ARTICLES

 

Local Integration and Congolese Forced Migrants in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

 

 

Christian Pangilinan

Peking University School of Transnational Law, Building B, Peking University, Shenzhen Graduate School, University Town, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, China 518055. christiandpangilinan@gmail.com

 

 

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ABSTRACT

Thousands of unregistered Congolese forced migrants live in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Some of them have lived in the city for years but their long-term futures remain undecided. Although many originally arrived for asylum-related reasons, the vast majority are not recognised as refugees or have only temporary legal status. In the context of discussions over possible legal solutions or residency for such people, this paper relies on interviews, focus groups and a survey of Congolese forced migrants in Dar es Salaam to ascertain their views on local integration as a possible option; local integration being a traditional permanent solution to the search for refuge. Results indicate that many Congolese forced migrants are locally integrated to a significant extent, although many continue to face significant challenges in terms of discrimination, economic self-sufficiency, safety and education. The paper concludes that, in light of their preferences and their degree of integration, there should be a variety of policy options for Congolese forced migrants. Some Congolese forced migrants indicate that asylum is a desired solution, some prefer naturalisation, or temporary legal residence, and some even consider assistance towards repatriation to be acceptable.

Keywords: Citizenship, naturalisation, refugee, Tanzania.

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Introduction

The presence of unregistered forced migrants from the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania has been documented since at least 2003 (Willems, 2003). As yet, permanent solutions for such unregistered migrants have not been developed. This paper presents results from interviews and discussions with Congolese forced migrants and others on local integration in Dar es Salaam. It aims to address whether Congolese forced migrants in the city consider local integration an acceptable durable solution and the extent to which such forced migrants are in fact already locally integrated.

Many Congolese forced migrants have negotiated safe legal and cultural spaces for themselves in Tanzania outside the official asylum system, but continue to face stigmatisation as 'refugees.' This, in turn, limits the willingness of many to consider official asylum procedures or permanent local integration. Those who decide against applying for asylum and who do not have other legal documentation are often left in hiding. However, many Congolese forced migrants consider temporary residence to be acceptable, and some are willing to consider naturalisation in Tanzania as an option.

Responsive policy options for Congolese forced migrants in Dar es Salaam may therefore involve a variety of approaches: local integration including a path to citizenship for long-term migrants who have established new lives in Dar es Salaam; legal residence permits for migrants who have resided in the city for some time but who are not willing or ready to commit to naturalisation; support for repatriation for migrants who are effectively stranded but wish to return; and safe access to asylum procedures for forced migrants who wish to apply for refugee status.

Background

Although Tanzania has a history of generosity towards refugees, the arrival of large numbers of refugees in the 1990s from the Great Lakes region eventually led to increased restrictions on refugees' freedom of movement and to less support for refugees' self-sufficiency (Veney, 2006). By 1998, new refugee legislation imposed heightened restrictions on refugees (UNHCR & DANIDA, 2010). The 2003 National Refugee Policy reaffirmed what had evolved into a policy of refugee containment (MHA, 2003).

Refugee encampment remains government policy, but urban areas like Dar es Salaam and Kigoma Town in Kigoma Region continued to host populations from refugee-producing countries as well as others colloquially known as refugees or who may have refugee claims. This population includes refugees who had been recognised as refugees and left camps or settlements without authorisation (Sommers, 1999). As a result of their unauthorised residence outside camps, these refugees risk the loss of their refugee status and penalisation for their presence or work outside settlements (Sommers, 1999; Jacobsen, 2005).

Persons from refugee-producing countries who had arrived without seeking or obtaining refugee status are also present in Dar es Salaam (Mann 2002). Reasons for unauthorised departure from camps include a desire to escape camp conditions, personal safety, family reunification and self-realisation (Sommers, 1999; Willems, 2003). Some have reported that they fear registration with the Ministry of Home Affairs' Refugee Services Department or of approaching UNHCR (Asylum Access, 2011). The Ministry of Home Affairs acknowledges the existence of these populations (USSD, 2012). A major national human rights organisation refers to the same population as stateless persons (LHRC, 2012).

The government has indicated that it may allow more refugees to live outside refugee camps, but it is unclear whether a revised policy on refugees will include currently unrecognised urban refugees (Pesa Times, 24 June 2013). Other aspects of a possible policy on urban refugees, such as who would be permitted to reside in urban areas, have also yet to be unveiled (Pangilinan, 2012).

