scholarly journals Localizing Global Solidarity: Humanitarian Aid in Lesvos

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lee Michael Shults ◽  
Hanne Haaland ◽  
Hege Wallevik

The so-called “refugee crisis” in Lesvos, Greece provides a poignant example of situated, local suffering that has called for the coordination of global resources to provide relief. Some of the first to respond were local and international Citizen Initiatives for Global Solidarity (CIGS). While a growing role for CIGS has been interpreted as a call for more global involvement, arguments for the increased localization of relief efforts suggest the need for aid agents to maintain a reflexive awareness of the potential for an influx of outside assistance to disempower those most affected. We argue that barriers to implementing the localization of humanitarian aid can be better understood by positioning this localization alongside theories of global solidarity. This paper pairs theoretical contributions from the fields of moral and political philosophy with an analysis of interview material gathered in Lesvos between 2015 and 2019. Our goal is to use narratives of conflicting interests in Lesvos to explore conceptual distinctions concerning solidarity and emphasize the importance of the localization of global solidarity in humanitarian aid. We conclude that while global solidarity represents a demanding effort to identify with distant others and provide aid, the intensity and transformative potential of the process of “making the crisis one’s own” through solidary engagement can overshadow the importance of local ownership of crisis management.

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlotte Dany

This contribution discusses whether humanitarian aid is a suitable tool for expressing global solidarity in the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on the distinction between the concepts of humanitarianism and solidarity, as well as the example of the so-called “refugee crisis,” it provides a mixed answer: humanitarian aid and solidarity are, principally, different things, hardly comparable and, at times, even contradictory. However, the corona pandemic presents an opportunity for localization of humanitarian aid, which is an opportunity for greater solidarity with those most in need. To make humanitarian aid a real tool for expressing global solidarity, one would have to regard the recipients of aid as equals and strengthen their agency, as well as that of local and grassroots organizations in the most affected areas - much as the localization agenda demands.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 294-305 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosanne Anholt

Little is known about how the idea of ‘resilience’ translates into practice. It has nonetheless emerged as a dominant theme in the governance of crises, such as political instability, armed conflict, terrorism, and large-scale refugee movements. This study draws on interviews with humanitarian and development practitioners in Turkey, Jordan, and Lebanon working under the Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan to explore how resilience is interpreted and translated on the ground. Results suggest that resilience is translated as the economic self-reliance of refugees, and the capacity for crisis management of refugee-hosting states, enacted through ‘localization’ and strengthening the ‘humanitarian-development nexus.’ The prominence of the political and economic context and the power relations between crisis response actors that it generates reveals the limits of what a buzzword like resilience can achieve on the ground. The findings highlight the need for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners to engage in continuous critical reflection on whether the ways in which resilience policies and programmes are implemented actually improve the ability of systems and vulnerable populations to recover from crisis, as well as on the validity of the assumptions and interpretations on which such policies and programmes are built.


Author(s):  
Magdalena Denham ◽  
Scott Vautrain

Using macro-, exo-, meso-, and micro-level framework for assessing interdependencies in crisis management system in Poland, this chapter addresses expansion of planning and preparedness to novel hazards and threats such as precipitated mass movements of populations due to environmental changes. The Ukrainian refugee crisis served as backdrop for Poland's crisis management system testing. Benefits of planning and preparedness for mass displacements highlighted (a) an emerging all-hazard approach to crisis management, (b) proactive threat identification and assessment, (c) issuance of acts, laws, and regulations based on novel threats, (d) comprehensive multi-jurisdictional exercises, and (e) increasing importance of mutual aid agreements.


2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 683-703 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ulaş Sunata ◽  
Salіh Tosun

Abstract After the Syrian refugee influx in Turkey, the aspect of civil society in integration needs further clarification and categorization. Therefore, in this study, we aim to develop a general typology of NGOs (non-governmental organizations) that are active in immigration and immigration-related areas (NGO-R; non-governmental organizations—refugees). Our findings show that NGO-Rs play crucial roles in helping the refugees to access the rights provided by state, in integrating them into society at the local level by creating new social spaces and in sending humanitarian aid to the people of concern in Syria. Additionally, we claim that the refugee crisis facilitated the opportunities both for active citizenship as demanded and for new mobilization to manage the humanitarian and integration assistance towards the Syrians. Lastly, our fieldwork shows that religious and belief motives are the main factors playing a large part in the creation and maintenance of the NGO-R activities and refugee community organizations (RCOs) can have a distinctive integrative function by preferring to stay outside the mainstream channels.


European View ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 52-57
Author(s):  
Manfred Weber

The EU has a fundamental interest in having a constructive relationship with Turkey. However, the EU–Turkey relationship has become strained over recent years. This is why EU–Turkey relations need a new start, based on honesty about the long-term goal: EU membership is not an option for Turkey. Instead, the EU and Turkey should focus on concrete fields of cooperation. Humanitarian aid in the refugee crisis is a good example of a field in which a joint solution has been successful, as is the protection of the common external border. More joint action from the EU and Turkey is needed as regards the situation in Syria and Iraq. Turkey must overcome its democratic shortcomings. Further economic cooperation will depend on the application of the rule of law in Turkey.


2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 114-131
Author(s):  
Fuat Albayumi ◽  
Nourma Meysita Hadi ◽  
Djoko Susilo

The armed conflict in Rakhine in 2017 caused a humanitarian crisis for the Rohingyas. This crisis resulted in the emergence of criticism towards Myanmar government for its refusal to offer humanitarian assistance to the victims of conflict. In spite of that, the Myanmar government has closed access for foreigners, including humanitarian aid. However, Indonesia have accepted to discuss the settlement of the case. This research will examine how Indonesia's diplomacy to resolve the crisis due to the conflict in Rakhine in 2017. This research uses research literature method to collect secondary data coming from reliable source. This research is using qualitative descriptive technique and analyzed to described or interpreted to obtain a complete picture of the answer to the problem under study. The results show that in resolving the crisis for Rohingya ethnic in 2017, Indonesia conducts humanitarian diplomacy, which includes communicating with the Myanmar and Bangladesh governments and foreign parties, acting as a liaison between the Myanmar government and the international community, and negotiating with Myanmar and Bangladesh governments regarding the settlement of the Rohingya refugee crisis.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document