Socio-spatialities of vulnerability: towards a polymorphic perspective in vulnerability research

“The space of vulnerability” – the title of the influential paper by Michael Watts and Hans-Georg Bohle from 1993 highlights the importance of spatiality for vulnerability research. As geographers have fundamentally shaped the concept of vulnerability, the issue of spatiality has been crucial for vulnerability from the outset. However, what notion of space have scholars adopted in their vulnerability analysis? The aim of the paper is to assess the ways in which space has been conceptualised in vulnerability research. We conduct this assessment behind the background of the conceptual development of space in human geography. Of particular interest is the question of how the successive socio-spatial turns identified by Jessop et al. (2008), which evolved around the categories of place, scale, network and territory, are reflected in publications on vulnerability. The assessment is based on a review of literature. We found that all four key socio-spatial categories have been taken up by scholars for vulnerability analysis. Following Jessop et al. we argue that a critical geography of vulnerability should acknowledge the polymorphy of socio-spatialities and assess the interplay of place, network, scale, and territory in the (re)production of vulnerability. We exemplify the argument with case studies from Bangladesh and Thailand and conclude that the full repertoire of spatial and social theories are needed in order to fully understand the social and spatial (re)production of vulnerability

Journeys of Violence: Trajectories of (Im-)Mobility and Migrants' Encounters with Violence in European Border Spaces

On their journeys to and through Europe, refugees and other migrants are commonly subjected to violence in its multifaceted forms. We argue that these "journeys of violence" are a direct effect of a fundamentally uneven and asymmetric global mobility regime that creates frictions and fragmentations in the European border space and beyond. Our argument is based on: (1) a state-of-the-art literature review on refugees’ mobilities towards Europe and new patterns of involuntary immobilisation through border regimes, (2) a secondary analysis of recent quantitative data from the Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP), which includes a large data set on refugee’s journeys to Germany, and (3) original qualitative interviews that were conducted with migrants in Germany and Bosnia-Herzegovina. We will first show that mobility in the context of violence is highly selective and that trajectories of mobility significantly depend on mobility capital. Second, we consider the fortification of European borders and the externalisation of control regimes as facets of structural violence and demonstrate their effects on refugees’ mobility, namely the fragmentation of journeys and the systemic production of situations of protracted immobility at multiple border sites. Third, we provide insights into refugees’ exposure to and experiences of direct violence on their journeys, which must be understood as immediate consequences of the structurally violent conditions that govern their mobility and the cultural violence of delegitimising and illegalising refugees’ movements

Fragmentierte Flucht nach Europa

Flucht- und andere Migrationsbewegungen nach Europa stehen derzeit im Fokus der Aufmerksamkeit - nicht zuletzt aufgrund tragischer Schiffsunglücke auf dem Mittelmeer und der Unfähigkeit der Politik, angemessene Antworten auf diese humanitäre Krise zu finden. Auf welchen Wegen versuchen Schutzsuchende den europäischen Kontinent zu erreichen? Der Beitrag stellt die wichtigsten Trends entlang der Hauptmigrationsrouten vor und diskutiert die humanitären Konsequenzen von fragmentierten, langen und unsicheren Flucht- und Migrationswege

Regional migration governance: contributions to a sustainable international migration architecture

Technical and financial capacities of regional organizations ought to be improved so that they can tackle regional migratory challenges effectively and in line with global regulatory requirements. This is not only true for security-relevant areas such as the protection of borders or migration control but also for the implementation of regional standards pertaining to the freedom of movement and, in particular, for the protection of refugees and vulnerable migrants. It also applies to promoting the positive effect migration has on human development. Regional and inter-regional dialogue forums help to mediate conflicts between different national interests and can strengthen the overall coherence of international migration policy. Building up these forums ought to be promoted, the exchange between national, regional and global actors intensified, and the inclusion of civil society actors in regional cooperation formats improved. Regional organizations have developed groundbreaking norms and standards in very different areas of refugee and migration policy, for instance ECOWAS in West Africa or IGAD in East Africa. In the preparation of the global compacts for migration and on refugees, they have so far primarily been able to provide their input in the consultation phase. To give their positions more weight, they should be granted the right to contribute their own texts in the negotiation phase. It is also important to grant them an active role in the review and follow-up process of the two global compacts

Creating a way out of the maze: supporting sustainable futures for displaced persons

As displacement continues to rise globally, more and more people are 'stuck' in situations of protracted displacement, where they find themselves in a long-term situation of vulnerability, dependency and legal insecurity, lacking or actively denied opportunities to rebuild their lives. While the protracted nature of many conflicts is a critical contributing factor, there is considerable room for improvement in policies and practices to more effectively address protracted displacement - and an urgent need to strengthen responses. The complicated 'maze' of international, national and local laws, policies and practices often backfires, exacerbating precarity and preventing many displaced persons from finding sustainable solutions for themselves and from contributing to receiving communities. It is not only the widening gap between the scale of displacement and the solutions offered but also the diversity of individual profiles and experiences that underscores the urgent need to expand the range of solutions so that more displaced persons can find long-term prospects. A paradigm shift that places people at the heart of solutions, meaning that countries enable displaced persons to make use of their own capacities, would open new doors for people to become 'self-reliant'. Such an approach is not only vital for addressing existing protracted situations - but it can also help prevent those more recently displaced from finding themselves in protracted situations in the future. The lessons below highlight critical entry points for European stakeholders seeking solutions for (protracted) displacement

Regionale Migrationsgovernance: Impulse für eine nachhaltige internationale Migrationsarchitektur

Vor dem Hintergrund zunehmender Flüchtlings- und Migrationsbewegungen befindet sich die globale Migrationsgovernance im Umbruch. Im Zuge dessen droht der Beitrag regionaler Akteure und Kooperationsformate zu einer nachhaltigen migrationspolitischen Zusammenarbeit vernachlässigt zu werden. Gerade in Afrika spielen Regionalorganisationen bei der Steuerung und der Entfaltung des positiven Entwicklungspotentials der Migration eine wichtige Rolle. Sie können Impulse setzen, um die internationale Zusammenarbeit in der Migrationspolitik zu stärken und die Lebensbedingungen von Migranten zu verbessern. Die Staatengemeinschaft sollte dies in den 2018 anstehenden Verhandlungen über zwei globale Abkommen zu Flucht und Migration berücksichtigen. Die deutsche und die europäische Entwicklungspolitik können sich dafür einsetzen, dass regionale Beiträge umfassender einbezogen werden, indem sie den Ausbau migrationspolitischer Kapazitäten auf regionaler Ebene fördern, die Beteiligung der Zivilgesellschaft vorantreiben und regionale Akteure in die Review- und Follow-up-Prozesse der globalen Abkommen zu Flucht und Migration einbinden. (Autorenreferat

فهم محركات النزوح طويل الأمد: Understanding the dynamics of protracted displacement

يمكن أن تقدم حركة تنقل النازحين وشبكات علاقاتهم العابرة للحدود المحلية موارد مهمة في البحث عن حلول دائمة. Displaced persons’ mobility and their translocal networks can provide important resources in the search for durable solutions