HOST COMMUNITIES, STATES, AND THE IDEA OF

REPRESENTATION AND SHARED RESPONSIBILITY

-ADHIRAJ GUPTA,

There have been various accords and international agreements being signed between
organisations such as the WHO and the UNHCR, which further adds to a similar
understanding made with the International Organization for Migration in 2019; it can be said
without a doubt that the United Nations Organization and its subsidiary organs have ramped
up their procedures and awareness campaigns, it is insufficient to provide an egalitarian
environment for nearly twenty-six million people, four-fifths of these humans in developing
and underdeveloped countries. Most countries already have their health infrastructure and
supplies strained due to community transmission and cases which are difficult to trace. This
leads to a greater need for exploring two questions in tandem: How far will countries adhere
to international statutes which are non-binding in nature, all the more if the government is not
a signatory to the treaty/convention? Secondly, what is the fine line (if temporary and partial
enforcement of these statutes were to be in place hypothetically) between an enforced yet
natural sign of goodwill and commitment to the upliftment of refugees and displaced
communities and an imminent threat that can be construed as a dilution of sovereignty? For
example, the Covid-19 Solidarity Response Fund, a collaboration of the WHO and the UNO,
has raised 214 million US dollars (as of 21st May). Still, in the MENA region, the UNHCR
has only been able to provide financial aid to an additional 200,000 refugees out of the 5.5
million refugees in the region. This is a small figure, considering that the UNHCR alone
needs 745 million US dollars out of the (projected) 6.7 billion US dollar budget of the UN
Global Humanitarian Response Fund. This furthers the argument about how much of the onus
falls upon the host community to declare an inclusive plan for the stateless.
If we were to gauge the concerns over discrimination and partisan treatment refugees
thematically are being subject to, even while the international communities, the areas that
require discussion could broadly be categorised under the common goal of securing
fundamental rights and amenities for refugees and the stateless as well, the modus operandi
of which should be multi-pronged: representation in communitarian decision- making,
economic inclusion, easy access to schemes and subsidies, women empowerment through
additional channels of cottage scale industries, and lastly, awareness to sensitise people about
the issues faced by asylum seekers, clearing up false propaganda about them being potential
carriers of the virus, which has led to the denial of entry in the host country while in transit,
in many cases.

A ubiquitous feature that we have come across in all countries of the world battling this
pandemic is the socialist perspective and subsequent measures these States have taken to
create a sustainable environment for their respective citizens. A lockdown in any country
would trigger economic damage. This collateral has long-term devastating effects in the form
of economic recession and a sharp fall in projected economic growth. However, governments
have had short-term alleviation measures to provide introductory provisions to their citizens,
be it in direct cash transfers, rations, delivery of essential commodities, ceiling prices on
medical facilities, insurance of treatment, and so on. The major flaw in the context of
refugees that these schemes expose is that they are available based on citizenship and are
available upon producing the necessary and relevant documentation. Hence, this leads us to
find a viable method for ensuring that refugees are entitled to ration, hygiene products,
essential commodities and information regarding the pandemic.
The legal status of a refugee/asylum seeker determines the benefits to which the person is
entitled. However, if we look at far greater necessities, the first concern that requires
immediate redressal on the part of a country/host community is to ensure adequate social
distancing and other norms suggested by the whom to ensure that camps and detention
centres are exempt from the horrors of community transmission. An Inter-Agency Standing
Committee (the stakeholders being IFRC, IOM, UNHCR and the WHO) has already released
a detailed Readiness and Response Operation Guide for Camps and Camp- like settlements,
which works in close adherence to the Standard Operating Procedures of the WHO,
especially when it comes to the distribution of amenities and rapid response teams in case of
an outbreak. This would also require a sizeable amount of governmental intervention at
times. For example, many countries do not have a legal statute for asylum seekers, which is
compensated for by governmental executive policies from time to time.,
In this situation, countries must adhere to social distancing norms and implement them at
detention centres where many refugees are being held on a prolonged, pre-deportation basis
since travel restrictions and regional/nationwide lockdowns are under effect. The document
above also brings to light the temporary measures that need to be implemented to give these
settlements an alternative expansion plan, the airlifting of supplies to such sites, and the
construction of rudimentary yet effective isolation units in case of infections. When
discussing representation as a necessity, it goes without saying that the presence of sure
representatives/ a collegium/ a delegation deemed fit is involved in the decision-making
process when it comes to drafting a customised, area-specific response plan and eventually
reducing overcrowding.