As reported by UNHCR (2014), Tanzania's total recorded Congolese refugee population as of December 2013 is slightly more than 60,000. This number does not include unrecognised Congolese forced migrants or asylum seekers. The size of this population has been subject to differing estimates. Masabo estimates the number of urban refugees, including registered and unregistered refugees, in Dar es Salaam to be around 3,000 (Masabo, 2006).

The Ministry of Home Affairs has provided an estimate of 10,000, although the exact basis of the estimate is unknown (USSD, 2012). Willems asserts the number to be in the tens of thousands (Willems, 2003). Participants in this project varied in their estimates of the Congolese refugee population in Dar es Salaam, but tended to provide estimates in the lower range.

Conceptual Framework

a. Definitional Questions

Throughout this paper, the term 'forced migrant' is used rather than 'refugee' even though the persons described here may most commonly be referred to as refugees or, in Swahili, wakimbizi. Whether the persons described are refugees, even if the initial reason for their departure from the DRC appears related to asylum, may be contentious because the Tanzanian government or UNHCR does not recognise the majority of the people interviewed as refugees.

Refugees are defined by both the 1951 and 1969 Conventions. Under the 1951 Convention, refugees are those who are outside their country of nationality owing to a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion and are unable or unwilling to return to their country (1951 Refugee Convention art. 1(A)(2)). The 1969 OAU Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa also recognises as refugees persons who are compelled to leave their place of habitual residence to seek refuge in another country owing to external aggression, occupation, foreign domination or events seriously disturbing public order (1969 OAU Refugee Convention art. 1(2)).

Under the 1951 Convention refugees are not 'constituted' as refugees by national refugee status determination (Kälin, Caroni & Heim, 2011, pp. 1327-1396). Rather, such systems only 'declare' a person to be a refugee. By contrast, the 1969 Convention specifically declares that contracting states of asylum determine who has refugee status (1969 OAU Refugee Convention art. 1(6)).

Regardless of whether official recognition as a refugee is necessary for a person to be a refugee, most of the consequences of having refugee status are generally only enjoyed upon actually receiving such status either from a national government or from UNHCR (Goodwin-Gill & McAdam, 2007). As a consequence, status determination is crucial for individuals to obtain legal protection and humanitarian assistance. More problematic are individuals who might qualify for refugee status but do not have official recognition from UNHCR or from a national government. In East Africa this tended to include individuals who settled without authorisation in urban areas (Landau, 2008, pp. 103-124).

Some studies and scholars consider such 'illegal' refugees or forced migrants to be 'urban refugees' for some purposes (Church World Service, 2013; Hovil, 2007). However, Landau suggests that approaches to urban refugees that include unrecognised forced migrants raise ethical concerns: first, illegal settlement can lead to adverse reactions by states towards all refugees; and second, illegal settlement 'undermines[s] the value of legal action as a form of protection' (Landau, 2008, pp. 116-117).

Nonetheless, some 'illegally settled' refugees or forced migrants may be eligible to apply for asylum under the refugee definitions provided under either the 1951 or 1969 Refugee Conventions. Consequently, 'illegally settled' refugees who wish to apply for asylum may still be persons of concern to humanitarian or other organisations that work with refugees, with the caveat that they may conceivable be subject to penalties for not having immediately declared themselves as asylum seekers (Hathaway, 2005). Second, as will be discussed in the next section, such persons may maintain refugee identities or continue to be identified as refugees in their communities despite their lack of status.

b. Identifying Durable Solutions

This paper addresses local integration for Congolese forced migrants. Definitions of local integration vary, although there is consensus that local integration entails cultural and social integration, economic self-sufficiency, and legal integration (Crisp, 2004; Jacobsen, 2001; Meyer, 2008). HarrellBond (1986) suggests that integration reflects a situation in which host and refugee communities are able to co-exist, sharing the same resources, both economic and social, 'with no greater mutual conflict than that which exists within the host community'. Kuhlman (1991) adds that local integration requires that refugees undergo 'socio-cultural change [that]... permits them to maintain an identity of their own and to adjust psychologically to their new situation'. He rejects the view that integration requires assimilation. Other measures of local integration, suggested by Banki, include refugees' economic freedom, liberty of movement, land ownership, self-sufficiency, dispersal, and access to public services such as education and health (Banki 2004).

At present, Tanzania and other East African states usually refer to voluntary repatriation as the preferred outcome for refugees (MHA 2003). Advocates and scholars have re-emphasised the value of local integration as a durable solution when large-scale return to the country of origin is not possible (Dryden-Peterson & Hovil, 2003; Fielden, 2008). Given the low likelihood of resettlement for the vast majority of refugees and renewed instability in the DRC, de jure local integration warrants examination as a possible solution for Congolese forced migrants (UNHCR, 2012).

