The Way Home: Protracted Displacement and Return

Friday, March 06, 2015, 12:30-2 p.m.
A-4049D

Dr. Djordje (George) Stefanovic (Department of Sociology and Criminology,Saint Mary’s University) to present.

Abstract: While return is generally recognized as the preferred and durable solution of the refugee question, the actual repatriation of victims is understudied. Our project aims to challenge the assumption that displacement is irreversible by investigating cases of return and non-return. Specifically, we deal with the following issues: how victims of displacement choose to return to their pre-conflict homes? What factors explain initial intentions and sustainable returns? What kinds of support mechanisms and institutional designs best address the concerns of the displaced?

On the basis of our studies in Bosnia, Cyprus, and Turkey we have compiled a set of findings. In line with our community return hypothesis, refugees prefer to return together with their neighbours, as community return enhances the sense of safety in numbers and helps to recreate the pre-displacement communal environment. However, contrary to our expectations, the most beneficial work in the coordinated refugee returns is not done by formal and permanent refugee NGOs, but by informal association of neighbours. Enabling refugees to vote in the local elections in the place of displacement, along with compensations for property can be major facilitators of the return.


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