Myanmar, Ethnic Actors and the International Community (Displacement Solutions, June 2013) [text]

Cyclone in Myanmar Uproots Violence-displaced in Rakhine State yet again (IDMC Blog, May 2013) [text]

Myanmar: Protecting Minority Rights is Non-negotiable (Refugees International, May 2013) [text]

North Korea: Denial of Rights Forces Back Refugees (Human Rights Watch, May 2013) [text]
– See also related UNHCR press release.

Responding to Emergencies in Southeast Asia: Can We do Better? (Save the Children, Sept. 2012) [text via ReliefWeb]

“Sri Lanka: A Contemporary Case of Paradoxes?,” Fahamu Refugee Legal Aid Newsletter, no. 38 (June 2013) [full-text]

“Statement on Asylum Trends and Levels in 2012 in Japan,” Fahamu Refugee Legal Aid Newsletter, no. 38 (June 2013) [full-text]

“What Happens Post-deportation? The Experience of Deported Afghans,” Migration Studies, Advance Access, 8 May 2013 [free full-text]

New Regional Publications on Syria and Syrians

Close to Combustion: Syrian Conflict Inflames Regional Refugee Crisis (Fair Observer, June 2013) [text]

Deluge of Syrian Refugees in Lebanon Awakens Old Sectarian Divisions (IPI Global Observatory, June 2013) [text]

Overnight in Jordan’s Za’atari Camp (IRIN, June 2013) [text]

Syria’s Internally Displaced – ‘The world has forgotten us’ (Amnesty International, June 2013) [text]

Syria’s Unchecked Humanitarian Crisis, Washington, DC, 19 June 2013 [access]
– Follow link for video; see also photo gallery at right of Syrian refugees in Jordan and Lebanon.

Zaatari Governance Plan (UNHCR, June 2013) [text]

A new Regional Response Plan for Syria has been issued for 2013.  Currently, 1.6 million Syrian refugees are being hosted in five different countries, and some 4.25 million are internally displaced.  The plan estimates that by year-end a total of 3.45 million refugees will be in need of assistance. “The total financial requirements in this Regional Response Plan amount to close to US$ 3 billion for international agencies and NGOs and an additional US$ 830 million for the Governments of Jordan and Lebanon.” The UN is also appealing for US$1.41 billion to help people within Syria.

Highlights of the plan are provided here.  See also this related press release and infographic.

Publications:

“Crisis in Lebanon: Camps for Syrian Refugees?,” Forced Migration Review, no. 43 (May 2013) [open access text]

Safe No More: Students and Schools under Attack in Syria (Human Rights Watch, June 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]

The Syrian Refugee Crisis and Lessons from the Iraqi Refugee Experience (Boston University Institute for Iraqi Studies, May 2013) [text]
– Workshop report.

Syrians Seeking Refuge in Libya (IRIN, May 2013) [text]

 

New Regional Publications on Syria; Iraq; and Africa

New Regional Publications on Syria

Childhood Under Fire: the impact of two years of conflict in Syria.
By Save the Children.

From the very beginning of the crisis in Syria, children have been its forgotten victims – facing death, trauma and suffering, and deprived of basic humanitarian aid. Save the Children estimates that nearly 2 million children are in need of assistance in Syria…

This report shows how the conflict is affecting all aspects of children’s lives. Families are struggling to find a safe place to stay, as nearly 3 million buildings have been damaged or destroyed. The lines of fighting move almost daily, so families often do not know if the place they’ve settled in today will be safe tomorrow. Most displaced families share overcrowded apartments and houses, but an estimated 80,000 internally displaced people are sleeping out in caves, parks or barns.

[Download Full Report]
(Source: Docubase]

New Regional Publications on Iraq

Iraq: A Decade of Abuses
by Amnesty International.

