Uncontrolled urban housing in interwar Greece: the rise of the city in urban and national politics

The case of urban housing in interwar Greece was unique. After the end of the war in Asia Minor in 1922 almost 1.3 million Greek Orthodox refugees transferred from Turkey to Greece in the first obligatory exchange of populations in world history. Until that time accommodation and property were the privilege of the rich and there was no consideration for public housing as welfare to cater for the needs of low-income people. This paper explores how the impact of uncontrolled housing in the urban centres of interwar Greece led to the emergence of the town in urban and national politics. It will investigate how the uncontrolled housing defined different spatial configurations and reflected various forms of power relations. It will examine how the need for housing of the masses of refugees led to the collapse of the limited infrastructure and had a catalytic effect on town planning. It will also analyse how urban issues were raised on the political agenda and the way that cities produced electoral behaviours that changed the political map of the country.     

1911-1937年灾民移境就食问题初探

抗战前的民国时期,灾民逃荒现象极为普遍。灾发地政府因无力赈济自己的民众,或者出于推卸责任,放任其灾民四处流离,移境就食。流入地政府救济自己辖区灾民尚且不暇,自然不愿再为别区承担救济重任。再者,行政区划与经费的分配也限制了这种救抚他省灾民的欲望。因此,流入地对来境灾民无不驱逐出境或资遣回籍,而灾民在自己家乡确实又无以为生,迫不得已时只好重又外出。总起来看,整个灾发期间,灾民便是在灾发地与流入地的推来搡去之中艰难苟活。这一问题不是一地一隅所能解决,也远非一年一月所能一蹴而就,它需要各级政府的大力合作,需要对产生灾民的各种原因予以根治。然而,受时代条件所限,灾民的移境就食问题不能得到较好的解决,灾民的流离悲苦也就只能依然如故。     

The Changing Health Care Behaviour of the Hmong Refugee Population in Sydney

Health care behaviour of Hmong refugees in Sydney was investigated after research in the United States had shown that, within the Southeast Asian refugee community in that country, Hmong refugees not only had the lowest rates of use of Western medicine but also were the most likely to assess their quality of health as only fair ( Brainard and Zaharlick, 1989 , 849). In contrast, this study found that the Sydney Hmong generally used Western medicine as a system of first choice. At the same time, most continued to use traditional medicines, albeit in a modified form. Minimal costs, freedom to choose their own doctor and appropriate, long term health education were the most important factors in Hmong using Western medicine in Sydney. Other contributing factors included the structure and size of the community, the presence of a long‐term Hmong resident in Sydney upon arrival and familiarity with Western medicine. Thus, the Sydney Hmong community was able to maintain a reasonable quality of health at an affordable price. An unexpected finding was the improved social, economic and health status of Hmong women. Such differentiated results are a powerful argument for not looking at refugees as a homogenous group, even when investigating a single, national, ethnic or cultural group. This study highlighted both the multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary nature of health care behaviour and the contribution that a small in‐depth case study can make to health and migrant policy.     

太平洋战事前后国民政府救济难侨的活动

太平洋战事爆发前后,大批旅居南洋一带的侨胞为躲避战乱纷纷撤退归国。国民政府在财政极端困难的情况下,对归国难侨给予了积极的救济。在整个救济归国难侨的过程中,粤、闽、滇、桂等省在中央的指导与支持下,对于归国难侨、侨生以及国内的侨眷采取了积极的救济措施。太平洋战事爆发前后各地救济归国难侨的活动反映了政府在处理紧急事件方面开始有了一定的经验,同时也是抗战期间中华民族共同抵御外侮的团结互助精神的集中体现。     

Introduction: the feminist politics of refugee migration

The interdisciplinary field of refugee studies includes gender analyses, but feminism is not its forte. Scholarship in the field has neglected the development of feminist frameworks to trace the power relations that shape the gender and other politics of forced migration. Specifically, the underplayed concept of ‘refugee transnationalism’ is elaborated as a form of globalization where the social and political intersect in particular ways.     

