Social exclusion of palestinian refugees in Lebanon: Reflections on the mechanisms that cement their persistent poverty

Refugee Survey Quarterly

Volumn 31, Issue 1, 2012, Pages 34-53

  Hanafi, Sari ^a   Chaaban, Jad ^a   Seyfert, Karin ^a  

^a AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF BEIRUT   (Lebanon)

Author keywords

Lebanon; Palestinian refugees; Poverty; Social exclusion

Indexed keywords

LOW INCOME POPULATION; POVERTY; REFUGEE; SOCIAL EXCLUSION; SOCIOECONOMIC INDICATOR; SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS; URBAN AREA;

LEBANON;

EID: 84857975393     PISSN: 10204067     EISSN: 1471695X     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1093/rsq/hdr018     Document Type: Article

References (44)

1. Y. Berman & D. Phillips, "Indicators of Social Quality and Social Exclusion at National and Community Level", Social Indicators Research, 50(3), 2000, 329-350.
2. This survey was funded by the European Union, using a structured questionnaire administered during face-to-face interviews with a proxy respondent from the household. In addition to standard questions relating to the demography, education and employment status of household members, the questionnaire features sections on health, food, housing, household assets and expenditure.
3. More information on the survey and its methodology can be found at: http://fafsweb.aub.edu.lb/aub-unrwa/ (last visited 16 Nov. 2011).
4. A. Bhalla & F. Lapeyre, "Social Exclusion: Towards an Analytical and Operational Framework", Development and Change, 28(3), 1997, 413-433.
5. In French Republican thought, it refers to a process of "social disqualification"leading to a breakdown of the relationship between society and the individual. In this sense, social exclusion is deeply rooted in the Republican tradition of solidarity in which the State plays a major role.
6. See Bhalla & Lapeyre, "Social Exclusion"
7. Berman & Phillips, "Indicators of Social Quality and Social Exclusion", 329-350
8. G. Delanty, Reinventing Community and Citizenship in the Global Era: A Critique of the Communitarian Concept of Community. In Communitarianism and Citizenship, Aldershot, Avebury, 1998.
9. D. Phillips, "Social Inclusion, Social Exclusion and Social Cohesion: Tensions in a Post-Industrial World", The Hong Kong Journal of Social Work, 42(1-2), 2008, 3-31.
10. S. Hanafi, & T. Long, "Governance, Governmentalities, and the State of Exception in the Palestinian Refugee Camps of Lebanon", Journal of Refugee Studies, 23(2), 2010, 134-159.
11. Between 1958 and 1964, President Fu'ād Shihāb created an elaborate, ruthless secret-service network to monitor the Palestinian camps
12. N. Rosen, "Scapegoats in an Unwelcoming Land", Washington Post, 16 Dec. 2007, available at: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/14/AR2007121401329.html (last visited 6 Nov. 2011).
13. J. Sfeir, "Du provisoire au permanent: les débuts de l'installation des réfugiés au Liban, 1948-1951", MIT Electronic Journal of Middle East Studies, 5, 2001, 30-42.
14. S. Farsoun, & C. Zacharia, Palestine and the Palestinians, Boulder, Westview Press, 2005.
15. R. Sayigh, "Palestinians in Lebanon: Harsh Present, Uncertain Future", Journal of Palestine Studies, 25(1), 1995, 37-53.
16. Article 2 of Section 1 of the Agreement called for a reorganization of "the Palestinian presence"in Lebanon through "the foundation of local administrative committees in the refugee camps, composed of Palestinians, in order to defend the interests of the Palestinians residing in those camps, in collaboration with the local authorities and within the framework of Lebanese sovereignty"
17. Before 1982, the PLO and UNRWA were two major employers for Palestinian refugees in Lebanon. While the PLO recruited professionals of all categories, UNRWA employed professionals such as teachers, nurses, and doctors. The 1982 eviction of the PLO changed the situation dramatically, and the PLO was reduced mainly to one institution, that is, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS), which depends on the PLO. During the same time period, UNWRA has dramatically reduced its recruitment because of the extreme strain on its resources.
18. Ajial Center, Palestinian Non-Government Organizations in Lebanon, Research Data, Beirut, Ajial Center, 2001, available at: http://prrn.mcgill.ca/prrn/papers/ajial_center/ngo_lebanon.html (last visited 6 Nov. 2011).
19. B. Rougier, Everyday Jihad: The Rise of Militant Islam among Palestinians in Lebanon, Harvard, Harvard University Press, 2007.
20. Danish Refugee Council, Survey Report on the Situation of non-ID Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon - Compared to Registered and Non-registered Refugees residing in Camps and Gatherings, Beirut, Danish Refugee Council, 2005, available at: http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/reliefweb_pdf/node-233272.pdf (last visited 6 Nov. 2011).
21. For more details see the Frontiers Center report, 2005
22. For more details about the camp as space of exception, see S. Hanafi, "Palestinian Refugee Camps in Lebanon: Laboratory of Indocile Identity Formation", in M.A. Khalidi (ed.), The Lived Reality of Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon, Institute of Palestine Studies, 2010, 45-74.