Ten years after the US-led invasion that toppled the brutal dictatorship of Saddam Hussein, Iraq remains mired in human rights abuses. Thousands of Iraqis are detained without trial or serving prison sentences imposed after unfair trials, torture remains rife and continues to be committed with impunity, and the new Iraq is one of the world’s leading executioners. The government hanged 129 prisoners in 2012, while hundreds more languished on death row. Yet, when he launched the campaign of “shock and awe” in March 2003, that swept away Saddam Hussein’s regime within just four weeks, then US President George W Bush justified the military intervention partly on human rights grounds, pointing to the many grave crimes committed under the Iraqi leader. The decade since, however, as this report shows, has brought only limited change although tens of thousands of Iraqis’ lives have been lost, mostly during the political and sectarian violence that succeeded the armed conflict and continues to this day. As the record shows, in the years when they held sway, the US-dominated coalition of occupying forces created their own legacies of human rights abuse, for which there is yet to be full accountability, and failed to implement new standards that fundamentally challenged the mould of repression set under Saddam Hussein. Today, assuredly, many Iraqis enjoy greater rights and freedom than existed under the ousted dictator but the margin of improvement is far less than it should be, and the country remains wracked by political, religious and other divisions and serious abuses of human rights.

[Download Full Report]
(Source: Docubase)

 

New Regional Publications on Africa

“I can’t be a citizen if I am still a refugee.”: Former Burundian Refugees Struggle to Assert their newTanzanian Citizenship
By the International Refugee Rights Initiative.
[Download Full Report]

Architects of Atrocity: The Sudanese Government’s War Crimes, Crimes against Humanity, and Torture in South Kordofan and Blue Nile States.
By the Enough Project.
[Download Full Report]

 

 

New Regional Publications on Europe; The Americas; and Syrians

Details of these new publications were originally circulated by Elisa Mason on the incredibly useful: Forced Migration Current Awareness Blog.  Further details can be found on the website at:  http://fm-cab.blogspot.co.uk/

New Regional Publications on Europe

“African Irregular Migrants in Malta: Exploring Perceptions and Renegotiating the Socio-Cultural Siege of Malta,” Pursuit: The Journal of Undergraduate Research at the University of Tennessee, vol. 4, no. 1 (Dec. 2012) [full-text]
Asylum: Fixing a Broken System (Euronews, May 2013) [access]
– Follow link above for news report and this link for related debate on asylum.

Asylum Seekers and Refugees were Already Marginalised in Cyprus; Now, with the Crisis, their Situation is Deteriorating (ECRE, May 2013) [text]

Evaluation of the Early Legal Advice Project (UK Home Office, May 2013) [text]

Papers presented at 13th European Union Studies Association Biennial Conference, Baltimore, Maryland, USA, 9-11 May 2013 [info]
– Here are two titles of interest; check paper archive for more: “Normative Regimes in the Regulation of Asylum and Immigration: International Conventions – Attitudes – EU Integration” and “Linking Berlin and Brussels: Nongovernmental Organizations Engage the European Union on Asylum.”

Regional Study: Management of the External Borders of the EU and its Impact on the Human Rights of Migrants, UN Doc. No. A/HRC/23/46 (UN General Assembly, April 2013) [access]
– Report is available in .DOC format; background info. on the study is available here.

The Statistical and Econometric Analysis of Asylum Application Trends and Their Relationship to GDP in the EEA (arXiv.org, May 2013) [text]

Study on the Situation of Third-country Nationals Pending Return/Removal in the EU Member States and the Schengen Associated Countries (European Commission, March 2013) [text]

New Regional Publications on The Americas

2012 Refugee Claim Data and IRB Member Recognition Rates (Canadian Council for Refugees, May 2013) [text]

Colombia: Between the Humanitarian Crisis and Hope of Peace (Norwegian Peacebuilding Resource Centre, May 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]

Lessons from the Earthquake in Haiti: A Survey on the IDPs and on the Resettled Households (Migration Policy Centre, May 2013) [text]
– English summary of a French-language research report by the ACP Observatory on Migration.

