Situation and context: migratory policies and interactions with refugees in northern Angola

Abstract

In this paper I analyze the configuration of the relationship between refugees, mainly from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and local and national society and international organizations in two northern Angolan provinces: Cabinda and Lunda Norte. Drawing from ethnographic evidence collected during a fieldwork on these locations, I seek to demonstrate how mediatic representations and legal definitions concerning refugees are reframed according to the modes of collective organization and self-representations of foreign communities in the border areas that work as scenarios for migratory movements, producing different ways of incorporating immigrants and refugees to their respective social contexts.

Keywords
Refugees; immigrants; social situation; northern Angola