Vulnerability of Urban Refugees to Gender-Based Violence (Gbv) In Addis Ababa: A Case of Congolese Refugees
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Date
2019-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Conflict and disaster occur throughout the world every day. The aftershock of these situations
gives rise to millions of stateless persons and refugees. However, this has proved an elusive
aspiration for the study. This study investigates the vulnerabilities of Congolese refugee women
and men in Ethiopia with specific reference to Addis Ababa. The objectives of the study were to
understand the vulnerability of men and women Congolese refugees to GBV in Addis Ababa to
examine the economic, social and legal conditions of the Congolese refugee's men and women in
Addis Ababa.
Feminist post-structuralism and Intersectionality theory influenced the theoretical framework of
the study. In-depth interview methods were used to collect primary data. Snowball and purposive
sampling methods were used to select participants. In considering the cases of GBV, the
researcher took note of the experiences encountered during their journey from their homelands
as they escape the woes of war, conflict, and persecution that was in Congo. On arriving in
Ethiopia, they are provided shelter in the form of camps. However, due to inadequacies in the
camps that may not be able to address some of their immediate health, personal security and
education challenges, refugees would have to, therefore, apply for a permit in order to be
relocated to Addis Ababa, through the referral system from ARRA and UNHCR.
In view of the key findings, Congolese refugees are vulnerable and when gender discrimination
occurs it is not tackled by concerned authorities. However, as refugees have specific challenges
attached to their statuses such as limited access to employment opportunities, inadequate
knowledge about their new environment, less human agency and poverty, the summation of all
these conditions contribute to increased vulnerability of men and women Congolese urban
refugees in Addis Ababa to GBV.
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Keywords
Addis Ababa to GBV