Precarious Refugee Protection in Egypt

Abstract

This research aims at analyzing the factors that limit refugees’ rights in Egypt. It first outlines the perception of the refugee issue in the Arab and Islamic world and it describes Egypt’s approach to the Conventions to which it adhered along the years. It also gives an in-depth overview of the conditions of the different refugee communities in Egypt, their daily challenges in urban areas and the services provided to them by the government, international humanitarian actors and local NGOs. The core of the research explores the conditions of Syrian refugees in Egypt and the reasons why they found themselves in a situation of heightened vulnerability. They have been caught in the middle of leadership transitions and were used by the authorities as political pawns in order to gain popular consensus and reinforce identities. Assuming that what happened to the Syrians is not an exception, this work analyzes other cases where asylum-seekers have seen their rights denied in Egypt. Sudanese have been subject to sudden change in policies because of the diplomatic relations between the two countries; Iraqi refugees have been treated as a security concern and Egypt de facto closed its doors on them; Ethiopians have been subject to a heavy discriminatory campaign for political and economic reasons and Palestinians have been literally privileged or mistreated according to the political agenda of the different rulers during the whole of the XXth century. However, Egypt is still a country in development, a condition that significantly undermines its capacity to receive refugees. The fifth chapter highlights the reasons why Egypt is a country that cannot, and sometimes does not want to, ensure protection of forced displaced.