 

Methodology

Primary research took place from January to April 2013. Before and during this period, the author worked for Asylum Access Tanzania, a legal services NGO based in Dar es Salaam. Research was conducted in collaboration with Asylum Access Tanzania, but research materials, questionnaires and surveys were developed independently.

The principal aim of the research was to assess the extent to which Congolese nationals considered by Asylum Access to be urban refugees were already defacto integrated in Dar es Salaam along legal, social and economic lines, refugees' long-term intentions and desired outcomes including whether they intended or desired to remain in Tanzania.

Semi-structured interviews were carried out with key informants within the Congolese community. These included a total of ten forced migrants and church leaders. Six persons from NGOs that work with the same population or work on relevant issues and from academia were also interviewed. Finally, feedback from 14 NGO representatives from other legal aid organisations was also considered through presentations on the population concerned. Of the 30 people participating in interviews and feedback sessions, 15 were women and 15 were men.

Feedback from interviews and material from the literature review was used to develop a structured survey questionnaire to be administered to Congolese forced migrant participants. The questionnaire collected demographic information, information on housing, safety and freedom of movement, communications with the country of origin, relationships with host communities, employment/subsistence, access to services, long- term plans, as well as any other comments made by participants. The questionnaire was translated into French and administered by a registered refugee research assistant in Kiswahili or French.

A total of 51 Congolese forced migrants participated in the survey of whom 28 were women and 23 were men. The majority of participants were Congolese clients of Asylum Access whom Asylum Access had previously identified to have arrived in Tanzania for refuge. Each participant was, however, asked during the survey for his or her reason for coming to Tanzania and to Dar es Salaam. Purposive sampling was used to identify participants. To focus on local integration, only Congolese forced migrants who had resided in Dar es Salaam for at least one year were invited to participate in the survey.

Five focus groups were held with Congolese forced migrants reaching a total of 25 participants. Participants were selected through opportunity sampling and divided into male and female groups. Limited participant observation was also conducted with three forced migrants. A concluding community meeting was held towards the end of the primary research period with forced migrants and others to present ideas and collect feedback on the possible implementation of an urban refugee policy in Tanzania.

Finally, five focus groups were organised with Tanzanian residents of neighbourhoods in Dar es Salaam in which Congolese forced migrants also lived. These focus groups solicited views on refugees in Dar es Salaam, Congolese refugees in particular, and on attitudes towards integration options towards Congolese refugees. Fifteen men and twenty seven women participated in the focus groups, which were organised in collaboration with three Dar es Salaam-based community services and legal services NGOs.

Result

Participant Demographics and Self-identification

Congolese participants generally distinguished between refugees (whether registered or not) and non-refugees or economic migrants. This indicates that participants did not assume that all Congolese in Dar es Salaam were refugees. As participants describe, refugees constitute a large portion of Dar es Salaam's Congolese population, but that population also consists of individuals whose primary purpose for coming to Tanzania was business-related. Some participants also suggested the presence in Dar es Salaam of Congolese refugees or migrants who have integrated into Tanzanian society in a way that makes it difficult to apply terms like 'migrant' or 'refugee' to them.

One participant described the presence of Congolese 'refugees' who have 'lived here for a long time and have stayed here for a long time. They say they are of Congolese origin, but have already changed their nationality.' Such persons may not have legally changed their nationality, and few participants were able to identify Congolese who had legally naturaliased, but have effectively ceased presenting themselves as Congolese or even interacting with other Congolese residents.

One survey participant described himself as sometimes not accepting Congolese at his home for fear that they would speak Lingala and expose his Congolese origin. Such persons may therefore represent a category of what Polzer describes as 'invisible' refugees or forced migrants who have locally integrated outside the asylum system (Polzer, 2008). The inclusion or exclusion of these invisibly integrated refugees/forced migrants might affect estimates of the size of the Congolese urban refugee population.

In addition, while the amount of time a person has resided in one place can indicate a loss of identification as a refugee, it is not dispositive. For example, in one interview the author asked a Congolese resident of Dar es Salaam who came to Tanzania in 1993 and never obtained refugee status whether he thought of himself as a refugee. He replied that he still thought of himself as a refugee: 'in terms of the conditions I'm in and because I cannot return to the DRC.' Some long-term Dar es Salaam residents also described being identified by neighbours as refugees.

Results suggest that many Congolese urban refugees in Dar es Salaam are long-term residents. Of 51 survey participants, a large majority had resided in Dar es Salaam for more than ten years. Many indicated that they arrived in the latter half of the 1990s, although a few survey and unstructured interview participants indicated earlier arrival dates. A smaller percentage of survey participants indicated that they had resided in Dar es Salaam for more than ten years.

