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Forced Relocation

  1. definition
  2. examples and/or illustrations
  3. other useful sources
  4. bibliography


Definition

From Population transfer (n.d.). In Wikipedia.org. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forced_relocation

Population transfer or resettlement is the movement of a large group of people from one region to another, often a form of forced migration imposed by state policy or international authority and most frequently on the basis of ethnicity or religion

From Force. (n.d.). In Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/force (Accessed 15/04/2014) and Relocation. (n.d.). In Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/relocation?show=0&t=1393485576 (Accessed 15/04/2014)

force: v. To compel to do something or to act; to obtain by coercion; to bring forth, as with effort; to move or drive against resistance; to break down by force; to press or impose, as one’s will

Relocation n. To move to another area; establish in another place  

Forced relocation. (n.d). In unterm.un.org. Retrieved from http://unterm.un.org/dgaacs/unterm.nsf/0/45688f4d8f30118685256a00000748fe?OpenDocument (Accessed 15/04/2014)

Movement of large numbers of people under threat, planned and organized by governmental authorities, armed forces and/or militias, who sometimes provide transportation to the population being expelled and displaced. Usually part of an ethnic cleansing programme

 

Examples and/or Illustrations

An example of forced relocation that occurred in Canadian history was the relocation of Japanese-Canadians during World War 2. During this time over 22,000 Japanese-Canadians were relocated from British Columbia. From Forced relocation: The Japanese-Canadian story. (n.d.). In Canada and the Second World War. Retrieved from http://www.warmuseum.ca/cwm/exhibitions/chrono/1931forced_e.shtml (Accessed 15/04/2014)

Forced relocation has also occurred in Ethiopia where the government relocated indigenous people. “Approximately 70,000 indigenous people from the western Gambella region to new villages that lack adequate food, farmland, healthcare, and educational facilities.” From Ethiopia: Forced Relocations Bring Hunger, Hardship (2012) In Human Rights Watch. Retrieved from http://www.hrw.org/news/2012/01/16/ethiopia-forced-relocations-bring-hunger-hardship (Accessed 15/04/2014)

China’s Three Gorges dam project also caused the forced relocation of over a million people. These relocations had to occur for a number of reasons including risk of landslides and high levels of water pollution caused by the dam. From Watts, J. (2010, January 22). Three gorges dam may force relocation of further 300,000 people. The Guardian. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/jan/22/wave-tidal-hydropower-water (Accessed 15/04/2014)

 

Other Useful Sources

Cohen, R. (2006). Developing an international system for internally displaced persons. International Studies Perspectives, 7, 87-101.

Glossary: Displacement. (n.d). Retrieved from http://www.unesco.org/most/migration/glossary_displacements.htm (Accessed 15/04/2014)

Oren, L., & Possick, C. (2009). Religiosity and posttraumatic stress following forced relocation. Journal of Loss and Trauma, 14(2), 144-160.

Powell, K. (2012). Rhetorics of displacement: Constructing identities in forced relocations. College English, 74(4), 299-324. 

 

Bibliography

Ethiopia: Forced Relocations Bring Hunger, Hardship (2012) In Human Rights Watch. Retrieved from http://www.hrw.org/news/2012/01/16/ethiopia-forced-relocations-bring-hunger-hardship (Accessed 15/04/2014)

Force. (n.d.). In Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/force (Accessed 15/04/2014)

Forced relocation. (n.d). In unterm.un.org. Retrieved from http://unterm.un.org/dgaacs/unterm.nsf/0/45688f4d8f30118685256a00000748fe?OpenDocument (Accessed 15/04/2014)

Forced relocation: The Japanese-Canadian story. (n.d.). In Canada and the Second World War. Retrieved from http://www.warmuseum.ca/cwm/exhibitions/chrono/1931forced_e.shtml (Accessed 15/04/2014)

Population transfer (n.d.). In Wikipedia.org. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forced_relocation (Accessed 15/04/2014)

Relocation. (n.d.). In Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/relocation?show=0&t=1393485576 (Accessed 15/04/2014)

Tuval-Mashiack, R., & Dekel, R. (2012). Preparedness, ideology, and subsequent distress: Examining a case of forced relocation. Journal of Loss and Trauma, 17(1), 23-37.

UN Refugees: Overview of forced displacement. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.un.org/en/globalissues/briefingpapers/refugees/overviewofforceddisplacement.html (Accessed 15/04/2014)

Watts, J. (2010, January 22). Three gorges dam may force relocation of further 300,000 people. The Guardian. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/jan/22/wave-tidal-hydropower-water (Accessed 15/04/2014)

William, W. (1994). Forced migration: local conflicts and international dilemmas. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 84(4), 607-634.

Other Related Terms

Displacement, forced migration, displaced person, population transfer