The The agency of refugees during the COVID-19 pandemic. The case of the Nakivale settlement (Uganda)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.12775/lud105.2021.08Keywords
agency, structure, subjectivity, empowerment, integration, liminality, “protratcted refugee situations”Abstract
The lives of refugees are burdened with challenges, which have been aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Referring to Anthony Giddens' structuring theory, this article attempts to analyse the threats faced by refugees during the public health crisis. In an attempt to find an answer to the question of how the agency of refugees manifested itself during the COVID-19 pandemic, special emphasis has been placed on the relationship between the subject and structure on the example of the Nakivale (Uganda) settlement, whose inhabitants live in a prolonged state of "protraction". The article uses narratives, information and data provided by representatives of the Nakivale Researchers Network; a research network located in the Nakivale camp. The methodology of this work is based on the concept of co-presence, the use of the so-called "Technology of life", combined with the results of the field interview carried out in Nakivale before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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