Legal Status and Access to Asylum

The legal component of local integration sees refugees 'granted a progressively wider range of rights and entitlements by the host state', including rights to employment, to engagement in income-generating activities, to 'enjoy freedom of movement and to have access to public services such as education' (Crisp, 2004). This legal process can culminate in citizenship or permanent residence (Crisp, 2004).

The number of Congolese urban refugees who had accessed formal asylum systems was low and few participants indicated that they had either applied for asylum or been previously recognised as a refugee or asylum seeker. Only six of the survey participants stated that they had applied for asylum. Urban refugees who were previously resident in a refugee camp and then left without authorisation have likely 'lost' their status by falling out of the refugee system.

Registered refugees who are not present in the refugee camp during a census may have their ration cards 'inactivated,' which is effectively identical to the loss of refugee status. Until the issuance of national identification cards for refugees, ration cards are refugees' primary identification as refugees. Refugees without valid ration cards may not be able to obtain refugee identification (NIDA, n.d.). They would be unable to do so regardless of whether or not their status has been formally ceased.

Other participants stated various reasons for not having applied for asylum. These included a lack of knowledge about the application process, fear of, or unwillingness to be sent to, a refugee camp or fear of the government generally, and the decision not to apply having been made by a parent or guardian. Six survey participants also reported that they had sought to apply for asylum, but that their applications were not considered.

Another participant described an experience that she and another woman had of feeling detained when they had gone to the Ministry of Home Affairs' Refugee Services Department to request asylum. They described being transferred from the Ministry's Refugee Services Department to its Immigration Department, an event that suggested they could be deported.

These results suggest that asylum is a desired option for some Congolese forced migrants in Dar es Salaam, regardless of whether the result is encampment. As a matter of course, this means that some individuals who may qualify for refugee status are willing to forego seeking local integration as an option. However, the results also suggest that some potential asylum applicants are rebuffed, and that some are deterred by the prospect of encampment. Certainly, survey results indicate that a large majority of participants would be interested in applying for asylum if asylum seekers or refugees were permitted to remain in Dar es Salaam. Some forced migrants may also forego applying for asylum under current conditions if they can otherwise obtain legal status in Tanzania.

This is not to say that Congolese urban forced migrants lack access to any options for legal residence besides asylum. In fact, about 75 percent of survey participants report possessing a 'peasant permit.' Peasant permits are less expensive residence permits for foreign nationals that were made available to 'irregular settlers' (Pangilinan, 2012). In late 2012, these permits were available for ten thousand shillings or about $6 U.S. (Pangilinan 2012), and were previously available for $50 U.S. Once generously made available in Dar es Salaam, many Congolese migrants and forced migrants took advantage of the opportunity to obtain legal status through the peasant permits, some with the assistance of Congolese community groups or Asylum Access.

Not all Congolese participants had obtained such a permit. Some explained that the permit's original cost of fifty dollars was too high for them to afford. One participant, who arrived in Tanzania at the age of eight, described being detained at the Immigration Department for nine hours after he was unable to produce a Congolese passport.

Others may have avoided obtaining permits for fear of what would happen to them should they obtain one and then not be able to afford to pay for its renewal, or should their request for renewal be denied. Permits have since become more difficult to obtain even though the Immigration Department lowered the applicable fees. Some participants also reported difficulties attaching to the permit application process itself, with some indicating that they had undergone the application process but had not yet been given the actual residence permit. These participants use receipts acknowledging that the Immigration Department has received their payment for a permit to verify their legal status.

A few participants described using Tanzanian electoral identification cards to verify their legal status. The use of Tanzanian identification documents reflects a strategy to avoid detection and reporting to authorities. No survey participants reported that they had any current asylum seeker or refugee identification. Twelve reported having no documentation whatsoever.

Impact of Legal Status

Legal status can play an important role in Congolese forced migrants' ability to express Congolese identity. According to several participants, possession of a residence permit allows the public disclosure of Congolese identity. Not all participants, however, explained that the possession of a permit enabled them to present themselves as Congolese in all situations. Some described continuing to present themselves as Tanzanian despite having legal status in order to avoid discrimination, maintain continuity between the Tanzanian identity they previously presented, or as a precaution in case they are unable to renew their permits. Possession of a permit was associated with safety from authorities and with employment and engaging in income-generating activities. Participants generally stated, however, that legal status did not address preferences in employment for Tanzanian nationals.