The Price of Fear (IRIN, May 2013) [text]
– Discusses fear of crime and gang violence.

Refugiados en México: Perfiles Sociodemográficos e Integración Social (UNHCR, 2012; launched May 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]

New Regional Publications on Syrians

“Forced Displacements from Syria or How to Institutionalize Regimes of Suffering,” ESIL Reflections, vol. 2, no. 6 (May 2013) [text]

The Past, Present and Future of Transnational Conflict in Jordan: A Study of Syrian Refugees in the Hashemite Kingdom, Masters Capstone Paper Project (Illinois State University, May 2013) [text]

Mission Report: An NGO Perspective on the Response to the Syria Crisis (ICVA & InterAction, May 2013) [text]

Multimedia Memo: Syria (UNHCR) [access]

People on the Move: ‘For many displaced Syrians, going back home is out of the question’ (Amnesty International, May 2013) [text]

Syria Refugees: Your Stories (Guardian Witness) [access]

 

 

New Regional Publications on Syria

Details of these new publications were originally circulated by Elisa Mason on the incredibly useful: Forced Migration Current Awareness Blog.  Further details can be found on the website at:  http://fm-cab.blogspot.co.uk/

New Regional Publications on Syria

Aid Inside Syria: Too Little, But Not Too Late (Refugees International, April 2013) [text]

Do Not Abandon the People of Syria (Trust.org, April 2013) [text]

Integrated Assessment of Syrian Refugees in Host Communities (Oxfam, March 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]

*Inter-agency Regional Response for Syrian Refugees – Health and Nutrition Bulletin: Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon, January-March 2013 (UNHCR, April 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]
– See also related news story.

Overtaken by Need: The World’s Failure to Meet Syria’s Escalating Humanitarian Crisis (Oxfam, April 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]

Solutions for Syria’s Refugees (NYT Room for Debate, April 2013) [access]

Where the War Still Echoes: A Series on Syrian Refugees (IRIN, April 2013) [access]
– Film series that follows a family over the course of a year in Za’atari camp in Jordan.

*updated

*Syria: Humanitarian Needs Overview (OCHA, April 2013) [text]

Syria’s Humanitarian Crisis Has No End in Sight (Brookings-LSE Project on Internal Displacement, April 2013) [access]
– Video of expert Q&A.

“Syria’s Refugees: Birth and Life in Zaatari Camp – in Pictures,” The Guardian, 22 April 2013 [access]

Syrian Refugees and Food Insecurity in Lebanon: Secondary Literature and Data Desk Review (WFP, March 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]
– See also the previous review conducted for Iraq, Jordan and Turkey.

Syrian Refugees in Urban Jordan: Baseline Assessment of Community-identified Vulnerabilities among Syrian Refugees Living in Irbid, Madaba, Mufraq, and Zarqa (Care, April 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]

Turkey: National Authorities and the International Community Must Act in Partnership to Meet the Needs of Syrian Refugees (Amnesty International, April 2013) [text]

Za’tari Camp: A Snapshot of a Simmering Crisis (Dawn Chatty’s Blog, March 2013) [text]

*updated

 

New Regional Publications on Africa and Syria

Details of these new publications were originally circulated by Elisa Mason on the incredibly useful: Forced Migration Current Awareness Blog.  Further details can be found on the website at:  http://fm-cab.blogspot.co.uk/

New Publications on Africa

Armed Violence and Stabilisation in Western Equatoria: Recovering from the Lord’s Resistance Army (Danish Refugee Council & Danish Demining Group, April 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]

Évaluation approfondie sur la sécurité alimentaire en situation d’urgence dans les camps de réfugiés maliens et villages hôtes au Burkina Faso (World Food Programme, March 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]

I Am a Refugee, and I Have Rights (Refugees International Blog, April 2013) [text]

“Refugees, Ransoms and Revolt ,” Middle East Report, vol. 43 (Spring 2013) [text]

Stranded in the Desert (MSF, April 2013) [text]
– See also related IRIN news story.

