Abstract
People around the world are moving from their home countries to other destinations to find safety for various reasons such as war, poverty, and violence. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), 70.8 million people had been forced to move from their home countries by the end of 2018 and half of the world's displaced population is women. This chapter explores the challenges that refugee and asylum-seeker women experience, including mental health issues and sexual and gender-based violence. The authors systematically reviewed relevant studies that have been published in peer-reviewed journals that were from January 2000 through January 2020. Six articles met the inclusion criteria. The authors critically explored and analyzed these six articles, and the findings were discussed under the subjects of mental health and gender-based issues. Finally, recommendations were made to determine future directions for practice, policy, and research.
TopLiterature Review
Across the world, two out of three refugees are from Syria, Afghanistan, South Sudan, Myanmar, and Somalia (UNHCR, 2020). In addition, quite a number of people have fled Central America in the past five years due to economic and societal reasons, using illegal and/or irregular channels (UNHCR, 2020). Refugees are being forced to take arduous routes to reach their destination countries (Bejarano, 2017; Kovras & Robins, 2016). They have faced dangerous circumstances and human rights abuses during their journeys through the Sahel, Central America, or mountain passes in Asia (U.N, 2016). In this era, globally, we are the witnesses of how people attempt to cross borders by boats and walking for days or trying to cross walls and fences. The closing of borders and the securitization of migration processes have caused an escalation of violence, hate crimes, and insecurities for refugees who are fleeing from countries (Andersson, 2015).
Among the refugee population, children, pregnant women, adolescent girls, older adults, and individuals with disabilities are particularly more vulnerable to difficult physical and emotional conditions during their journey (U.N., 2016). Refugee women, and especially those who are from cultures with more traditional family structures, may have more responsibility than men to serve as a caregiver to their children because of their cultural expectations. So, women may face more challenges during their journey on the road. Many refugee and asylum seeker women experience psychological trauma during their journeys due to exposure to or being witness to sexual violence, physical harm, rape, drought, famine, lack of hygiene, torture, trafficking, and leaving the homelands and loved ones behind (U.N., 2016). Researchers found that refugee women suffer from serious mental health issues such as depression, suicide, and posttraumatic stress disorder as consequences of the migration process (Donnelly, Hwang, Este, Ewashen, Adair & Clinton, 2011). Furthermore, refugee women and girls have high HIV prevalence because they can be exposed to rape and other types of sexual violence during their journey and/or in refugee camps (Hankins et al., 2002; Vitale & Ryde, 2018).
Refugee and asylum-seeker women may be the main target of different types of violence during their journey. They can be forced to have sex in exchange for food, money, and protection (Vitale & Ryde, 2018). Rape is used as a weapon of war and refugee women are subject to sexual violence during their dangerous journey as well as in resettlement settings (Hankins et al., 2002). Overcrowded camps, unsafe housing conditions in host countries, and high rents in urban areas of those countries increase the risks of gender-based violence, arranged marriages, and monetary offers in exchange for unwanted sex, particularly for those in the female-headed households (CARE, 2013; Charles & Denman, 2013; Migration Policy Institute, 2017; Sami, Williams, Krause, Onyango, Burton & Tomezyk, 2014).
Key Terms in this Chapter
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: A mental health condition that can be caused by traumatic events either by experiencing or witnessing.
Intersectionality: The interconnected nature of multiple oppressions, disadvantages, and discrimination.
Ecological Framework: A person’s reciprocal relationship with family, peers, community, and society at the levels of micro, meso, and macro.
United Nations: An intergovernmental organization aimed to promote peace, security, and assistance among nations.
Resettlement: The transition from a host country to a resettlement country in which the refugee is accepted for a permanent settlement.
Host Country: The country that hosts refugees and asylum-seekers, usually for a prolonged time period, where refugees receive support and are protected.
Refugee: An individual who flees to another country to escape from a dangerous environment or persecution.
Forced Migration: Forcibly relocated to another place because of environmental forces nuclear disaster, war, threat, and other conflicts.
Gender-based Violence: Related with gender inequality and violence directed against an individual because of gender.