The impact of not having any legal status or documentation includes loss of access to employment, vulnerability to arrest and feelings of insecurity and anxiety. Close to one-third of the survey participants indicated that they had experienced problems with immigration officials. The majority of these reported that they had been detained or arrested by the authorities. Reasons reported for arrest include being reported to immigration officials by landlords and debtors and being arrested while working after being reported to authorities for working without permits.

Some participants also described having been reported to authorities by neighbours. A few participants reported that they or their immediate family members were employed, but lost their positions when employers requested evidence of their legal status or after their lack of legal status was exposed. Frequently, but not always, undocumented Congolese who are detained pay bribes to authorities or have bribes paid on their behalf for their release. Sums paid ranged from Shs. 25,000 to 300,000. Immigration authorities were reported by one participant to have released her when she explained that she was a refugee, albeit without documentation.

Citizenship and Birth Certificates

Of all Congolese participants, only one described knowing of Congolese obtaining Tanzanian citizenship. Given the cost involved in applying for and obtaining citizenship (even when a foreign national is legally married to a Tanzanian), this is not surprising. According to the Immigration Department, applying for naturalisation involves fees of at least 1,500 U.S. dollars (Immigration Services Department, n.d.). This does not include all other fees required.

The high cost of citizenship may drive some forced migrants who seek it to obtain citizenship by illegal means. One participant described some Congolese who had been arrested after attempting to register as Tanzanians to obtain national identification cards.

Children born in Tanzania to non-nationals do not automatically have the option of acquiring Tanzanian citizenship. Rather, citizenship by birth in Tanzania is limited to those with a Tanzanian parent. Children born to Congolese forced migrants in Tanzania, therefore, are also Congolese nationals. For these children, participants report difficulties obtaining birth certificates. One woman described being told that a child has no right to a birth certificate if she could not present the child's Tanzanian father.

Arrival and Survival Strategies

Given the importance of support systems to forced migrants, participants in this project were also asked about the conditions around their arrival in Dar es Salaam and the means by which refugees survive after their arrival.

For several forced migrants, support was available among family members, including parents and spouses. This was especially the case for Congolese forced migrants who arrived in Tanzania as accompanied minors. Of 27 survey participants who arrived in Tanzania as minors, 12 explained that they survived in Dar es Salaam with support from a relative, most often a parent or spouse.

For participants who did not report being supported by relatives when they arrived, paradigmatic accounts involved arrival, a search for Congolese residents in Dar es Salaam, temporary support from other Congolese and then the launch of small scale income-generating activities. Some forced migrants arrive in Dar es Salaam with small amounts of money or capital. Others rely on networks to provide them with housing or employment in areas like tailoring, housekeeping or selling food. A few report being brought from Kigoma to Dar es Salaam specifically for employment by either other Congolese or Tanzanian nationals.

Those without existing social networks typically sought assistance by approaching other Congolese or approaching churches and community organisations for assistance. In such cases, newly arrived forced migrants may be assisted for a short time until they are able to find their own accommodation. Forced migrants whose savings run out or who do not have savings with them will likely face significant hardship.

No participants described formal structures of support for forced migrants in Dar es Salaam. Although Congolese community groups do exist, their level of support for newly arrived forced migrants is limited. With the exception of one Congolese pastor who described educating newly arrived Congolese on living in Tanzania, no participants describe formal systems that assisted them to acculturate in Tanzania.

Newly arrived forced migrants who do not obtain documentation from UNHCR or from the Ministry of Home Affairs adopt strategies to avoid detection or arrest. A principal strategy involves the adoption of Tanzanian ethnic identities that can explain differences in speech or accent. This can be difficult or impossible for some forced migrants. Some explain that identification as Congolese can become permanent as soon as it is done, which can then lead to ongoing public disputes about their nationality. Others selectively conceal their nationality.

Not all participants, it should be noted, indicated that they had presented themselves as Tanzanian at one point, pointing to the availability of survival strategies that do not involve adopting a Tanzanian identity.

Safety, Housing, Mobility and Transnational Networks in Dar es Salaam

Forced migrants' sense of personal safety, stability and type of housing, and their degree of mobility all reflect the degree and success of integration. Safety encompasses both security in terms of legal residence and freedom from arrest or harassment by authorities, as well as safety within communities of residence and access to authorities for protection (Landau & Duponchel, 2011). Stability of housing reflects self-sufficiency and protection from housing discrimination (Landau & Duponchel, 2011). Types of housing can also reflect economic wellbeing. Mobility indicates forced migrants' ability to move freely within their host country, another indicator of integration.

