Refugees, Prisoners and Camps : A Functional Analysis of the Phenomenon of Encampment

It commences with a brief and broad overview of the field, that is, the various phenomena that are usually referred to as camps, selecting certain categories for further analysis and ipso facto de-selecting others which will be omitted from analysis. It also presents an overview of the various academic disciplines that would seem to be in a position to illuminate various aspects of these phenomena, and it proceeds to outline some theoretical approaches to the study of camps, not least the foucauldian theory (if so it is) on ‘heterotopias,’ understood as spaces of exception.Then come lengthier outlines of some of the main camp categories in more or less random order: Prison camps and other penal institutions and facilities as well as their functional equivalents; concentration camps and the special category of extermination camps; prisoners-of-war camps and refugee and IDP camps – the latter also analysed as an important element in a broader refugee (or ‘forced displacement’) regime. These chapters are more empirical and historical than the others, but also arranged according to the same functionalist and dialectical principles – but the depth into which they go also reflects the author’s main interests as well as the depth of his expertise. The refugee camps and equivalents thus receive most attention, reflecting the fact that the author teaches refugee studies at the University of Aalborg and is also involved in refugee matters as a member of the Refugee Appeals Board in his native Denmark. The chapter on concentration camps draws on quite extensiveresearch on genocide, primarily undertaken for a much lengthier work on genocides, war crimes, crimes against humanity and the so-called responsibility to protect which the author is also striving to complete.The chapters on prisoner-of-war camps as well as the conflict-related sections of the refugee camps chapter are to a large extent based on the author’s involvement in conflict studies for nearly 30 years,... Cover 1 Half-Title 2 Title 4 Copyright 5 Contents 6 List of Illustrations 8 Preface 9 List of Abbreviations 12 1 Introduction: Methods, Concepts and Theories 14 1.1 History, functionalism and dialectics 15 1.2 Camps and academic discipline(s) 16 1.3 Heterotopias: ‘Outsides Inside’ 18 2 Punitive and/or Preventative Confinement 25 2.1 The pros and cons of punishment 26 2.2 Camps as prisons 31 2.3 Punitive ‘transportation’ 34 2.4 Deportation and penal colonies 36 2.5 Summary 40 3 Concentration Camps and Ghettos 48 3.1 Nazi concentration camps 49 3.2 The functional equivalent: Jewish ghettos 55 3.3 Post-WWII concentration camps (?) 57 3.4 Summary 58 4 Camps for/in War 65 4.1 Prisoners-of-war camps 66 4.2 Training camps for guerrillas andterrorists 70 4.3 Counter-insurgencies, camps and strategic hamlets 72 4.4 Summary 75 5 Camps for People in Flight 85 5.1 The refugee regime 86 5.2 Forgotten fugitives: IDPs, development and environmental refugees 92 5.3 Zooming out: the big picture of forced displacement 94 5.4 Zooming in: life in and outside refugee and IDP camps 100 5.5 Conflict and security aspects of refugees and their camps 104 5.5.1 Securitising refugees 104 5.5.2 Refugee (camp) militarisation 105 5.5.3 Case study: the Rwandan genocide and its regional reverberations 109 5.5.4 ‘Sitting Ducks’: refugees in camps and boats 113 5.6 Summary 117 6 Conclusion 142 Selective Bibliography 147 Index 150 What do refugee and concentration camps, prisons, terrorist and guerrilla training camps and prisoner of war camps have in common? Arguably, they have all followed an 'outsides inside' model, separating those perceived to be 'undesirable' and 'deviant' from that which is considered 'desirable' and 'normal'. With its predominant focus on camps for refugees and internally displaced persons, this work surveys the many categories of camps and similar spaces of confinement and separation from both a functionalist and multidisciplinary perspective. In a study that is replete with historical examples from across the world, M̜ller explores various substitutes for camps and camp-like arrangements, deportation and surveillance among them, and surveys the ways in which this separation of the 'normative' and 'deviant' has often served the purposes of the powers that be What do refugee and concentration camps, prisons, terrorist and guerrilla training camps and prisoner of war camps have in common? Arguably they have all followed an 'outsides inside' model, enforcing a dichotomy between perceived 'desirable' and 'undesirable' characteristics. This separation is the subject of Møller's multidisciplinary study. What do refugee and concentration camps, prisons, terrorist and guerrilla training camps and prisoner of war camps have in common? Arguably they have all followed an 'outsides inside' model, enforcing a dichotomy between perceived 'desirable' and 'undesirable' characteristics. This separation is the subject of Moller's multidisciplinary study. Front Matter....Pages i-xii Introduction: Methods, Concepts and Theories....Pages 1-11 Punitive and/or Preventative Confinement....Pages 12-34 Concentration Camps and Ghettos....Pages 35-51 Camps for/in War....Pages 52-71 Camps for People in Flight....Pages 72-128 Conclusion....Pages 129-133 Back Matter....Pages 134-140