Jeremy Chan
A Prolonged State of Impermanence
Amid escalating global political conflicts, climate change, and governance failures worldwide, approximately 22 percent of the world's refugee population—about 6.6 million refugees—live in refugee camps. Of these refugees, 4.5 million live in planned and managed camps, while about 2 million reside in self-settled camps (UNHCR, n.d.). This number exceeds the entire population of Norway, a country with a GDP of $485.5 billion, highlighting both the scale of the crisis and the untapped potential of this displaced talent and workforce (IMF, n.d.). While precise data on the total number of camps globally is unavailable due to the complex nature of tracking refugee movements, there are more than 700 refugee camps worldwide at high risk of disease, child soldier and terrorist recruitment, and physical and sexual violence spread across more than 125 countries (Atiyeh & Gunn, 2017). The world's largest, Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar region, hosts over 931,000 refugees fleeing from armed attacks in Rakhine State in Myanmar, in which, more than 16,000 Rohingya babies have then been born there with some births tragically resulting from sexual violence (UNICEF, 2018). Refugee camps worldwide are clearly facing a paradox: a prolonged state of impermanence.
Looking at the existing rights guaranteed by the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol, refugees should be guaranteed fundamental rights. Under the Convention, state parties have key obligations to refugees beyond the principle of non-refoulement, including rights to housing, decent work, and education as outlined in Articles 17-22 (Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, 1951). The New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants has further reinforced that "All people under the jurisdiction of the State concerned should enjoy Covenant rights. That includes asylum seekers and refugees, as well as other migrants, even when their situation in the country concerned is irregular" (United Nations General Assembly, 2016). States also have "duties to secure freedom from hunger, to guarantee access to water to satisfy basic needs, access to essential drugs and access to education, complying with minimum educational standards“ (New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants, 2016). Despite these provisions in the convention and declaration, refugees continue to face significant barriers accessing essential services due to political, economic, and social factors. As Hathaway (2016) noted, "one thing that is not wrong is the Refugee Convention itself" (Hathaway, 2016, p. 94) and later highlights the issue of self-dependency for refugees in our world today due to multiple restrictions imposed by the host government, including the freedom of movements.
The Inherent Flaw
It is crucial to understand the legality and inherent flaw behind establishing refugee camps and recognize that attempting to improve living conditions in these camps only after acknowledging protracted refugee situations will only leave refugees in limbo. The camps are fundamentally designed to "isolate refugees from networks that may support them and reduce their ability to integrate" (Obi, 2021). This is primarily attributable to host countries' reluctance to allow these settlements to become long-term fixtures, with concerns stem from potential national security risks, strain on local resources, and the possibility of attracting even more refugees (Laub, n.d.). This is evident in one of the world's oldest refugee camps, Cooper's Camp, established when refugees fled Pakistan amid the horrors of British India's partition in 1947. Nearly 80 years have passed, and "Most of the original refugees have remained stateless for the past six decades. Many of the older residents are still too frightened to leave the camp for fear of being deported" (Mcdougall, 2007). Without the host government's support, the establishment is destined to remain as a temporary shelter with minimal resource; while the refugees will always remain in a constant state of fear and insecurity. UNHCR explained that the temporary infrastructures developed to “provide immediate protection and assistance to people who have been forced to flee their homes due to war, persecution or violence" (UNHCR, n.d.). The emphasis on "immediate" underscores the impromptu nature of these camps, inherently precluding thorough planning. When a new emergency arises, the UNHCR has only 72 hours to assess the situation and coordinate with the government to establish a "safe humanitarian space" to accommodate asylum seekers fleeing from the crisis (UNHCR, n.d.). Under such time constraint, the criteria for a safe humanitarian space includes the following:
A well-designed camp should protect the environment and help prevent fires and outbreaks of disease. Food, water access points and latrines should be properly lit and near shelters so as to protect women and girls against sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) and facilities should offer refugees the possibility to access the local economy, infrastructure and services of the host community. (UNHCR, n.d.)
The first few criteria ensure basic human necessities outlined in Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states: "Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services … in circumstances beyond his control" , followed by a criteria which protect women from facing cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment (Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948). While host countries generally accept organizations to support basic survival needs, as these are essential for asylum seekers' and refugees' wellbeing, the one that often falls short and faces the most opposition from host governments is allowing refugees access to the local economy, infrastructure, and services of the host community. This directly impacts the host country’s resource has often been perceived as a liability rather than an opportunity; yet this criteria also determine whether refugees may have the “right to the continuous improvement of living conditions”.
Having access to the local economy means integrating refugees into the local economic system, primarily by granting them the right to work. This critera is the most controversial, and often faces global backlash due to public fears of straining the job market across all sectors. A prominent example occurred in the United States, where President-elect Donald J. Trump accused immigrants of taking jobs, stating, "They're taking Black jobs and they're taking Hispanic jobs, and you haven't seen it yet, but you're going to see something that's going to be the worst in our history." He used this rhetoric to justify his policy of implementing "the largest deportation program" of migrants "in the history of America" (King, 2024). Although untrue, the fear-mongering rhetoric is highly influential as it directly infringe citizens' perceived livelihoods, which is the basis of what is commonly referred to as "The American Dream", the ideal that every citizen of the United States should have fair access to opportunities for success. The later 2 criterion, infrastructure and services are interconnected and encompass social welfare, including schools for education, hospitals for healthcare, and courthouses for legal proceedings. This approach is also highly controversial because refugees might be regarded as a pure liability, straining resources without contributing to the host state. Given these conflicting factors, UNHCR recognizes the challenges host states face in agreeing to establish refugee camps. Consequently, they have strategically focused on one key word in the criteria listed above: "possibility". This emphasis on "possibility" allows for flexibility in negotiations with host governments. However, it has become a double-edged sword—a halfway measure which has led to the refugees living in limbo. Like many non-binding agreements, it gives host countries the authority to decide whether they wish to follow the advice or not. In 2024, the world's five largest refugee camps, namely Kakuma, Dadaab Refugee Complex, Za’atari, Um Rakuba and Kutupalong, are all completely isolated from local economies, infrastructure, and services, with each camp facing their own challenge. Despite receiving support from international humanitarian organizations, this isolation has severely strained the camps' resources, leading to shortages of critical supplies such as clean water, food, and medicine (UNHCR, 2023).
A New Home
Regardless of all the criteria outlined above regarding the "temporary" establishment of a safe space, we must also acknowledge that in reality, solutions intended to be temporary rarely stay that way. While UNHCR must present refugee settlements as "temporary" to persuade host governments to establish safe spaces for asylum seekers, the organization acknowledges a stark reality, "Once a person becomes a refugee, they are likely to remain displaced for many years. It is a life in limbo" (UNHCR, n.d). The data published by UNHCR also supports this reality, "At the beginning of 2019, nearly 16 million people were in protracted refugee situations. This represents a 12 percent increase compared to the previous year and approximately 78 percent of all refugees displaced worldwide" (UNHCR, 2020).
Unless a fourth durable solution emerges, the international community—including key stakeholders such as governments, IGOs, and NGOs—must shift their mindset and stop viewing refugee camps as temporary measure. Instead, they should embrace these group of refugees as new forms of community in the 21st century. Similar to the establishment of the Refugee Olympic Team in March 2016 by International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach—which comprised independent Olympic participants who are refugees and gave them international status recognized by the global sports community—countries may now take a step further to help refugees solidify their presence by co-developing a decent living environment where they can call home (International Olympic Committee, 2016).
References:
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