The Empowerment of Palestinian Women Refugees: A Lesson on the Challenges of Development

The Middle East is not usually perceived to be a region that advocates for and proactively addresses women’s rights and empowerment, particularly within the Palestinian refugee community within Jordan. Although this may be the image portrayed by traditional media sources, academics, and intellectuals of the West, the resonating theme throughout virtually all the organizations and NGOs we visited while in Jordan nullifies this perception and creates an alternate image of women’s role within camp society. The model set up by women, for women, in the hopes of promoting sustainability within their community, has risen from some of the most marginalized groups of people in Jordan. Many elements contribute to the success of these programs and they are not without challenges and setbacks but the current movement in Jordan, led by refugee women, has the potential to act as a catalyst for the development and empowerment of women in other regions throughout the global South.

We met Amal in Baqa’a, which according to the Department of Palestinian Affairs, is a camp established in 1968 consisting of approximately 93,000 Palestinian refugees. A spirited woman with a round face, rosy cheeks, and infectiously playful mannerisms, Amal is moving mountains within her community, creating opportunities for other women in Baqa’a by utilizing the resources available in the camp and the training received from the Women’s Programme Centre sponsored by UNRWA (United National Relief and Works Agency). Amal is one example of the trend, led by women, taking place within arena of conflict and poverty and especially within the realm of refugee camps.

Women have, generally, been excluded from the public sphere - whether that be land ownership, participation in politics, or economic and social independence. The movement toward the feminization of poverty has created an environment within the camps that, as Nahlo Abdo writes in Engendering Compensation: Making Refugee Women Count! “is the product of the feminization of the camp household. Palestinian refugee camp women, whether in Palestine or in host countries, have often found themselves without the traditional male bread-winner or head-of-family.” Often, the men are forced to look outside of the camp or country for work, have been imprisoned, or detained and are unable to return to the household. Without the presence of the male head-of-household, women are required to act as mother and father as well as take on the responsibility of caring for the family (extended included) and generating an income to support the family all while trying to promote their cultural traditions and political status within the international community as Palestinian refugees. (Abdo)

Despite the plethora of pressures wrought upon the women in the camps, or perhaps as a result of them, progress is being made to aid in their development and greater independence. From talking with these women, particularly Amal, it was apparent that the sense of achievement and more autonomous existence greatly helped with the morale of the camp. In the same Baqa’a camp, the women run a beauty salon, which is not an endeavor that would not necessarily be perceived as an essential component to life in a refugee camp, but for all intents and purposes it is a critical component on several levels:

1.) It encourages women to receive training in a skilled trade that can generate income.
2.) It stimulates the economy of the camp.
3.) It encourages a strong and positive sense of community for women of the camp.

The women have created a space that allows them to have some semblance of a normal existence within the camp in addition to implementing a project that would benefit themselves and the camp on various socio-economic levels.

It is easy to see the positive impact these projects have on the economic and social status of the women, but there are deleterious consequences that accompany the development projects that often go unnoticed or unacknowledged. While the economic and social achievements are admirable, the question remains as to whether or not development projects can be perceived as empowerment or if they are more accurately defined as further marginalization for the women in the refugee camps.

The paradox of the women in development movement is that there are multiple roles being played simultaneously and without recognizing this dynamic, more pressure could be inflicted upon women which in turn creates an environment that reinforces oppression rather than encourages empowerment. The refugee women are frequently required to take on the responsibilities of an absent father figure and bread-winner but couple that with their roles of mother and household caretaker and suddenly they are stuck in situation that requires them to be everything to everyone. Does this create greater autonomy and empower women? Not quite.

Another obstacle faced by this particular population of women is the society in which they live. The Middle East is a patriarchal society which limits the development prospects of women outright, as they are constantly fighting the social norms and mores already in place. To further complicate this, three other factors inhibit the development potential of these women: they are refugees, they are Palestinian, and they live amongst a population plagued by impoverished conditions.

Facing various avenues of oppression and multiple roles within their lives and communities doesn’t bode well for the sustainability of these projects, but nevertheless, there is a great sense of hope emanating from these communities, and perhaps further progress can be made with a few minor adjustments in policy and practice. The methods for sustainable development and women’s empowerment are far from perfect, but great headway has been thanks to women, like Amal, who have the courage to pioneer change in their own lives and to create an environment conducive to changing the lives of others.

Visit the following links for more information on refugee women and women in development:
Women’s Refugee Commission
Palestinian Refugee Research Net
Pathways of Women’s Empowerment
Association for Women’s Rights in Development

~Amanda Fleetwood