23. What we are describing here is true on one level, but not on another. It holds when comparing the camp populations in Jordan and Palestinian territory to the country average. However, in both places there are large population groups with even poorer living conditions.
24. M. Khawaja, & Å. Tiltnes (eds.), On the Margins: Migration and Living Conditions of Palestinian Camp Refugees in Jordan, Fafo Report 357, Oslo, FAFO, 2002, available at: http://www.fafo.no/pub/rapp/357/index.htm (last visited 16 Nov. 2011).
25. H. Zhang and Å. Tiltnes, Socio-Economic Assessment of Ein El-Hilweh Refugee Camp, Oslo, Fafo, 2009, available at: http://www.fafo.no/pub/rapp/949/949.pdf (last visited 16 Nov. 2011).
26. Actually, the difference in living conditions of the Palestinian refugees between those who are camp dwellers and those who are not is more important than what is mentioned in the Fafo surveys. We are basing our estimation here on our anthropological observations as well as statistics from the Syrian and Palestinian Central Bureaus of Statistics. Fafo usually conducted its surveys in the refugee camps or in Palestinian gathering sites. However, Palestinian refugees also live in cities, where they integrate with the local population, and where it is usually very hard to identify them.
27. See Bhalla & Lapeyre, "Social Exclusion"
28. S. Hanafi, & Å. Tiltnes, "The Employability of Palestinian Professionals in Lebanon: Constraints and Transgression", Knowledge, Work and Society, 5(1), 2008, 127-150.
29. F. Lamb, "Anyone Really Serious about Allowing Palestinians their Civil Rights?", Veterans Today, 23 Jul. 2010, available at: http://www.veteranstoday.com/2010/07/23/palestine-anyone-really-seriousabout-allowing-their-civil-rights/ (last visited 6 Nov. 2011).
30. Article 59, para. 3 of Art. 9 of the Lebanese Labour Law issued on 23 Sep. 1964.
31. Palestinian Human Rights Organization (PHRO), Lebanese Restrictions on Freedom of Movement: Case of Naher El Bared, Report, Beirut, PHRO, 2010, available at: http://www.palhumanrights.org/NBC/ENG/Freedom%20of%20Movement_ENG_web.pdf (last visited 5 Jul. 2011).
32. These professional associations, orders or syndicates required either Lebanese nationality or policy of reciprocity. This policy means that "stateless"Palestinians cannot be employed like other foreigners who belong to recognized States that can offer similar benefits to the Lebanese.
33. For comparison, the total number of given work permits to the foreign employees is 145,684 (2009)
34. This consists of a maximum of 3,000 square meters in Beirut or 5,000 square meters throughout the rest of the country, based on a number of laws (Decree 15740 of 11 Mar. 1964, Law 59 of 1 Sep. 1966 and Decree 11614 of 4 Jun. 1969).
35. Lebanese-Palestinian Dialogue Committee (LPDC), Lebanon and Palestinian Refugees: Policy Foundations and Milestones 2005-2009, Report, LPDC, 2010, available at: http://www.lpdc.gov.lb/getattachment/94d399a6-7c20-4d64-aa73-e24ac246750c/2005-2009.aspx (last visited 16 Nov. 2011).
36. It is very interesting to see the exact wording of the law and the "irrational"justification: "No real right of any kind may be acquired by a person who does not carry a citizenship issued by a recognized state or by a person if such acquisition contradicts with the provisions of the Constitution relating to the prohibition of permanent settlement of Palestinians."
37. In practice, Palestinians resort to informal legal arrangements to purchase and register property. In order to obtain or bequeath property Palestinian refugees register real estate via a power of attorney, a written authorisation through which the Palestinian refugee gives permission to an agent (a Lebanese citizen or any other foreigner to whom the 2001 restrictions do not apply) to acquire property on his behalf. Many Palestinians who acquired property prior to 2001 have not registered it in order to avoid paying the additional taxes that non-Lebanese citizens were subject to when they purchase property in the country.
38. Nizar & Rana Saghieh, Legal Assessment of Housing, Land and Property Ownership, Rights, Transfers, and Property Law related to Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon, Report, Oslo, Norwegian Refugee Council, 2007, 10
39. See also the excellent analysis of those two authors concerning the imbroglio in Nahr al-Bared Adjacent Area
40. This restriction has been eased recently (1 Jul. 2011) for Palestinian women and children. A mobility permit is not required for them.
41. PHRO, Position Paper on the Law adopted by Lebanese Parliament on 17 August 2010 regarding Palestinian Refugee's Right to Work and Social Security, position paper, Beirut, PHRO, 2010, available at: http://www.palhumanrights.org/var/Position%20Paper%20-RTW%20and%20Social%20Security%20Amended%20Laws.pdf (last visited 6 Nov. 2011).
42. Zhang & Tiltnes, Socio-Economic Assessment of Ein El-Hilweh Refugee Camp
43. UNDP and Central Administration of Statistics Lebanon, Living Conditions of Households 2007, Report, Beirut, UNDP, 2007, available at: http://www.undp.org.lb/communication/publications/downloads/Households_Living_conditions_2007.pdf (last visited 6 Nov. 2011).
44. J. Chaaban, "The Impact of Instability and Migration on Lebanon's Human Capital", in N. Dhillon & T. Yousef (eds.), Generation in Waiting: The Unfulfilled Promise of Young People in the Middle East, Brookings Institution Press, 2009.