An emphasis in political debates and much print media in the United Kingdom (UK) on perceived issues with ethnic, religious, and cultural diversity has contributed to a narrative of worry and fear. Despite such hostile discourse, people find ways of living together with diversity every day.  The encounters which I am concerned with in the following degree project are taking place through community theatre with Mafwa Theatre in Leeds where women from asylum seeker, refugee, and wider communities are socialising and cooperating over fun and simple drama activities. The purpose of this thesis is to better understand the different participants’ lived experiences of the theatre space, how they view their role in the group, and how they perceive diversity in the group. The research questions are explored with qualitative research methods of individual interviews with Mafwa members, the facilitators, and a volunteer, participant observation during the weekly drama sessions, and document analysis of printed, online, and audio materials. With this degree project, I aim to contribute to the discussion about everyday multiculturalism and living with diversity in the UK. The theoretical framework consists of the concept of hospitality which helps me explore how hospitable spaces are shaped and negotiated by different contributors, and conviviality which embraces the complexity of social relations without romanticising them and can help us reach a better understanding of how to live together without a fear for each other’s differences.  The findings show that the different participants view the drama group as a hospitable community of acceptance and respect within a hostile environment for asylum seekers and refugees at the national level. The space offers a well-needed opportunity for the women to have fun, develop their creative skills, and escape day-to-day concerns. Moreover, the study shows that besides being proud co-producers of artistic practice, all participants are also active co-creators of shaping the hospitable space and a ‘convivial culture’. Finally, despite misunderstandings and disagreements in the group, the participants express having bonded over similarities and learned from differences rather than describing diversity as something to fear.

Die Zahl der Flüchtlinge, die in Deutschland Schutz suchen bzw. Asyl beantragen, ist in den Jahren 2014, 2015 und 2016 aufgrund der zunehmenden Konflikte, insbesondere in den Krisenherden des Nahen und Mittleren Ostens, massiv angestiegen. Ein Großteil der Geflüchteten entstammt den Ländern Syrien, Afghanistan und Irak.1 Die Anzahl zukünftiger Flüchtlinge lässt sich aber nur schwer prognostizieren; sie hat sich in der Vergangenheit jährlich erheblich verändert und hängt von vielen verschieden Faktoren ab: In erster Linie davon, wo auf der Welt gerade politische Konflikte (im schlimmsten Fall Kriege) oder wirtschaftliche Krisen entstehen, welche die dort lebenden Menschen dazu bewegen, ihre Heimat zu verlassen, um ihr Leben zu retten oder eine bessere Zukunft für sich und ihre Familien in Europa zu suchen.

Ce mémoire propose une analyse des enjeux éthiques et politiques à l’œuvre dans les crises des réfugié.es à l’aune de l’éthique féministe du care. Il présente une critique épistémologique des approches prédominantes en philosophie politique libérale : en raison d’un manque de considérations empiriques, ces approches créent des angles morts et invisibilisent certain.es enjeux vécus par les réfugié.es. De plus, la philosophie politique libérale n’offre pas les outils normatifs adéquats pour établir une responsabilité envers les réfugié.es. Face à ce double constat, je propose que l’éthique du care peut contribuer à remédier à ces problèmes. D’une part, grâce à la notion de responsabilité relationnelle, on peut montrer en quoi les citoyen.nes et États du Nord global ont la responsabilité de venir en aide aux populations déplacées. D’autre part, l’analyse contextuelle des enjeux quotidiens et incarnés préconisée par cette théorie éthique permettra d’éviter de reproduire certains angles morts dans nos enquêtes philosophiques. Cela permettra ultimement de mieux identifier et comprendre les injustices reproduites par les crises des réfugié.es et les meilleures façons d’y remédier. / This thesis offers an analysis of the ethical and political issues at play in contemporary refugee crises in the light of the feminist ethics of care. It presents a methodological critique of the predominant approaches in liberal political philosophy: due to a lack of empirical considerations, it tends to hide concrete issues experienced by refugees. Moreover, liberal political philosophy does not offer adequate normative tools to establish responsibility for refugees. In light of this, I argue that the ethics of care can help to overcome these problems. On the one hand, through the notion of relational responsibility, it can show that citizens and states in the global North have a responsibility to help displaced populations. On the other hand, the ethics of care preconizes a contextual analysis of everyday and embodied issues: this will avoid reproducing blind spots in our philosophical inquiries. This will ultimately allow us to better identify and understand the injustices reproduced by refugee crises, as well as the steps needed to remedy them.