Safety

While Congolese forced migrants in Dar es Salaam report incidents of harassment by authorities, only a minority of participants report arrest or detention. Primarily, these relate to participants' legal status. None reported egregious conduct such as physical abuse by police or immigration authorities. Offensive conduct by immigration authorities is largely limited to requests for or acceptance of bribes for releasing people who are reported to them on suspicion of being in Tanzania illegally. No systematic raids of neighbourhoods to capture Congolese migrants were reported.

A few participants reported conduct that could eventually lead to refoulement such as detention when presenting themselves to authorities for recognition as asylum seekers or the prolonged refusal to process asylum claims. This can place forced migrants with refugee claims in danger or can require them to obtain other government documentation that does not recognise them as refugees, such as ordinary residence permits.

While permits do grant legal status and are credited by many participants with providing them with a sense of safety, permits might not provide adequate protection since they are valid for only two years and their renewal is not guaranteed. Possessing a permit also does not protect Congolese forced migrants from being reported to immigration authorities as illegal immigrants. Indeed, 58 percent of survey participants with residence permits stated that they still fear arrest or detention.

The possibility of arrest is likely related to forced migrants' stated reluctance or distrust to access police services. Distrust of police was not absolute, but the sense that recourse to authorities is not available can contribute to insecurity. The few participants who described reporting crimes to the police said that they were required to demonstrate their legal status or appear to be Tanzanian.

Lacking documentation or legal status does not always lead to feeling unsafe. A few participants without legal status still stated that they generally felt safe in Dar es Salaam, mainly crediting positive relationships with neighbours for their sense of security. Nonetheless, some accounts from participants do indicate that forced migrants without documentation are occasionally in real danger of deportation when arrested. Lack of legal status could therefore subject some Congolese urban forced migrants to the danger of refoulement.

Housing and Security of Tenure

With respect to the quality of housing and security of tenure, most participants reported staying in rented rooms or houses. Participants were scattered across Dar es Salaam, with the largest concentrations living in poorer neighbourhoods like Buguruni, Ilala District and Mbagala, Temeke District. While most participants were renting their own accommodation, slightly less than 20 percent of survey participants were categorised as having no permanent residence. These were primarily participants who were staying with a non-relative.

To evaluate security of tenure, participants were asked if they had changed domicile within the preceding 12 months. Those who did were asked for the reason for the change. , One third of the survey participants indicated that they had changed residence. The most cited reason for the change was an increase in rent or an inability to meet rent payments. A few changed residence on their own initiative. Some moved at the request of the landlord for reasons that appeared non-discriminatory, such as the repurposing of the residence for the landlord's family. In just a few cases, participants cited maltreatment or discrimination by the landlord as a reason for their change of residence.

The few instances where participants cited discrimination as reasons for changing residence may indicate stability of tenure after a room or house is rented. But this may not reflect what participants perceive as discrimination when searching for housing or in terms of rent. A few participants described landlords refusing to rent rooms to foreigners. One group of women stated that Congolese are charged more than nationals for renting the same accommodation.

Other difficulties associated with rent appear similar to those faced by non-migrants. These include the frequent requirement to pay one year's rent in advance, living conditions in poor neighbourhoods and the effects of inflation on rent.

Livelihoods

Economic self-sufficiency is a key feature of local integration. Economic integration here is considered to consist of the following:

• Refugees engage in income generating activities, employment or otherwise support their basic needs. Basic needs include housing, food, health and education services;

• Refugees safely engage in economic activities;

• Refugees engage in activities commensurate with their education or other qualifications;

• Refugees participate in the local economy without fear of exploitation and discrimination on the basis of refugee status or nationality.

The inclusion of housing, food, health and education services as basic needs is in line with what forced migrants, asked here about challenges in Dar es Salaam, describe as particularly significant.

Whether forced migrants can meet these basic needs and how they do so reflects their participation in the local economy and their direction towards self-sufficiency. Because accounts of urban refugees elsewhere have identified discrimination as a major barrier and because participants here raise discrimination and exploitation as significant, these are also incorporated as criteria for economic integration.

Also included is the criterion that refugees are able to engage in economic activities in safety to account for whether forced migrants are able or not able to work in conditions that are culturally acceptable and commensurate with acceptable levels of risk.

Income Generating Activities, Employment and Basic Needs

Forced migrants in urban areas necessarily move towards self-sufficiency because of low levels of humanitarian aid and because of a lack of family support systems (Hovil, 2007). In Dar es Salaam, UNHCR assistance to refugees in urban areas is available only to a small group of recognised refugees, leaving the vast majority of forced migrants to fend for themselves without humanitarian support from international organisations or the Tanzanian government (Willems, 2003). As expected, the majority of survey participants were engaged in economic activities. About 17 percent indicated that they were supported by another person such as a spouse or parent.

