The policy challenge of ethnic diversity. Immigrant politics in France and Switzerland

Denna avhandling ar en komparativ undersokning av pagaende forandringsprocesser bland kurder i Marseillesregionen i Frankrike ochStockholmsregionen i Sverige. I fokus star skiftet fran en endimensi ...

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FROM VICTIM DIASPORA TO TRANSBORDER CITIZENSHIP? Diaspora formation and transnational relations among Kurds in France and Sweden

Dit boek geeft een een boeiend inzicht in mensensmokkel. Gebaseerd op biografische interviews met gesmokkelde migranten in Nederland, laat de studie zien dat onderliggende oorzaken, de manier waarop de reis plaatsvindt alswel de uitkomst van mensensmokkelprocessen aanzienlijk kunnen verschillen. Door een perspectief van binnenuit te kiezen wordt het duidelijk dat gesmokkelde migranten geen passieve rol spelen. Verder valt op dat er verschillende type smokkelaars zijn en dat de interacties tussen die twee voor een belangrijk gedeelte het verloop van het proces bepalen.

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Navigating Borders : Inside Perspectives on the Process of Human Smuggling into the Netherlands

Centre on Migration, Policy and Society

This research found that significant progress has been made overall in developing a refugee policy in Eurasia (which was defined in this study as the countries comprising the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS): Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine/Kazakhstan, Kyrgystan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan; and the Central European countries of Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Romania, Poland, Slovak Republic and Slovenia). In Central Europe, the EU integration process was found to be the main engine for the refugee policy development (a condition for EU membership), though the situation with regard to its implementation was less impressive. However, as these countries are all EU Member States, (following Bulgaria and Romania’s entry in January 2007), they are evolving into the common European asylum space, which is meant, among others, to uphold at least minimum standards of refugee protection. The research also highlighted how institutions and implementation matter. For example, the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg could play an increasing role in upholding basic protection standards upon referrals to it from national courts in EU Member States under Article 234 of the Treaty of Rome 1957, as amended by the Amsterdam and subsequent texts, in order to provide judicial protection and to clarify the scope and meaning of European law in numerous areas, including asylum. Prospects for functioning refugee policies are bleaker in the CIS countries, which are not part of the EU harmonization process. Despite some notable successes as well as greatly varying results achieved through the CIS Conference, most CIS countries have not yet bridged critical gaps in regards to legislative and administrative frameworks, humanitarian status, documentation and integration of refugees, or raised public awareness to reduce xenophobia, discrimination, and intolerance. However, the seven Eastern European countries of the CIS (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Belarus, Moldova, Russia, Ukraine) are at least members of the European Human Rights Convention, which, if applied adequately, supports refugees’ need for protection. In Central Asia, European judicial protection is not applicable. Despite the ratification of the international refugee standards in four of the five Central Asian countries (Kazakhstan, Kyrgystan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan), the post September 11 climate tends to take precedence over refugees’ need for protection. Nevertheless, these countries, with the notable exception of Uzbekistan, at least made initially encouraging efforts in developing and implementing refugee policies and discussed these issues in international fora. These papers provide a means for UNHCR staff, consultants, interns and associates, as well as external researchers, to publish the preliminary results of their research on refugee-related issues. The papers do not represent the official views of UNHCR. They are also available online under ‘publications’ at

New issues in refugee research

Smuggling into Europe: Transit Migrants in Greece

The paper describes the role of social networks in asylum migration, aiming to explain how some people decide to stay in Greece and how others move on. Drawing from the example of Kurdish migrants in Athens, the paper examines how transnational and local social and family networks operate in the decisionmaking process, in the journey and in the period of temporary (‘in transit’) and permanent settlement. Regarding the journey, special emphasis is given to the description of the smuggling business, with the aim to add to a critical examination of the relation between smuggling and migrants. It is argued, that Kurds who are temporarily settled in Greece do not engage socially in this country, but are more oriented towards their homeland and other destination countries. Integration in Greece is an individual than an ethnic community effort, often assisted by social ties with the natives. An important division among Kurdish migrants is that between the non-politicised and the politically ‘organised’ members of Kurdish parties who are active in homeland politics but dissociated from the refugee population.

Kurdish Asylum Seekers in Greece: the Role of Networks in the Migration Process

The aim of this paper is to explore the relation between irregular and asylum migration and the institutional and socio-economic structures of the host society. Based on empirical findings from a case study of Kurdish migrants in Greece, the paper follows the asylum cycle and focuses on the organisation of the journey, the period of temporary and permanent settlement in Greece. At the same time, the analysis addresses certain aspects of the migration process, such the question of whether Greece is a transit country in SouthNorth movements, the role of relations between migrants and locals and the dynamic of intra-group divisions (particularly political) among Kurds affecting migration patterns and migrant relations.

Asylum, Transit Migration and the Politics of Reception: the Case of Kurds in Greece

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Morphological variability, bionomics and trophic associations of the rare Cypriot endemic Odocnemis intrusicollis (Seidlitz, 1895) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae)


 The region of East Attica in Greece faces stress on its water supply, caused mainly by agricultural activities and tourism in the summer. It's therefore imperative for the region to integrate water reuse in its water resources management plan. To this end, a project was conceived, which accommodated stakeholder management practices to ensure public acceptance with the challenge to transform potential project risks to opportunities. In particular, two major wastewater projects in the region were approved for co-financing by European Union (E.U) Cohesion funds and implementation by the Athens Water Supply and Sewerage Company (EYDAP S.A.) for agglomerations in East Attica (Rafina/Artemida & Marathon agglomerations). Both projects aim to achieving compliance with 91/271/E.E.C, Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive (UWWTD) and producing treated effluent wastewater that complies with the national standards for unlimited irrigation and urban reuse. Furthermore, another wastewater scheme, co-financed by EU funds with the beneficiary being the Prefecture of Attica involves the agglomerations of Koropi and Paiania respectively, which are also currently non-compliant. The aforementioned scheme is presently under development after upgrading with advanced tertiary treatment will also produce quantity of reclaimed water suitable for aquifer recharge to restore the water quality of groundwater bodies.

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Aspasia Papadopoulou

Papers

Smuggling into Europe: Transit Migrants in Greece

Kurdish Asylum Seekers in Greece: the Role of Networks in the Migration Process

Asylum, Transit Migration and the Politics of Reception: the Case of Kurds in Greece

Morphological variability, bionomics and trophic associations of the rare Cypriot endemic Odocnemis intrusicollis (Seidlitz, 1895) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae)

Promotion of environmental projects to conform with UWWTD and integrated water management