A Paris, à partir de 1878, un maillage de refuges nocturnes se met progressivement en place dans le but de secourir les besoins les plus urgents des personnes sans‐asile. En France, l’oisiveté de l’adulte valide est condamnée depuis le XIVe siècle : en matière de vagabondage et de mendicité, la Troisième République hérite d’un arsenal répressif construit au fil de plusieurs siècles. Bien que la forte suspicion morale qui pèse sur les pauvres aptes à travailler reste forte, les premières conséquences de l’industrialisation et de l’urbanisation sont observées : déracinement, chômage, etc. Dans le contexte de crise politique et économique, certains vagabonds sont aidés. Les asiles de nuit sont encouragés, imités et reconnus d’utilité publique. D’une part, ils sont présentés comme une solution face aux insuffisances de l’État. D’autre part, ils s’inscrivent dans le langage de la réforme sociale et du compromis républicain. Pour comprendre l’engouement et l’institutionnalisation de l’hospitalité nocturne, différents corpus, comprenant une variété de types d’écrits, sériels ou non, ordinaires et extraordinaires, souvent inédits, sont croisés afin de reconstituer les réalités sociales de « l’hospitalité de nuit » dans toutes leurs complexités. Les adaptations pragmatiques, au fur et à mesure du fonctionnement et de la professionnalisation de l’hospitalité institutionnalisée, permettent une réappropriation du modèle proposé par d’autres acteurs très différents, notamment la Ville de Paris. La diffusion permet le transfert de nombreux éléments entre les différents producteurs. Elle s’accompagne néanmoins de réflexions et d’hésitations aboutissant à des accommodations réglementaires. La lente inscription des asiles de nuit dans le panel des solutions proposées pour remédier à la misère est donc à la fois le résultat d’investissements personnels, de contingences économiques et de stratégies professionnelles permettant à l’hospitalité de nuit de se constituer en domaine de l’action sociale. Cependant, l’usage et les résultats sensibles des asiles de nuit laissent place à quelques désillusions et critiques. Ces difficultés dans la mise en œuvre pratique permettent d’expliquer le relatif essoufflement dans ce mouvement de fondation d’asiles de nuit et dans la réorientation, ou du moins la diversification, des institutions productrices. / Since 1878 in Paris, a network of night‐shelters has been gradually set‐up with the goal to help the most urgent needs of the homeless. In France, a fit adult’s idleness has been condemned since the 14th century : regarding wandering and begging, the Third Republic inherits a repressive system implemented throughout several centuries. Although the strong moral suspicion that weighs on the poor people capable of working remains strong, the first consequences of industrialization and urbanization are becoming visible : de‐location and unemployment, etc. In the context of political and economic crisis, certain homeless are given help. Night shelters are encouraged, reproduced and recognized as beneficial to the general interest. On one hand, they are presented as a solution to the inadequacies of the State. On the other hand, they fit in language of the social reform and the republican compromise. In order to understand the craze and the institutionalization towards night‐hospitality, various corpuses, with a varieties of written documents, serial or not, ordinary, extraordinary and often unpublished, are remixed to reconstitute the social realities of "night hospitality" in their full complexities. With the growing implementation of the professionalization of institutionalized hospitality, pragmatic adaptations allow a re‐designing of the proposed model by other very different actors, in particular the city of Paris. Broadcasting allows the transfer of many elements between the various producers. However, it brings along reflections and questionings leading to statutory accommodations. The slow integration of night shelters within the panel of proposals to remedy poverty is thus at the same time the result of personal investments, economical contingencies and professional strategies allowing night hospitality to be an integrated part of the social welfare. However, the use and the tangible results of night shelters lead to disappointments and criticism. These difficulties in the practical implementation can explain the relative loss of momentum in the creation of night shelters as well as the reorientation, or at least the diversification, of productive institutions.

