Investigating the challenges of refugee families separated by borders

Most European states allow refugees to access a facilitated procedure to reunify with their family members. Many studies, however, highlight how issues of timing, documentation and economic resources often make family reunions extremely difficult, if not impossible. If much has been written on the obstacles faced by migrants in this regard, little is known about the specific case of refugees. Through a multi-sited ethnographic study with refugees and their families, this project aims to reconstruct the complexity of power-relations, social expectations and structural impediments that impact on refugees' right to family life.

This project is funded by the Flemish Research Foundation and is hosted by the University of Antwerp (CRESC) and the Human Rights Centre of Gent University.