Since the early 1990s, refugee crises in the Balkans, Central Africa, the Middle East, and West Africa have led to the international spread of civil war. In Central Africa alone, more than three million people have died in wars fueled, at least in part, by internationally supported refugee populations. The recurring pattern of violent refugee crises prompts the following questions: Under what conditions do refugee crises lead to the spread of civil war across borders? How can refugee relief organizations respond when militants use humanitarian assistance as a tool of war? What government actions can prevent or reduce conflict?

To understand the role of refugees in the spread of conflict, Sarah Kenyon Lischer systematically compares violent and nonviolent crises involving Afghan, Bosnian, and Rwandan refugees. Lischer argues against the conventional socioeconomic explanations for refugee-related violence-abysmal living conditions, proximity to the homeland, and the presence of large numbers of bored young men. Lischer instead focuses on the often-ignored political context of the refugee crisis. She suggests that three factors are crucial: the level of the refugees' political cohesion before exile, the ability and willingness of the host state to prevent military activity, and the contribution, by aid agencies and outside parties, of resources that exacerbate conflict. Lischer's political explanation leads to policy prescriptions that are sure to be controversial: using private security forces in refugee camps or closing certain camps altogether. With no end in sight to the brutal wars that create refugee crises, Dangerous Sanctuaries is vital reading for anyone concerned with how refugee flows affect the dynamics of conflicts around the world.

About the Author

Sarah Kenyon Lischer is Assistant Professor of Political Science at Wake Forest University.

Reviews

A thought-provoking analysis that should stimulate analysts and policymakers to rethink their approaches to the problems associated with providing support to people fleeing conflict.... Dangerous Sanctuaries goes beyond the universal, offering an explanation for the cases that seem to fall outside of the predictions of the economic model, and therefore offers us a richer, more nuanced picture of the mechanisms of conflict. This is a valuable contribution to the literatures on civil war and on humanitarian intervention and should assist practitioners and analysts in understanding the complex dynamics of refugee-related violence and humanitarian assistance.

* SAIS Review *

In this well-constructed and well-argued book, Sarah Kenyon Lischer challenges naive and uncritical views of refugees and assistance to refugees. She contends that refugees can spread civil war and that humanitarian air can become a tool of war.... Her book is a stimulating, careful, and important contribution to the literature on civil wars, the international dimensions of civil wars, and humanitarianism. The author's framework and analyses will be useful to scholars and practitioners alike.

* Political Science Quarterly *

This book offers insights into the causes of violence among refugee communities that will certainly shape academic and policy debates for years to come. Academics focusing on refugee studies and policy practitioners in the field will find Dangerous Sanctuaries to be a worthwhile read.

* Journal of Peace Research *



Book Information
ISBN 9780801473418
Author Sarah Kenyon Lischer
Format Paperback
Page Count 222
Imprint Cornell University Press
Publisher Cornell University Press
Weight(grams) 454g
Dimensions(mm) 235mm * 155mm * 16mm