ECONOMIC INCLUSIVITY AND THE NEED FOR IT

With global economic growth projected to

shrink by over three per cent in 2020 as
per the IMF, this gives rise to questions
surrounding the economic stability of the
stateless since most of them are heavily
dependent on grants-in-aid, financial
support from the UN and other
international organisations, relief work
organised by NGOs, and aid from the host
community/country. A significant portion
of refugees are also employed based on
the semi-skilled labour they provide, and
the current situation has unleashed a wave
of unemployment amongst displaced
communities. For
example, Turkey,
home to the
world’s largest
refugee
population, has reported a 70 per cent rise in unemployment and an 80 per cent increase in
daily expenses. Lockdowns imposed have led to non-payment of wages to many refugees
since most of them hold non-contractual, meagre jobs that provide the essential support they
require. The growing concern over no available alternative income streams is coupled with
these woes. However, it is needless to say how far-reaching the consequences of
unemployment without a social safety net are. Many refugees who live in urban settlements
do so without any aid, and a lack of income leads to an inability to pay for rent and essential
utilities. This adds to the already perceived notions and stigmatisation of members of the host
community project, eventually leading to eviction and isolation, which triggers psycho-social
distress. Chronic underfunding of the various missions in this country, coupled with a
rudimentary registration system with negligible outreach and detection process, has left
refugees helpless, with no aid and an acute shortage of medical supplies and nourishment for
the elderly, pregnant women and children.
To alleviate refugees in urban settlements, the idea of microfinancing networks can be
considered to be a viable option. Refugees in urban settlements are bereft of banking and
credit services because of two primary reasons: Firstly, their lack assets against which loans
can be issued (negligible mortgage), and secondly, their legal status presents them as high-
risk clients to banking networks. Hence, the aid that is circulated by the UNHCR may also
switch to a serious model of credit circulation that will lead to a money supply in the
community as well as in the economy. The money supply is traditionally considered a system
encouraging a county's entrepreneurship. However, bringing refugees under a similar ambit
would require recognising the dynamics in the case of refugees. Even though it sounds odd
since business models of credit and finance juxta positioned with a humanitarian approach
considering the recipient pool has been of little success (ARC in Sierra Leone had run a
small-scale credit system for refugees, known as the Refuge to Return certificate system,
while the IRC had tried a similar project in Kakuma in 2001)
UNHCR only has recently started with The Graduation Approach, which is backed by
institutions such as the World Bank’s CGAP and BRAC in Bangladesh. This approach, if
implemented on a larger scale than it is now (in a significant yet small proportion in the
MENA region for Syrian refugees, in Cairo and Costa Rica), will provide stage-by-stage
incentives to refugees, namely, financial instruction, developing skillsets, vocational
education, and finally, credit services for start-ups/cottage scale industries that will provide
for sustenance. The method depends on two aspects that make it stand out: its commitment to
personal relations and obligations, and secondly, the granting of funds and networks that
revolve around a mechanism of which the community is a part. As per Bloom and Bets, in
2013, the term humanitarian innovation was conceptualised to bring such activities under
their ambit. Beneficiary refugee populations do require help in this regard.

THE WAY AHEAD

There is a vital need to recognise, on the ground, how refugees come under the ambit of
international statutes such as the Convention on the Rights of Child, the UDHR, the ICCPR,
CEDAW and so on. Even nations that are not a party to the 1951 UN Refugee Convention or
succeeding protocols must acknowledge and act upon residing refugee populations on a pro
tem basis, if necessary. These protocols make refugees eligible for similar services and aid,
which cannot be invalidated on the grounds of their legal status because, amid a pandemic,
humanitarian needs and the courtesy to respond to them that count. Be it cash assistance
using biometrics in Cox’s Bazaar in Bangladesh or hygienic, mobile distribution of money in
Somalia, aid from individuals, private entities and organisations reflects the recognition of
privilege and how the concept of generosity comes along with living a privileged life. Food
rations, hygiene products, alternative income streams, primary education, awareness and
access to information, not to mention gender-neutral access to grievances and support
systems, and lastly, representation in decision-making committees will go a long way in
ensuring that over 26 million refugees all across the world make it through this pandemic
irrespective of their legal status, lifestyle, or even ethnicity.