难民认同：基于苦难历史记忆、政策及现实利益的想象——以广东省小岭华侨农场越南归侨为例

本文选择小岭华侨农场越南归侨为研究对象,运用田野调查和历史档案资料,阐释了在特殊迁移经历、政府倾斜性扶持政策及现实利益等因素的影响下,华侨农场越南归侨实现和巩固了对难民身份的想象与认同。     

The role of housing and neighbourhood in the re-settlement process: a case study of refugee households in Winnipeg

Access to adequate, affordable housing is an essential first step in the re-settlement process for immigrants and refugees. It is the basis from which newcomers look for jobs, language training and other services. Without such housing, newcomers may have limited security of tenure, compromised health, jeopardized education and employment opportunities and impaired social and family life. Refugees generally face the greatest challenges of all newcomers and find their housing choices constrained by many factors. This article presents the results of a study of refugee housing circumstances in Winnipeg. Key socio-economic, housing and neighbourhood characteristics important to successful re-settlement are documented and analyzed. The longitudinal nature of the study facilitates exploration of trajectories in a variety of indicators over time. The picture that emerges is one of the improving trajectories in many key indicators but also of very difficult circumstances that negatively affect the re-settlement process and the effective integration of refugee households. The article ends with suggestions for policy and program changes that would improve the housing circumstances of newly arrived refugee households.     

南京大屠杀期间的难民医疗救助

南京沦陷后,日军制造了南京大屠杀,南京的医疗救助任务空前繁重。虽然绝大多数医生在沦陷前离开了南京,但是留在南京的西方人士、慈善机构、隐匿身份生活在难民收容所内的军医以及参差不齐的民间医生出于人道主义立场,以各自的方式投入南京的医疗救助。南京内外信息交流初步恢复后,西方在宁人士又积极申请外援,经历一波三折,方才成行。上述努力为南京难民挺过难关做出了贡献。     

Russia's Kosovo: A Critical Geopolitics of the August 2008 War over South Ossetia

A noted political geographer presents an analysis of the August 2008 South Ossetian war. He analyzes the conflict from a critical geopolitical perspective sensitive to the importance of localized context and agency in world affairs and to the limitations of state-centric logics in capturing the connectivities, flows, and attachments that transcend state borders and characterize specific locations. The paper traces the historical antecedents to the August 2008 conflict and identifies major factors that led to it, including legacies of past violence, the Georgian president's aggressive style of leadership, and renewed Russian "great power" aspirations under Putin. The Kosovo case created normative precedents available for opportunistic localization. The author then focuses on the events of August 2008 and the competing storylines promoted by the Georgian and Russian governments. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: H10, I31, O18, P30. 7 figures, 2 tables, 137 references.     

Interrogating borders: a transnational approach to refugee research in Vancouver

Immigration is predicated on the centrality of the nation‐state. The authors argue that analyzing settlement patterns and successful integration within a strictly national context is insufficient to understand the political, social, and economic relations which shape the lives of refugee immigrants in Canada. To support this claim, a less state‐centric theoretical framework of transnational migration is outlined. The paper examines methods emerging from transnational migration, focussing in particular on research with Burmese refugees who have settled in the Greater Vancouver Area. Based on 50 personal interviews conducted with refugee newcomers from Burma who are now settled in the Lower Mainland, the authors use the case study as a basis to raise methodological and theoretical questions about immigration research. We argue that the very politics of doing research with this group of refugees and other immigrant groups are shaped by the relations of power experienced before arriving in Canada. Les auteures soutiennent que l'analyse des schémas d'établissement et d'intégration réussie dans un contexte strictement national s'avère insuffisante pour comprendre les relations politiques, sociales et économiques qui définissent l'existence des réfugiés immigrants au moment de l'arrivée. Dans le but d'appuyer cette proposition, nous définissons un schéma théorique moins axé sur l'état, c'est‐à‐dire le transnationalisme. La recherche examine ces facteurs en relation avec les expériences des ‘immigrants non‐traditionnels’ au Canada, en particulier les réfugiés Burmans installés dans la région de Vancouver. Basés sur 50 entrevues personnelles menées avec des réfugiés nouvellement arrivés du Burma et qui sont maintenant installés dans le ‘Lower Mainland’, les auteures utilisent l'étude de cas comme une base permettant de soulever des questions de méthodologie pour la recherche en immigration. Nous avançons que les implications politiques de la recherche avec ce groupe de réfugiés et d'autres groupes d'immigrants dépendent des relations de pouvoir vécues avant l'arrivée au Canada.