Displacement in Post Independence Eritrea: causes and consequences

Gaim Kibreab (London South Bank University)

Abstract
During the thirty years war of independence, Eritrea produced more than half a million refugees. The majority were in Sudan and others emigrated to different countries using the Sudan as a stepping stone. When the county achieved its long-awaited independence, it was everyone's expectation that those who were in exile would 'vote with thier feet' homewards and the phenomenon of forced migration would cease in the post-independence period.

As history is rarely made to order, independence instead of stemming the flow has accelerated it. This has caught observers and analysts alike by surprise. The aim of the lecture is therefore to examine the drivers of forced migration and the problems the displaced face in the different phases of their journey to danger and safety.

Joint seminar with the Department of Anthropology, the Anthropology of Development and the Department of Development Studies

Organiser: CMDS/Dept. of anthropology/Dept. of Development Studies

Contact email: rg32@soas.ac.uk

Contact Tel: 0207 898 4434