Upper Nile Refugee Crisis: Avoiding Past Mistakes in the Year to Come (Oxfam, April 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]

New Publications on Syria

Appeal by Heads of Leading UN Humanitarian Agencies for the People of Syria (OCHA et al., April 2013) [text via ICMC]

A City that’s not a City – Inside a Syrian Refugee Camp (Poverty Matters Blog, April 2013) [text]

Is Turkey’s Approach to Syrian Refugees Sustainable? (IRIN, April 2013) [text]

Palestinian Refugees from Syria in Lebanon (PRRN Blog,k April 2013) [access]

Promised Aid Funding for Syria Reaches Half-way Point (IRIN, April 2013) [text]

Security Council Informed that Humanitarian Needs in Syria are Growing Rapidly (UN, April 2013) [access]
– See also remarks from OCHA, SRSG for Children and Armed Conflict, and UNHCR.

Syrians Don’t Belong in Camps (The Atlantic, April 2013) [text via Brookings-LSE Project]

[Map credit: “Syria: Numbers and Locations of Syrian Refugees,” U.S. Dept. of State, April 2013]

New Regional Publications on Syrian and Thematic Publications on Urban Refugees

Details of these new publications were originally circulated by Elisa Mason on the incredibly useful: Forced Migration Current Awareness Blog.  Further details can be found on the website at:  http://fm-cab.blogspot.co.uk/

New Regional Publications on Syria

“As Syrian Refugee Population Nears 1 Million, Relief Agencies Cannot Keep Up,” The Washington Post, 4 March 2013 [text]
– Includes an interactive graphic that shows an expanding refugee camp in Jordan.

Humanitarian Financing to the Syria Crisis in 2013 (Global Humanitarian Assistance, Feb. 2013) [text]

“One Million Syrian Refugees,” New York Times, 6 March 2013 [text]
– An op-ed from the UN High Commissioner.

“Syrian Refugees: How Many Are There and Where Are They?,” The Guardian’s DataBlog, 6 March 2013 [access]

Syrian Refugees in Turkey, MPC Research Report 2013/05 (Migration Policy Centre, 2013) [text]

“UNRWA Head Warns of Palestinian Crisis in Syria,” IPS, 7 March 2013 [text]

New Thematic Publications on Urban Refugees

Economic Empowerment of Urban Refugee Youth: Guiding Principles (Women’s Refugee Commission, Jan. 2013) [access]
– Follow the link for access to the text of the Guiding Principles, an executive summary and a presentation about them. See also related Huffington Post report.

“No Way Back? Adaptation and Urbanization of IDP Livelihoods in the Darfur Region of Sudan,” Development and Change, vol. 44, no. 1 (Jan. 2013) [free full-text]

Refugee Livelihoods in Urban Areas: Identifying Program Opportunities (Feinstein International Center, Feb. 2013) [text]
– See also case studies on Ecuador, Egypt, and Israel.

“Refugees in Kenya: A Briefing on Recent Developments and Implications for Urban Refugee Policy,” Fahamu Refugee Legal Aid Newsletter, no. 35 (March 2013) [full-text]

“Representing ‘Hidden’ Populations: A Symposium on Sampling Techniques,” Feature section in Journal of Refugee Studies, vol. 26, no. 1 (March 2013) [contents]
– Follow link for abstracts and related texts.