The aim of this study is to analyse the security implications of refugee flows to South Africa. The country is reputed to host the largest number of refugees and asylum seekers in the world and is also the foremost refugee destination of choice on the African continent. It therefore becomes pertinent that a consideration of the security implications is necessary in this age of global migration. The dissertation is based on three main assumptions to be investigated and tested, namely: > The main causes of refugee flows to South Africa reside in a number of push-factors in the sending countries, but also in a number of pull-factors in South Africa. > The security implications of refugee flows to South Africa are exacerbated by a number of political, socio-economic and administrative issues in South Africa. > Although concern over some of the security issues relating to refugee flows to South Africa have been officially expressed, policy responses have been ambiguous. The study is undertaken against the background of the concept of national security, specifically in developing countries. It is within these parameters that the security implications of refugees in South Arica are analysed, especially from the perspective of political, economic, social and environmental dimensions. The study mainly focuses on the period 1994 to 2010, as it is within this period that major developments regarding refugee issues in South Africa occurred. / Dissertation (MSecurity Studies)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2014 / Political Sciences / Unrestricted

Refugees show higher prevalence of psychological disorders compared to the general population in host countries. At the same time, there is a lack in the provision of and knowledge about appropriate transcultural mental health support. The overall goal of this thesis was to investigate insider perspectives on the mental health support for refugee patients (MHSR). More specifically, the objective was to obtain insights into the MHSR in Brazil, a Latin-American and developing country. The research on refugees in Brazil is sparse, but the need to provide adequate MHSR is increasing with growing numbers of people who seek refuge in the country. The goal was approached in the first section of this thesis by reviewing and synthesising the existing research. In this, we aimed at obtaining insights into qualitative research findings on the perspectives of professionals and refugee patients concerning MHSR. The section starts with Chapter 2, a qualitative evidence synthesis of ten primary qualitative studies referring to 145 insider perspectives. The main findings highlight the importance of a trusting therapeutic relationship, of the adaptation of therapeutic approaches to patients’ needs and situation, and of psycho-social support, cultural sensitivity, as well as of external support structures for professionals. Negative or hindering aspects were identified as a lack of mental healthcare structures, the impact of the postmigration situation on patients’ well-being, cultural and language differences, and patients’ mistrust. Finally, ambivalences were formulated regarding verbal therapies, trauma exposure, the use of mental healthcare, and the impacts of the work with refugees on professionals. Section I ends with Chapter 3, that critically evaluates the method of a qualitative evidence synthesis and discusses some of its challenges, particularly with regard to the question of how to abstract and merge primary qualitative results without losing their in-depth-meaning. Chapter 3 also poses the question of the universality of the findings of the QES, as no primary studies from non-Western countries were included. The need for a greater international plurality in the research field of MHSR motivates Section II of this thesis. This second section looks at how psychologists in Brazil perceive the MHSR in this Latin- American country. Three different studies were performed for this second section using qualitative semi-structured interviews with professionals and thematic analysis, as well as consensual qualitative research strategies. The first study investigated how psychologists perceive the psychological suffering and symptoms of their refugee patients. It also provides background and contextual information for the following parts, such as concerning refugee patients’ countries of origin. The investigation found that the most frequently described conditions in refugee patients were anxiety and depression disorder and symptoms, grief, and PTSD symptoms. However, the results also showed that the use of manuals for the categorical classification and diagnosis of mental disorders is a debated topic among psychologists in Brazil, since psychiatric diagnostic categories are often perceived to be a poor representation of a person’s experience. Psychologists tended to stress patients’ socio-political suffering and to conceptualise patients’ symptoms as expected reactions to their profound losses and ongoing contextual instability. Participants discussed refugees suffering especially in relation to four clusters: the postmigration stressors, traumatic experiences, flight as life rupture, and the current situation in the country of origin. The second study of Section II explored the perspectives of psychologists on providing “acolhimento psicológico” (psychological care) for refugees in Brazil. It analysed the general experiences, positive and negative aspects, as well as facilitators and necessary changes to better the MHSR. Results showed, that psychologists experienced operating in a novel, precarious and xenophobic context, which led them to move beyond classical psychological work, engage in practical assistance and become very close to clients. Participants reported on a lack of public structures, insufficient competencies of professionals and high levels of staff fatigue. At the same time, they described gaining new perspectives and benefiting from witnessing their clients’ resilience. In terms of facilitating factors for the psychological care process participants pointed to the importance of psychologists being flexible, authentic, of showing a high resistance to frustration, and of making use of group-based approaches. Participants suggested that, in order to better refugees’ mental health in Brazil, efforts should focus on adopting a more social perspective in psychology, developing antidiscrimination campaigns, building policies for refugee’ integration, and scaling up investments in mental healthcare in general. The third study of Section II, retrieved the psychotherapists’ experience of providing psychotherapy for refugees in Brazil. Supportive and hindering elements in psychotherapy with refugee patients in Brazil were identified at eight different levels: the patient, the therapist, their relationship, the setting, the psychotherapeutic approach, the context of the patient, the context of the therapist and the societal context in Brazil. Hindering elements in the therapy included missing preparation for the integration of refugees, lack of interpreters, patients’ mistrust and therapists feeling untrained, helpless and becoming overinvolved. Supportive elements included a trusting therapeutic relationship, therapists’ cultural humility and structural competence, patients’ societal inclusion as well as working with groups and networks. This investigation showed that in light of the enormous structural challenges for the mental well-being of refugee patients, therapists’ flexibility and the reliance on collective work and networks of support is crucial. Finally, Section III, the integrative discussion summarizes, compares and contrasts the results of the various studies of this dissertation regarding, again, helpful/positive, ambivalent, and supportive/negative factors in the MHSR. These synthesised results are subsequently embedded within and discussed in relation to the scientific literature. The thesis closes by considering its limitations and by providing suggestions for future research, as well as an overall conclusion.

