The New Dark Age

27 July 2011 — Pambazuka News 541: Forced migration: Rethinking ‘governance’ and justice (Pambazuka Editor)

The authoritative electronic weekly newsletter and platform for social justice in Africa

Pambazuka News (English edition): ISSN 1753-6839

Introduction

The Refugee Law Project of the Faculty of Law at Makerere University hosted the 13th International Association for the Study of Forced Migration (IASFM) Conference in Kampala, Uganda, between 3-6 July 2011.

This special issue of Pambazuka News brings together a selection of papers and research presented at the conference, which explored key dimensions of the relationship between forms and tools of governance on the one hand and patterns and experiences of forced migration on the other.

Some of the questions the conference sought to address were; to what extent is lack of ‘good governance’ a factor in generating forced migration? Are some rights violations and particular types of ‘weak state’ more intimately related to forced migration than others? How does the governance of migration intersect with other areas of governance, such as identity, gender, sexuality, and ethnicity? What can be said about the international refugee rights regime and the more recent IDP Guiding Principles as forms of international and/or global governance which both contribute to and detract from the protection of forced migrants?

According to the chief rapporteur, Priyanca Mathur Velath, ‘The papers and research presented recognised that displacement and human rights issues are increasingly inter-connected and that transitional justice is applied in conflict settings where displacement is also an issue.’

1 Features

OVERHAULING MIGRATION GOVERNANCE TO PROMOTE HUMAN RIGHTS AND JUSTICE Stephen Oola Stephen Oola writes about how a recent International Association for the Study of Forced Migration conference explored the links between transitional justice and forced migration. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/75208
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TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE AND FORCED DISPLACEMENT Adam Branch Acronyms used to conceptualise transitional justice and forced displacement can have negative political consequences when deployed to understand situations and inform interventions, observes Adam Branch, as ?people start to take that acronym for uncontested reality, forgetting the words that make it up?. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/75211
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REFUGEES AS HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS: CAN THEY PROTECT OR DO THEY NEED PROTECTING? Katie McQuaid A panel discussion at the recently held International Association for the Study of Forced Migration conference tackled the often precarious position of refugee human rights defenders. Katie McQuaid reports on the issues at stake. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/75209
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LOCAL INTEGRATION: THE FORGOTTEN DURABLE SOLUTION Berna Ataitum Berna Ataitum makes the case for the local integration of refugees in their host countries, describing it as the forgotten yet ultimate solution. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/75210
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UGANDA: THE STATE AND THE NATION Annelieke van de Wiel Uganda has had a turbulent history of nation-building, with identity often rooted in ethnicity rather than notions of citizenship, notes Annelieke van de Wiel. This year’s International Association for the Study of Forced Migration (IASFM) conference gave rise to numerous discussions on the need for the country to face up to its past and develop an inclusive Ugandan identity, van de Wiel writes. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/75207
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GOVERNMENT AS A DRIVER OF MIGRATION Angella Nabwowe Uganda ‘is seeking to come up with a law that will make it impossible for sexual minorities, or even those who know about them, to live within the country. Consequently this is going to lead to an increase in the number of people seeking asylum based on their sexual orientation,’ writes Angella Nabwowe. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/75214
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BRINGING LGBTI ISSUES INTO THE FORCED MIGRATION DEBATE Jeff Ogwaro The recent International Association for the Study of Forced Migration (IASFM) conference discussed a range of issues around LGBTI people and forced migration, writes Jeff Ogwaro, such as the fears asylum seekers may have around declaring their sexuality. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/75200
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CAN THE CRIME OF DISPLACEMENT BE ACCOUNTED AND PAID FOR? Levis Onegi Faced with the slow response to the African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons, the International Association for the Study of Forced Migration (IASFM) convened a debate over 3?6 July in Kampala on gaps between ratification and implementation, engaging member states and involving civil society. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/75201
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THE PROTECTION OF INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS AND PROPERTY RIGHTS IN AFRICA Denis Barnabas Otim Existing ?normative social, political and legal structures do not support? internally displaced persons and ‘their quest to own and have access to properties or land’, writes Denis Barnabas Otim, in an exploration of the relationship between IDPs and property rights in Africa. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/75212
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THE EXCLUSION OF URBAN IDPS Eveliina Lytinen Eveliina Lytinen reports back on a roundtable discussion about the exclusion of internally displaced persons from protection and assistance, during the recent International Association for the Study of Forced Migration conference in Uganda. http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/features/75223
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End of Pambazuka-news Digest, Vol 185, Issue 3