Normalising the Exceptional

The Use of Temporary Protection in Transit Countries to Externalise Borders and Responsibilities

Bibliographic Data

ID3948781
AuthorsLinn Biorklund Belliveau (York University Geography Department, York University Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research, Toronto, Canada, corresponding author), Rhonda Ferguson (York University Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research)
Year2023
Volume28
Issue1
Pages333-363
Publication date2023-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueGeopolitics (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1465-0045 • E-ISSN: 1557-3028
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/14650045.2021.1907350
OpenAlexW3153215447
LanguageEN
Citations received12
References cited46

Temporary protection is increasingly presented as a ‘novel approach’ to displaced people that have crossed an international border as it can provide a level of protection and access to basic social services for a defined time period. This paper calls into question the objectives of such measures by highlighting the geopolitical context in which they operate. We argue that while temporary arrangements, particularly in so-called ‘transit’ countries, may address humanitarian needs of displaced people, they also embed precarity and temporality into protection norms. Combined with polices that externalise migration management, they risk normalising the exclusion of individuals from avenues to permanent protection in a country that they feel safe. By analysing the potential implications of holding temporary status, with recipients’ well-being and permanent status application in mind, an alternative lens is provided. Using examples of temporary protection mechanisms in Turkey and Mexico, we argue that a deeper critical assessment is needed to understand their impact for people

Business · Development economics · Economics · Geography · Geopolitics · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Precarity · Social exclusion · Social protection · Sociology · Temporality · Law · Migration and Labor Dynamics · Migration, Health and Trauma · Migration, Refugees, and Integration

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