Urban Refugee Research and Social Capital: A Roundtable Report and Literature Review (IRC & Women’s Refugee Commission, Feb. 2013) [access]

 

 

New Regional Publications on Africa, esp. Kenya; Middle East, esp. Syria; and Europe

Details of these new publications were originally circulated by Elisa Mason on the incredibly useful: Forced Migration Current Awareness Blog.  Further details can be found on the website at:  http://fm-cab.blogspot.co.uk/

New Publications on Africa, esp. Kenya

Behind the Scenes: Lessons Learnt from Developing a National Policy Framework on Internal Displacement in Kenya (Refugee Consortium of Kenya & Danish Refugee Council, Feb. 2013) [text]

Congo’s Elderly Act as Caregivers – But Who Will Care for Them? (Refugees International Blog, Feb. 2013) [text]

The Fine Line between Deportation and Refoulement: The Case of Zimbabweans in South Africa (Uppsala University, Autumn 2012) [text]

Invisible Suffering: The DRC’s Unofficial IDP Camps (Think Africa Press, Feb. 2012) [text]

Kenya: Government Directive Leads to Severe Abuses and Forced Returns (Refugees International, Feb. 2013) [text]

Kenya’s Somalis Face Urban Ejection (Think Africa Press, Feb. 2013) [text]

Kenyans Head to the Polls – and a New Displacement Crisis? (UpFront Blog, Feb. 2012) [text]

“Organization of African Unity and African Union Engagement with Refugee Protection: 1963–2011,” African Journal of International and Comparative Law, vol. 21, no. 1 (Feb. 2013) [extract]

Protection of the Right to Seek and Obtain Asylum under the African Human Rights System (Martinus Nijhoff, Feb. 2013) [info]

New Publications on Middle East, esp. Syria

Analysis of Host Community-Refugee Tensions in Mafraq, Jordan (Mercy Corps, Oct. 2012) [text via InterAction]

Camp New Iraq (Formerly Camp Ashraf) Residents and the Processing of their Cases for Solutions, Update no. 5 (UNHCR, Feb. 2013) [text]

Can Israel Aid Syrian Refugees? (Huffington Post, Feb. 2013) [text]

Israel Deports Refugees to Sudan Despite Threat to their Lives (Daily Beast, Feb. 2013) [text]
– See also related AP story.

Journal of Palestinian Refugee Studies, vol. 2. no. 2 (Autumn 2012) [full-text]
– Mix of articles, with several on Palestinian refugees in Syria.  Individual articles can be accessed here.

*The Syrian Crisis and its Repercussions: Internally Displaced Persons and Refugees, MPC Research Report 2013/03 (Migration Policy Centre, 2013) [text]

UNHCR Leader Warns of Moment of Truth for Syria, Risk of Unmanageable Crisis (UNHCR, Feb. 2013) [text]
– Note: A link to the text of the HC’s remarks to the UN Security Council was originally included, but now seems to have been removed.

UNHCR Warns of Humanitarian Cost of Syrian Conflict, especially on the Displaced (UNHCR, Feb. 2013) [text]
– Includes link to text of AHC’s speech to the UN Human Rights Council.

New Publication on North America

“Aid Groups Warn of Human Cost of Sequester,” Foreign Policy, 21 Feb. 2013 [extract via Refugees International]

New Refugee Determination System in Canada (Oppenheimer Chair, Feb. 2013) [text]

Open Letter from 40 Organizations Supporting U.S. Humanitarian Assistance Accounts (InterAction, Feb. 2013) [text]
– See also related press release.

Senate Immigration Hearing Should Include Fixes for Flawed Asylum System (Human Rights First, Feb. 2013) [text]

New Publications on Europe

“1952 – 2012: Le Juge Français de l’Asile, de la Commission de Recours des Réfugiés à la Cour Nationale du Droit d’Asile,” Colloque à l’Occasion des 60 ans de la CNDA, Paris, 29 Octobre 2012
– Conference materials include a speech by the Vice President of the Conseil d’État; a speech by the President of the Conseil National des Barreaux; and a keynote address by UNHCR’s Director of International Protection at a roundtable on social group.

