Tibetan refugee women in Nepal – full of life but formally non-existent: Paths from vulnerabilities to resilience

Ali, Annamari Nahide

4. term

Development and International Relations, Master

2016

I 1959 blev Tibet annekteret af Folkerepublikken Kina. Det førte til Dalai Lamas eksil og masseflugt af tibetanere. De fleste slog sig ned i Indien, hvor eksilregeringen blev oprettet, men anslået 20.000 blev i Nepal. Her anerkendes de ikke som flygtninge, og de har hverken nepalesisk eller kinesisk pas. Mange lever derfor som statsløse – uden anerkendt statsborgerskab eller juridisk identitet – i tibetanske flygtningelejre i Nepal, med stigende politiindsatser mod anti-Kina-aktiviteter og få muligheder for at forbedre deres situation. Denne afhandling undersøger, hvordan statsløshed påvirker tibetanske flygtningekvinder i Nepal. Undersøgelsen bygger primært på interviews og deltagerobservation i Tashi Palkhel-flygtningelejren i byen Pokhara. Det empiriske materiale analyseres med udgangspunkt i begrebsparret sårbarhed og resiliens (robusthed). Kvindernes sårbarheder identificeres ved hjælp af Martha Nussbaum og Amartya Sens kapabilitetstilgang, som peger på, hvilke muligheder der er nødvendige for et godt liv. Efter at have klarlagt, hvad der mangler for, at disse kvinders liv kan betragtes som af god kvalitet, analyseres deres reaktioner på sårbarhederne. Formålet er at afdække de strategier, som tibetanske flygtningekvinder i Nepal har udviklet for at styrke deres resiliens. De største sårbarheder udspringer af statsløshed: begrænset mobilitet; mangel på indkomst, arbejde og ejendomsrettigheder; forbud mod politisk deltagelse og forsamling; begrænset adgang til uddannelse; samt udelukkelse fra at vende tilbage til Tibet. Da det i praksis er næsten umuligt at fjerne årsagen – statsløsheden – består strategierne i at lære at leve et så godt liv som muligt med, eller på trods af, disse vilkår. Afhandlingen bidrager både til en dybere forståelse af tibetanske flygtningekvinders levevilkår i Nepal og til udviklingen af et teoretisk redskab til samfundsvidenskabelige studier af sårbarhed og resiliens.

In 1959, Tibet was annexed by the People’s Republic of China, prompting the Dalai Lama’s exile and a mass flight of Tibetans. Most resettled in India, where the government-in-exile was formed, but an estimated 20,000 stayed in Nepal. There, they are not recognized as refugees and have neither Nepali nor Chinese passports. Many therefore live as stateless people—without a recognized nationality or legal identity—in Tibetan refugee camps in Nepal, facing increased police action against anti-China activities and very limited options to improve their situation. This thesis examines how statelessness affects Tibetan refugee women in Nepal. The study draws primarily on interviews and participant observation in the Tashi Palkhel refugee camp in the city of Pokhara. The empirical material is analyzed through the lens of vulnerability and resilience. The women’s vulnerabilities are identified using Martha Nussbaum and Amartya Sen’s capabilities approach, which outlines what people need to live a good life. After mapping what is missing for these women to achieve a good quality of life, the analysis explores how they respond to these vulnerabilities. The aim is to unfold the strategies Tibetan refugee women in Nepal have developed to strengthen their resilience. The most significant vulnerabilities stem from statelessness: restricted mobility; lack of income, employment and property rights; prohibitions on political participation and assembly; limited access to education; and exclusion from returning to Tibet. Because ending statelessness is practically impossible, the strategies focus on learning to live as well as possible with, or despite, these constraints. The thesis contributes both to understanding the living conditions of Tibetan refugee women in Nepal and to refining a theoretical tool for social scientific research on vulnerability and resilience.

[This abstract was generated with the help of AI]

Tibetans ; Statelessness ; Vulnerability ; Resilience ; Refugee women ; Nepal ; Tibet

Download
View record in AAU Student Projects

Ali, Annamari Nahide:

• Tibetan refugee women in Nepal – full of life but formally non-existent: Paths from vulnerabilities to resilience (2016)