Of those engaged in economic activities, the majority of activities were in small-scale business such as street vending, hairdressing, music and carving, and casual labour. Income from street vending can be irregular and can be insufficient to provide for basic needs such as education for children. Street vending itself is physically taxing, requiring vendors to work long hours in the elements for uncertain return. Street vending, however, requires relatively small amounts of capital. With no need to purchase equipment, street vendors serve as agents selling other peoples' products, and receiving commission per item sold.

This is consonant with what a few participants describe as the result of arriving in Dar es Salaam with 'nothing.' Vending and activities such as hairdressing, working in restaurants, loading goods, or working as domestic help are all activities that require little start-up capital, and were cited as types of economic activities forced migrants engaged in soon after their arrival in Dar es Salaam. While a few participants reported having come to Dar es Salaam with arrangements for work, most participants had no such arrangement.

Some participants reported being engaged in more 'professional' activities such as teaching, working as a pastor, or formal employment, but the number was small. Engaging in 'professional' activities or in more formal businesses requires legalisation in the form of work permits or small traders' permits.

Income Generating Activities Commensurate with Experience and Education

A majority of survey participants had achieved some form of secondary education, with a few advancing to post-secondary education. For those with post-secondary or postgraduate degrees or who had worked as professionals in the DRC, finding employment commensurate with their training and experience is difficult. One participant who had worked as a nurse in the DRC attributed her inability to find employment to her nationality. For some, recognition of their qualifications from the DRC was also problematic. One participant with a postgraduate degree from a DRC university spoke of having left her country with no evidence of her education.

 

Access to Health and Education

Health Services

Many refugees described health services as relatively accessible, although affected by considerations of cost and the possibility of discrimination. Purchasing medicine from a pharmacy was generally seen as straightforward, although new arrivals might find themselves being overcharged for medication. Similarly, treatment at a private clinic generally requires few personal identification documents.

When in need of more extensive services, some participants considered it advisable for forced migrants to present themselves as Tanzanians to avoid the possibility of discrimination. Some accounts of discrimination in accessing health services were very serious, including accounts of doctors neglecting refugee patients or requesting considerably higher fees than would apply to nationals.

Reproductive Health Services

For forced migrant women, access to reproductive health followed a similar pattern to access to health services generally, with cost and the possibility of discrimination playing major roles. For some women, access to reproductive health services was contingent only on having sufficient funds to pay for services and, possibly, to pay health service providers such as nurses a small additional sum to ensure that they are attended to. There is no indication that women who are survivors of sexual and gender-based violence during their flight from the DRC have received appropriate health services since their arrival in Dar es Salaam.

Education

Access to education for children remained a key issue for many participants. Private schools are too expensive for most participants. And, unlike health services, public education requires evidence of Tanzanian nationality. Since the majority of participants' children are Congolese, enrolment is difficult. In order to enrol their children, some forced migrants resort to asking Tanzanian friends or neighbours to enrol their children for them. Some are unable to enrol their children at all. At school, forced migrant children report experiencing mild discrimination in the form of name-calling as Congolese or as refugees.

Social Integration

Following Crisp and Jacobsen, social integration is defined here as referring, among other things, to refugees' participation in the social life of the host community (Crisp, 2004; Jacobsen, 2001). To Jacobsen, indicia such as the frequency of intermarriage and common attendance at events like weddings and funerals can indicate the degree of refugees' de facto integration (Jacobsen 2001). For participants in this project, social interaction with members of the host community is certainly inescapable, but friendship and social inclusion appear to be more difficult to attain.

For many participants, social interaction with Tanzanians is restricted by the need to conceal their nationality. Churches, however, provide a forum in which many participants felt that freer social interaction, including identification as a refugee, was possible. For those who explained where their predominant social sites of interaction were, churches were the most frequently cited forum. As one woman put it, 'at the church we are all equal and belong to God. Discrimination is there but in a very low way, not like on the street.' A pastor from a mixed refugee and Tanzanian church also described free social mixing within his church. Another site of social mixing was the business context. Mourning, an event that involves gathering at the deceased's home, was also considered to be a site of social interaction. Other events such as festivities can frequently involve more social exclusion.

Friction between nationals and forced migrant women may be higher than that experienced by forced migrant men. Compared to Congolese men, women may appear to be more integrated in the sense that they have more frequent interactions with their neighbours. But these interactions can also lead to arguments. A few women described disagreements, in particular between their children and their neighbours' children, as a source of conflict between them and their neighbours.

