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Download (1MB) A University of Sussex PhD 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 Challenging Refugeeness in Kakuma: South Sudanese Refugee Efforts to Contest Marginalisation and Vulnerability through Transnational Participation Deirdre Patterson PhD in Anthropology School of Global Studies University of Sussex February 2020 1 Acknowledgements I would formost like to acknowledge the support that several members of the South Sudanese diaspora provided me throughout the data collection, analysis, and writing process of this thesis, in particular Gabriel, Rachel, Simon, Jacob, Peter, and Dominic. Your friendship has inspired the continuation of this project and your insight was indispensable. To my supervisors at both the University of Sussex and San Jose State University, Nigel, Mark, Russell, and AJ, your guidance helped tremendously to facilitate my knowledge of anthropological thought, the experiences of transnational refugee communities, and the complexity of 21st century migration patterns and social networks. Thank you for helping to design the research methods which contributed to the data collection for this project, its analysis, and for reading, editing, and providing insight into many drafts. Thank you to Bailey and John who both found the courage to follow me to a refugee camp, and acted as my research assistants and sounding boards when I struggled to understand my data. John, you are an incredible partner, and I would have been lost in Kakuma without your ability to make friends with everyone. You made an otherwise stressful experience an adventure, one of many which I hope to share with you in the future. Finally, thank you to Elif and Jerry. Your friendship, advice, and emotional support during this project kept me grounded and motivated to continue. 2 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. However, this thesis does incorporate data collected for my Master’s degree in Applied Anthropology at San Jose State University obtained in August 2016. Deirdre Patterson 3 Abstract This thesis examines the intersection between the socio-economic marginalisation of protracted South Sudanese refugees living in Kakuma refugee camp and their transnational relationships with family members living in the global north. In the attempt to fully understand the complexity of these 21st century transnational family networks, this thesis explores these relationships and their influence on refugee participants from two primary perspectives: 1) remittances senders living in both the UK and US, and 2) remittance recipients who have been living in Kakuma as protracted refugees. Separated into four empirical chapters, this thesis explores the dynamics of these refugee transnational networks, the social and economic processes undergone to send/receive remittances, the ways in which refugees use remittances to combat their insecurity in the refugee camp, and finally the ways in which the participants in this study used remittances and the pursuit of education to challenge the marginalisation associated with their refugee status. Throughout this thesis, I argue that the transnational networks developed by the participants in this study have enabled the members of the South Sudanese diaspora to develop a strong sense of community solidarity and a mutual sense of responsibility to all those they consider family. These influences have been utilised as tools for the refugee members of this diaspora to challenge their insecurity, vulnerability and socio-economic marginalisation in Kenya, a by-product of their refugee status, protracted state of exile, and dependency on the humanitarian aid system. 4 As explicitly stated in the conclusion, this thesis makes an original contribution to the theoretical development on the sustainability of transnational communities, the relationship between degree of integration and remittance sending patterns over time, the influence of remittances on refugee welfare, and the intersection between transnational participation and a population’s “refugeeness”. 5 Table of Contents Chapter 1: Introduction ............................................................................................................ 10 1.1 Kakuma Refugee Camp ................................................................................................. 17 1.2 South Sudanese Transnational Participation .................................................................. 23 1.3 Review of Chapters ........................................................................................................ 25 Chapter 2: Making of a Refugee .............................................................................................. 30 2.1 History of Conflict in South Sudan ................................................................................ 30 2.2 Defining Refugees and Policy Solutions ....................................................................... 40 2.3 The Lost Boys of Sudan and Kakuma ........................................................................... 54 2.4 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 60 Chapter 3: Transnational Communities and Practices ............................................................. 62 3.1 Transnationalism: Theory and Practice ......................................................................... 65 3.2 Transferring Remittances ............................................................................................... 74 3.3 Transnational Refugee Communities ............................................................................. 86 3.4 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 96 Chapter 4: Methods, Ethics, and Issues Encountered in the Field ........................................... 98 4.1 Locating the Field .......................................................................................................... 98 4.2 Positionalities ............................................................................................................... 103 4.3 Identifying and Accessing Research Participants ........................................................ 105 4.4 Fieldwork Details: Methodology and Analysis ........................................................... 110 4.5 Ethical Considerations ................................................................................................. 113 4.6 Issues Encountered....................................................................................................... 115 Chapter 5: Foundations of a Transnational Community ........................................................ 119 5.1 Maintaining Contact..................................................................................................... 122 5.2 Why was Maintaining Contact so Important? ............................................................. 128 5.3 Common Pitfalls in a Transnational Relationship ....................................................... 135 5.4 Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 142 Chapter 6: Changing Hands: Remittance Transfers and Investment in Economic and Social Capital .................................................................................................................................... 145 6.1 Navigating Responsibility, Ability, and Financial Limitations ................................... 149 6.2 Sharing Community Resources.................................................................................... 160 6.3 Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 166 Chapter 7: Surviving Daily Crisis Situations through Transnational Resources ................... 170 7.1 Food Insecurity ............................................................................................................ 174 7.2 Medical Emergencies ................................................................................................... 180 7.3 Police Harassment ........................................................................................................ 186 6 7.4 Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 191 Chapter 8: Challenging Refugeeness through the Pursuit of Education ................................ 193 8.1 Accessing Education .................................................................................................... 197 8.2 Entangled Values: Comparing Experiences of Education and Marginalisation .......... 208 8.3 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................
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