Gender, Conflict and Displacement: Contesting 'Infantilisation' of Forced Migrant Women

Citation:

Manchanda, Rita. 2004. "Gender, Conflict and Displacement: Contesting 'Infantilisation' of Forced Migrant Women." Economic and Political Weekly 39 (37): 4179-4186.

Author: Rita Manchanda

Abstract:

The experience of the refugee or the internally displaced person is one that is fundamentally disenfranchising. While women and children make up a majority of the forcibly displaced, international humanitarian discourses confer on them a presumed passivity that is naturalised in practice. Systems of care and protection even in UNHCR camps remain largely gender insensitive especially in south Asia where national laws reinforce gender discrimination. This paper uses a gender sensitive perspective, analysing the way a woman as a refugee subject is configured as a non-person so as to gain fresh insights on the 'infantilisation' and 'de-maturation' of the refugee experience. Moreover, it raises questions on the secondary status women occupy as citizens in south Asian polities.

Keywords: conflict, female refugees, migrant

Topics: Displacement & Migration, Forced Migration, IDPs, Refugees, Refugee/IDP Camps, Economies, Gender, Post-Conflict, Post-Conflict Reconstruction Regions: Asia, South Asia

Year: 2004

© 2023 CONSORTIUM ON GENDER, SECURITY & HUMAN RIGHTSLEGAL STATEMENT All photographs used on this site, and any materials posted on it, are the property of their respective owners, and are used by permission. Photographs: The images used on the site may not be downloaded, used, or reproduced in any way without the permission of the owner of the image. Materials: Visitors to the site are welcome to peruse the materials posted for their own research or for educational purposes. These materials, whether the property of the Consortium or of another, may only be reproduced with the permission of the owner of the material. This website contains copyrighted materials. The Consortium believes that any use of copyrighted material on this site is both permissive and in accordance with the Fair Use doctrine of 17 U.S.C. § 107. If, however, you believe that your intellectual property rights have been violated, please contact the Consortium at info@genderandsecurity.org.