Mobilities 2018

The first country visit took place from 7 to 13 April 2018 to Lebanon. The mobility organised by the Lebanese project team was guided by the motto “Borders and bridges between states, cultures and religions”. The current refugee situation (especially of Syrians) and its impact on Lebanon as a transit country is examined against the background of its history, its social and political situation (including postcolonial powers, the Palestinian refugee population, the civil war trauma and an interdenominationally institutionalised balance of power). Subjects like inclusion, exclusion, and illegality in the refugee context were discussed in workshops, during visits of institutions and in forums. The 20-member project team gained comprehensive insight into the Lebanese refugee situation and the work of governmental, international and civil society organisations in the field of migration management, humanitarian aid, and social integration in a country characterised by diversity.

In the northern part of the country the project team visited, among others, the educational organisation “Al Ihssan” and the NGO “Relief and Reconciliation for Syria”; in Beirut they visited the Palestinian refugee camp Chatila, the humanitarian organisation “Union of Relief and Development Association (URDA)” as well as two faculties of the Lebanese University. Additionally, the project team had the chance to talk to many social workers, representatives of UNRWA, the Ministry of Social Affairs, and the Lebanese Social Work Syndicate during several meetings. By visiting “Adyan”, a foundation for interreligious dialogue, and the civil society organisation “Permanent Peace Movement”, the group also focused on the topic “Religion as source for conflict and peace”. The project team looked into Lebanon’s historical past, the devastating civil war between 1975 and 1990, and the tense relation between the religious communities. This allowed them to learn how the Lebanese society attempts to handle diversity and difference and to promote peaceful co-existence of all sections of the population.

In the second mobility, FHWS could welcome the project teams from Lebanon and Jordan during its International Week from 3 to 9 June 2018 in Würzburg and Schweinfurt. The teams looked into how refugees and migrants are received and integrated in Germany. Thus, relevant institutions were visited like the initial reception centre in Schweinfurt as well as the collective accommodation centre in Geldersheim, but also the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) in Nuremberg. In addition, the teams got information about the German migration situation. However, they also heard about local integration initiatives and projects by different organisations: The second mayor of Schweinfurt, Ms Sorya Lippert, presented the city’s as well as her own activities in the field of integration; FHWS introduced their DAAD-funded projects “Integra” and “Welcome”, both promoting the integration of refugees into the (higher) educational system; the Gesellschaft zur beruflichen Förderung (GbF), a subsidiary of the local Chamber of Crafts supporting professional development, gave a presentation about their measures to integrate refugees and migrants into the German labour market. Visiting a shared accommodation for unaccompanied minors offered by Diakonie Würzburg illustrated which different stages of the German asylum and integration system unaccompanied minors go through and how social work can contribute to accompany these youths.

As this visit took place during the FHWS International Week, the Lebanese and Jordanian professors had the opportunity to present to a wider audience the impact of the Syrian refugee crisis on their countries as well as action strategies of social work. Moreover, in a lecture followed by discussions the project-related topic “Extraterritorialisation and legal access for international refugee protection” was analysed from the perspective of asylum law.

The project group was also confronted with German history while visiting the concentration camp memorial site in Flossenbürg. During their visit of the former concentration camp and the accompanying exhibition, the project teams learnt about how the camp was created by the Nazis as an instrument of power and about the victims who had to suffer from inhumane treatment and enslavement due to unwanted and scorned political opinion, religion or sexual orientation. In an interactive workshop the group dealt with the question “How shall we live together?” and discussed the ideal society as well as fair rules, values and norms within a community.

The local newspaper published an article about the project group’s visit to the Schweinfurt town hall.

From 28 to 3 August 2018, the project group met in Jordan. During visits to institutions and workshops with experts, the group focused on the Syrian as well as the Palestinian refugee community. During the workshops “Alternative Voices on the Syrian Refugee Crisis in Jordan” at Yarmouk University in Irbid and “Palestine and the Palestinian Refugees” at GJU in Amman, speakers got a chance to speak who in the public (national or international) discourse disagree with the dominating social and political consensus. By visiting international organisations like UNHCR, UNICEF, and CARE Jordan, through encounters with representatives of local initiatives (e.g. Jordan Women Union, Identity Center), but also in meetings with representatives of public authorities (Municipality of Irbid, Syrian Refugees Affairs Directorate) the participants learnt about different, and in part controversial, perspectives on the Jordan refugee situation.  This charged relationship between the various actors involved was exemplary of the competing socio-political attitudes towards the refugee issue; dealing with these competing attitudes is challenging social work in the field of flight and migration – not only in Jordan, but also in Lebanon and Germany. A visit to the Catholic Center for Studies and Media also highlighted the rootedness of various (not only Islamic) religious communities in Jordan and the cultural significance of this historical co-existence for living together peacefully.

The final mobility was held from 22-26. October 2018 at FHWS in Würzburg. The main programme item was the presentation of the projects' research results, conclusions and need for action for social work with refugees. On 23.10. the project group of Yarmouk University gave presentations about their research for all project members. On 24.10. the project members of the Lebanese University, German Jordanian University and FHWS presented their research results in a public event at FHWS to a larger audience (you can find the research of the students here). As a guest speaker, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Jochen Pleines presented the results of his fact finding mission on the situation and support of refugee students at Jordanian universities.

Furthermore, the project team visited the Middle Franconian town of Rothenburg Ob der Tauber with its medieval old town and had a guided tour in the city of Würzburg to learn more about the history of these places.

Finally, the project was internally reflected and evaluated in order to draw conclusions from the experience gained for future cooperation. It became clear that the participation in and the exchange through the project was a great enrichment for all participants, but the prerequisites for a better learning effect for the student project members could be improved. The shared experiences and achievements motivated the members of the project group to stay in touch and to use the connections for further projects in the future.