The conflict over the right way to tackle the so-called refugee crisis in Europe has proved that relations between the EU and the Visegrád Group have changed. The political dispute surfaced most clearly regarding the different proposals for a quota-based refugee relocation system - a decision which was refused by the V4. The bloc consisting of the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia first articulated its common position on migration in September 2015 and several times afterwards. On the basis of these statements, one can summarise their approach as follows: (1) Protecting the external borders of the EU and underlining the importance of fulfilling the obligations for the EU acquis; (2) Effective management of the root causes of migration flows, which could help reduce the number of migrants; (3) Refusing Germany's open-door migration policy. Although an increasing number of EU member states share a similar approach, the V4 as the whole started to be perceived as a coalition known for obstructing practices. The split on the issue gave life to a new wave of speculation about the increasing split between "old" and "new" Europe and the possible shift of the later eastwards. Furious politicians and public opinion in Western Europe continued to remind the Visegrád countries of their lack of...

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This thesis analyses materials – a set of guidelines and a presentation – provided for officials  who assess claims related to sexual orientation and gender identity within the Australian  government’s Department for Immigration and Border Protection. The analysis is conducted  using critical discourse analysis to see if the lexicon shows a white heterosexual bias, and if it  does, how the bias is manifested within the guidelines, especially within the context of the  gender binary. The theoretical framework primarily uses Critical Race theory, but also  combines elements of Said’s Orientalism, and absence and presence theory. The results show  that the guidelines do have a white heterosexual bias, which manifests itself in the form of,  Western superiority, stereotypes about LGBT+ people, as well as an undertheorized portrayal  of the gender binary. The findings contribute to research within the queer asylum field,  especially with regards to research on migration from a non-gender-binary perspective.

The purpose of this thesis is to understand how Danish and Swedish news media and governments framed “the refugee crisis” in the context of the Swedish implementation of border controls in 2015 and the removal of external border controls in 2017. We operationalize framing theory (Entman 1993) to understand the differences and similarities in the framing of "the refugee crisis” in Denmark and Sweden. While the main focus is media representations, policy documents are included in the study to deepen the analysis and understand the similarities and differences across migration policies. Through a quantitative content analysis of 259 newspaper articles from eight Danish and Swedish newspapers, a framing analysis of ten policy documents and a qualitative framing analysis of the overall frames in the news articles and policy documents, we identified a dialectic relation of power between media and political discourse in both countries. We found that issues defined and represented in policy documents tend to reflect the challenges that news media define and the other way around. Even though Danish and Swedish newspapers and policy documents highlight similar problems, our data indicates clear differences in migration policies, in the two countries, in terms of the framing of asylum seekers, refugees and political events in 2015.