Europe: The Dublin Regulation 10 Years on, Inhospitality Means Denial of Protection (Jesuit Refugee Service, Feb. 2013) [text]

Facing 2020: Developing a New European Agenda for Immigration and Asylum Policy (Migration Policy Institute Europe, Feb. 2013) [text]

“Ideas of ‘Home’ and ‘Return Home’ in Voluntary Return Messaging – A Contemplation on the Impact of Passage of Time and Sense of Failure on Asylum-seekers’ Engagements with Voluntary Return in Ireland,” Migration Policy Practice, vol. III, no. 1 (Feb./March 2013) [text]
– Scroll to p. 15.

Submission to Council of Europe Committee of Ministers: M.S.S. v Belgium and Greece, Application No 30696/09 (Amnesty International, Feb. 2013) [text]

When Maternity Doesn’t Matter: Dispersing Pregnant Women Seeking Asylum (Refugee Council, Feb. 2013) [text]

 

 

New Regional Publications on Africa; Europe; and the Middle East, esp. Syria

Details of these new publications were originally circulated by Elisa Mason on the incredibly useful: Forced Migration Current Awareness Blog.  Further details can be found on the website at:  http://fm-cab.blogspot.co.uk/

New Publications on Africa

“Afraid and Exhausted: Striking Portraits of Mali’s Refugees,” Washington Post, 29 Jan. 2013 [access]
– Highlights portraits from UNHCR’s Instagram feed.

Displacement, Disharmony and Disillusion: Understanding Host-Refugee Tensions in Maban County, South Sudan (Danish Demining Group, Jan. 2013) [text]

Statement by the African Commission on the Present Human Rights Situation in Mali (African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Jan. 2013) [text]
– The texts of the resolutions referenced in this statement are here: 209, 210, and 217

UNHCR Position on the Directive by the Kenyan Government on the Relocation of Refugees from the Urban Centres to the Refugee Camps (UNHCR, Jan. 2013) [text]
– See also related IRIN news story and RI blog post.

UNHCR’s Rwanda Cessation: Flawed, but Perhaps Not Entirely Wrong (RSDWatch, Jan. 2013) [text]

Urban Refugee Education in Uganda: A Solution from the Non-formal Education Sector, Paper presented at panel on “Not Business as Usual: Education in Emergency and Conflict Settings – The Lived Experiences of the Oft Forgotten,” at the Global Education Leadership Opportunities Conference, Boston, 24-25 January 2013 [text]

New Publications on Europe

“Asylum Legal Framework and Policy of the Slovak Republic,” Jurisprudence, vol. 19, no. 4 (2012) [open access text]

“Cultural Identity as a Specific Dimension of the Socio-Cultural Dynamics: Refugees in Temerin,” Journal of Identity and Migration Studies, vol. 6, no. 2 (Autumn/Winter 2012) [full-text]
– Scroll to p. 55.

Enhancing Intra-EU Solidarity Tools to Improve Quality and Fundamental Rights Protection in the Common European Asylum System (ECRE, Feb. 2013) [text]

Feeling Like an Outsider: A Case Study of Refugee Identity in the Czech Republic, New Issues in Refugee Research, no. 251 (UNHCR, Jan. 2013) [text]

New Publication on the Middle East, esp. Syria.

“Book Review: Displaced at Home: Ethnicity and Gender among Palestinians in Israel,” Journal of International Women’s Studies, vol. 13, no. 3 (2012) [open access text]

“Drowning in the Flood: Foreign Governments and Agencies are Failing Syria’s Refugees,” The Economist, 2 Feb. 2013 [text]

Emergency Response to Housing, Land and Property Issues in Syria (Global Protection Cluster, Jan. 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]

Humanitarian Financing to the Syria Crisis in 2013 (Global Humanitarian Assistance, Jan. 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]

“Palestinian Refugees Struggle to Survive,” Nature Middle East, 20 Jan. 2013 [text]

Trapped Between Africa and Saudi Arabia (Lens, Jan. 2013) [access]
– Photos of African refugees in Yemen.