Explaining Refugee Return and Transnationalism
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A University of Sussex DPhil thesis Available online via Sussex Research Online: http://sro.sussex.ac.uk/ This thesis is protected by copyright which belongs to the author. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the Author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the Author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Please visit Sussex Research Online for more information and further details IRAQI REFUGEES’ ASSISTED AND SPONTANEOUS RETURN FROM SYRIA AND JORDAN VANESSA IARIA THESIS SUBMITTED FOR THE QUALIFICATION OF PHD IN MIGRATION STUDIES UNIVERSITY OF SUSSEX APRIL 2013 ii I hereby declare that this thesis has not been, and will not be, submitted in whole or in part to another University for the award of any other degree. Signature: __________________________________ iii Table of contents List of figures vi List of abbreviations vii Foreign terms ix Acknowledgments xi Map of the Middle East xiii Map of Iraq and neighbouring countries xiv Summary xv Chapter One: Introduction 1 1.1 Introduction: background and aim of the study 1 1.2 Assisted refugee return to conflict and post-conflict situations 3 1.3 Spontaneous refugee return and transnational migration 8 1.4 Outline of the thesis 13 Chapter Two: Explaining refugee return and transnationalism 16 2.1 Introduction 16 2.2 Regionalism and transnational migration 17 2.3 Institutional cooperation in the area of asylum and migration 19 2.4 Regimes 22 2.5 Governmentality 28 2.5.1 The governmentality of forced migration 31 2.6 Migrant transnationalism 34 2.6.1 Transnational understandings of return migration 36 2.6.2 Refugee return and transnational mobility 38 2.7 Conclusion 41 Chapter Three: Research methodology 43 3.1 Introduction 43 3.2 Choosing a research Question 43 3.3 Qualitative and quantitative data sources 44 3.4 Syria and Jordan: multi-sited research setting 47 3.5 Access to and recruitment of research participants 52 3.5.1 Syria 54 3.5.2 Jordan 56 3.6 Research participants 58 3.7 Research Methods 62 iv 3.7.1 Participant observation 62 3.7.2 Open-ended and semi-structured interviews 65 3.7.3 Transcription and translation 67 3.7.4 Analysis and interpretation 69 3.8 Ethical considerations 70 3.8.1 Informed consent 71 3.8.2 Confidentiality and anonymity 72 3.8.3 Persona non grata: reflections on my expulsion from Syria 74 3.9 Conclusion 78 Chapter Four: Displacement and return in Iraq since 1968 79 4.1 Introduction 79 4.2 Saddam Hussein’s regime and its use of displacement as a governance tool 80 4.2.1 The Algiers Agreement and the Arabisation policies in Iraqi Kurdistan 80 4.2.2 The Islamic Revolution and the expulsion of Shi’a Iraqis 82 4.2.3 The Iran-Iraq war and the exodus of the Kurds and the Shi’a Arabs 82 4.2.4 The Post-Gulf War uprisings and the flight of Kurdish and Shi’a Arab refugees 84 4.3 Forced migration in the years of the UN embargo against Iraq 86 4.4 The US occupation of Iraq and the return of pre-2003 refugees 90 4.5 The anti-occupation insurgency and the ethno-sectarian conflict 92 4.6 The post-2003 population displacement and return in Iraq 95 4.7 The policies of the new Iraqi regime towards the refugees 98 4.8 Conclusion 104 Chapter Five: Regimes and geopolitics shaping the Iraqi displacement to Syria and Jordan 106 5.1 Introduction 106 5.2 The international refugee regime and the North-South impasse 107 5.3 Geopolitics of Syrian and Jordanian non-adherence to the international refugee regime 111 5.4 The temporary protection regimes in Syria and Jordan 112 5.5 Syrian management of the Iraqi forced migrant population 113 5.5.1 The geopolitics of Syria’s management of the Iraqi displacement 116 5.6 Jordanian management of the Iraqi forced migrant population 120 5.6.1 The geopolitics of Jordan’s management of the Iraqi displacement 123 5.7 Conclusion 129 v Chapter Six: Return and Transnational Livelihoods 132 6.1 Introduction 132 6.2 The desire to return and the lack of alternatives 133 6.3 Attempting return and re-migration from Iraq 137 6.4 Sustainable return through transnational mobility 145 6.5 The ‘post-return’ transnational livelihoods of Iraqi returnees 151 6.6 Conclusion 154 Chapter Seven: The role of communication and information in Iraqi refugees' displacement and return 158 7.1 Introduction 158 7.2 Cross-institutional information-sharing and cooperation in the Iraqi displacement context 159 7.3 Information and communication systems as migration governance tools 165 7.4 Iraqi refugees’ informal communication and information systems 172 7.4.1 Mobile phones 173 7.4.2 Satellite TV channels 175 7.4.3 Internet 177 7.4.4 Cross-border mobility, visits