Forced Migrants' Attitudes Towards Integration

Forced migrants' attitudes toward local integration as an option were mixed. While the vast majority of participants were understandably opposed to the prospect of repatriation to the DRC as an option either at present or in future, many participants were also reluctant to consider permanent settlement in Tanzania as an option. Several participants argued for a need for their resettlement to a third country while others seemed prepared to accept residence in Tanzania for the foreseeable future but without acquiring Tanzanian citizenship. That forced migrants do not consider pursuing naturalisation as an option to be desirable suggests that policy interventions need to be broader than pursuing naturalisation for long-term forced migrants.

Several participants described their long-term future as uncertain. While their lives in Dar es Salaam were restricted, repatriation was not an attractive option. To return to the DRC after so many years, said one woman, would render her a 'foreigner in her own country.' Others emphasised the recurrence of instability and violence in the DRC as precluding any return. Indeed, many forced migrants expressed their unwillingness to pursue refugee status if that meant that they might eventually be requested to repatriate in the future.

However, many participants were also dissatisfied with conditions in Tanzania. To some, remaining in Tanzania represented the absence of freedom and no opportunity to further develop. For these participants, travelling onward to a third country or resettlement were preferable. The sentiment against permanent settlement in Tanzania was reflected in the majority of participants' rejection of naturalisation as a durable solution, especially if naturalisation would require giving up their Congolese nationality. Some raised discrimination as a factor that made them unwilling to consider naturalisation. Fear of being required to assimilate or of having no option but to remain in Tanzania was also a factor for some.

Rejection of naturalisation as an option was not unanimous. For several participants, naturalisation presented the possibility of making their residence in Tanzania more 'peaceful' or that naturalisation would allow them to continue to enjoy Tanzania's peace, compared to ongoing turmoil in the DRC. Some added that they had already resided in Tanzania for a long period and were accustomed to its way of life. For these participants, extended or even permanent residence in Tanzania could be a possible acceptable option.

Finally, repatriation is a possible option for some participants. Of survey participants, about one quarter indicated that they would wish to repatriate to the DRC either now or at some point in the future. Those who wished to already repatriate but had not done so indicated that the cost of travel was what prevented their repatriation. Factors that weighed in favour of repatriation included reunification with family member, and the possibility of further pursuing economic interests in the DRC.

Conclusions and Recommendations

Largely through their own struggle, Congolese forced migrants in Dar es Salaam have achieved a notable level of local integration. They have navigated a challenging environment to be able to become mostly economically self-sufficient, though many continue to face stigmatisation and struggle to access key services such as education for their children. Fear of deportation and arrest also continues to arise for some forced migrants.

Considering local integration as a durable solution for Congolese forced migrants will require finding a way to address these concerns. Regularisation of status is particularly important. Without legal status, Congolese forced migrants in Dar es Salaam are unlikely to be able to pursue safe and adequate employment or at least safely engage in self-employment. But such regularisation should not require naturalisation, especially given the hesitation shown by many participants to accept permanent settlement in Tanzania. Other temporary residence options or access to asylum procedures should be made available to other forced migrants as these options will be less likely to discourage them from seeking to formalise their status in Tanzania. With legal residence, forced migrants will be able to become self-sufficient and will be able to reside in Dar es Salaam much more safely.

Legal status is also key to ensuring that forced migrants have access to health care and education. Lack of legal status prevents forced migrants from educating their children. Policy reform, such as the extension of recognition of refugees to include refugees in urban areas, may also be key to ensuring access to education and, in addition, of providing critical medical treatment to forced migrants such as those who have not received treatment despite surviving SGBV during their flight.

However, naturalisation should be considered for forced migrants who have settled and acculturated to life in Tanzania and who have no desire to return to the DRC. For those with no wish to remain or who wish to return to the DRC, consideration should be given to supporting their repatriation.

Working towards policy reform and access to legal status, however, may not be sufficient to respond to the pervasive low-level discrimination that forced migrants describe. Peaceful integration and co-existence between forced migrants and citizens would seem to require some initiative to foster improved mutual understanding, perhaps through efforts to educate citizens about forced migration and refugees, and efforts to prepare forced migrants to live in Tanzania. Forced migrants arrive in Dar es Salaam without access to family networks and without means to begin new lives.

Cultural support and support for new livelihoods should be made available as well.

 

Acknowledgement

I thank Asylum Access Tanzania for participating in this research project, the International Peace Research Association for their support for this research and participants at the Multiple Truths of Asylum workshop hosted by the African Centre for Migration & Society at the University of the Witwatersrand in July 2013 for their comments on an early draft of this paper.

 

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