Navigating vulnerability: Law, society and humanitarian aid

Listen

This second episode of the second season of Réflexions is devoted to the question of vulnerability, a central concept in institutional discourses and practices linked to the protection of migrants.

Vulnerability is a central concept in institutional discourses and practices relating to the protection of migrants, but its interpretation varies according to legal, bureaucratic and social contexts.

A recent study by researchers at the University of Liège, which led to the publication of a book, highlights the paradoxes associated with the use of this concept. Although intended to offer protection, the concept of vulnerability can also reinforce inequalities or create additional barriers for people who don't fit into pre-established categories.

In fact, the focus on vulnerability can distract attention from migrants' fundamental rights, sometimes turning them into objects of bureaucratic management.

To rethink this approach, the book Between Protection and Harm: Negotiated Vulnerabilities in Asylum Laws and Bureaucracies - proposes clear avenues such as recognizing migrants as rights-holders first and foremost, and not simply as beneficiaries of humanitarian measures.

What is meant by vulnerability? Who is considered "vulnerable" and on what criteria? And above all, how does this categorization influence the chances of obtaining protection or support?

Useful reading

• Between Protection and Harm. Negotiated Vulnerabilities in Asylum Laws and Bureaucracies - This book examines how the increased use of "vulnerability" to guide state responses to refugee movements improves refugee protection, while generating contestations and exclusionary effects that can be detrimental. Book is accessible in Open Acces.
• The VULNER project, entitled "Vulnerabilities Under the Global Protection Regime", is an international research initiative funded by the European Union's Horizon 2020 program. It aims to deepen understanding of how legal and policy frameworks assess and address the vulnerabilities of migrants seeking protection. The project brings together around 25 researchers from nine universities and research centers in Europe, the Middle East and North America, specializing in law, sociology and anthropology.
• PODCAST - Speaking Refugee
• NANSEN - Le Conseil belge pour les réfugiés et un centre d’expertise juridique sur la protection internationale.

Scientific publications

• Governing Migration Through Paperwork. Legitimation Practices, Exclusive Inclusion and Differentiation
• The Use of Medico-Legal Reports in Asylum Processes in Belgium

About this episode

The speakers :

The Réflexions podcast

Guests, reflections, backgrounds and complementary views to discuss a theme and decipher the issues.

Discover the episodes

To be followed on streaming platforms:

| |