and word of mouth communication 182 7.5 Conclusions: towards integrated refugee information systems 185 Chapter Eight: Conclusion 187 8.1 Introduction 187 8.2 Transnational migration and regionalism in the Middle East 187 8.3 The uneasy cooperation between international and national regimes 190 8.4 Information and communication as migration and refugee governance tools 194 8.5 Transnational migration and sustainable return 198 8.6 Research challenges and limitations 200 8.7 Conclusions and suggestions for future research 203 Bibliography 208 Appendix I – Interview questions for Iraqi participants 238 Appendix II - Informed consent form 240 vi List of figures Fig. 3.1 - Fieldwork sites in the city of Damascus ............................................ 49 Fig. 3. 2 - Fieldwork sites in the city of Amman ......................................................... 50 Fig.3. 3 - Fieldwork sites in Amman and Zarqa’ ...................................................... 51 Fig. 3.5 - Sex of Iraqis in Jordan .................................................................................... 59 Fig. 3.4 - Sex of Iraqis in Syria ...................................................................................... 59 Fig. 3.7 – Age of Iraqis in Jordan .................................................................................. 59 Fig. 3.6 –Age of Iraqis in Syria ...................................................................................... 59 Fig. 3.8 - Legal status of Iraqis in Syria ......................................................................... 60 Fig. 3.9 – legal status of Iraqis in Jordan ....................................................................... 60 Fig. 3.11 - Ethno-sectarian background of Iraqis in Jordan ........................................... 61 Fig. 3.10 - Ethno-sectarian background of Iraqis in Syria ............................................. 61 Figure 4.1 - Iraq displacement 2003-2008 ............................................... 97 Fig. 5.1 - Duma Food and Assistance Distribution Centre, February 2010 ................. 114 Fig. 5.2 - UNHCR food rations sold in a local market in Damascus,March 2010 ..... 114 Fig. 5.3 - Iraqis attending non-formal education classes organised by the Jesuit Refugee Service in Al-Ashrafyia, Amman, Jordan, November 2010 ........................................ 123 Fig. 6.1 - Syrian visa stamp: "NOT ALLOWED WORK" on Iraqi passport .............. 135 Fig. 6.2 - Land Rover laden with Iraqi belongings departing from Damascus to Baghdad........................................................................................................................ 136 Fig. 6.4 - Commemoration of the 1991 US bombing of the Al-Amiriyah shelter in Baghdad, painting by Iraqi artist Fuad Hamdi, Iraqi Cultural Forum, Damascus, 13 February 2010 .............................................................................................................. 141 Fig. 7.1 - Public announcements of return and reintegration opportunities for Iraqi health professionals and military officers who served during the former regime .................. 163 Fig. 7.2- Informative poster in Arabic about the UNHCR Vol. Rep. Program ........... 169 affixed on the wall of a community centre in Zarqa, Jordan, February 2011 .............. 169 Fig. 7.3 - Iraqis' means of information in Syria and Jordan ........................................ 172 Fig. 7.4 - Iraqi young woman sends SMS from her mobile phone, Amman, Jordan, March 2011 .............................................................................................................................. 174 Fig. 7.5 - Iraqi students work with a laptop computer in the court yard of a church, Amman, Jordan, May 2011 .......................................................................................... 180 vii List of abbreviations AJC Accountability and Justice Commission ASEAN Association of Southeast Asian Nations CARA Council for Assisting Refugee Academics CBRL Council for British Research in the Levant CIREFCA Conferencia Internacional sobre Refugiados, Desplazados y Repatriados de Centro América Committee of International Conference on Central American Refugees CMC Communications and Media Commission CPA Coalition Provisional Authority DERG Coordinating Committee of the Armed Forces, Police, and Territorial Army in Ethiopia ECHR European Convention on Human Rights EPSA Exploration and Production Sharing Agreements EU European Union FIS Islamic Salvation Front FRELIMO Frente de Libertação de Moçambique Mozambique Liberation Front FTA Free Trade Agreement GoI Government of Iraq IAU Information and Analysis Unit ICT Information and Communication Technology IDP