~ Quimbaya ~ Notes from an Anthropologist in the Field ~: World Refugee Day

IDP: More Than Just an Acronym

Internal Displacement is a very serious issue in Colombia. Scholars agree that the root of the problem lies in the internal conflict that has afflicted the country for decades. The affected population are mostly rural peasants who have been pushed out of their land by violence, as a deliberate strategy of war. Currently, Colombia has the second largest IDP (Internally Displaced People) population in the world after Sudan. The number of displaced persons in the country is estimated to be almost 4 million.
"Los Desplazados," as they are known in Colombia, are forced to move to the cities and live in informal settlements. 95% of IDPs live below the poverty line.
This research will explore the kinds of citizens that are formed in Medellín due to forced displacement, by addressing the mechanisms of self-help like coping strategies, survival techniques and adaptation mechanisms through collective political action to claim their citizenship and their right to have rights, more specifically their rights to the city. In other words, I will explore the communal/collective construction of citizenship, particularly in the case of organizations who are a part of the MOPDM (Mesa de Organizaciones de Poblacion Desplazada de Medellin) or Table of Organizations of Displaced Populations of Medellin – TODPM.

~ Quimbaya ~ Notes from an Anthropologist in the Field ~

Sunday, June 20, 2010

World Refugee Day

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IDP: More Than Just an Acronym

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