Lischer, Sarah Kenyon 1970–

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Lischer, Sarah Kenyon 1970–

PERSONAL:

Born October 16, 1970. Education: Georgetown University, B.S.F.S.; Harvard University, M.P.P.; Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Ph.D.

ADDRESSES:

Office—Wake Forest University, Department of Political Science, P.O. Box 7568, Winton-Salem, NC 27109. E-mail—lischesk@wfu.edu.

CAREER:

Sweet Briar College, Sweet Briar, VA, professor of government; Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, assistant professor of political science.

WRITINGS:

Dangerous Sanctuaries: Refugee Camps, Civil War, and the Dilemmas of Humanitarian Aid (nonfiction), Cornell University Press (Ithaca, NY), 2005.

Contributor to periodicals, including Christian Science Monitor, Global Governance, and Baltimore Sun.

SIDELIGHTS:

Sarah Kenyon Lischer has been a professor of government at Sweet Briar College in Sweet Briar, Virginia, and at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Lischer completed her university studies at some of the most highly regarded educational institutions in the United States, including Georgetown University, Harvard University, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Since becoming an academic, she has taught courses on the causes and consequences of civil war, military intervention and nation-building, the politics of forced migration, and other topics. Of particular interest to her are issues surrounding refugees and humanitarian aid. This is reflected in her book, Dangerous Sanctuaries: Refugee Camps, Civil War, and the Dilemmas of Humanitarian Aid.

The views expressed in Lischer's book may challenge conventional thought. Refugee camps are usually thought of as a byproduct of political upheaval and a place where desperate people may escape intolerable situations. Yet, in her book, Lischer states that refugee camps may actually inflame civil war, and that humanitarian aid, even if offered with good intentions, can be twisted and used as a tool of war. Her points are "well-constructed and well-argued," according to Scott Straus in the Political Science Quarterly.

Lischer devotes her first two chapters to an analysis of the conditions under which civil war may be aggravated by refugees and by the existence of humanitarian aid. The policies of the states that give shelter to refugees are key in determining whether or not a particular refugee group will have the potential to exacerbate the possibility of widening civil war. Some nations will try to disarm and restrain refugees who seem to have militant ambitions to return to their home country and make a play for power. Other nations will give support to this sort of group or individual's ambitions. For the purposes of her study, Lischer defines three different classifications of refugee groups: persecuted, situational, and those who go into exile and form a new state. Those in the last group are most likely to foment civil war, she believes. In her consideration of humanitarian aid, the author names four ways in which this sort of assistance can actually increase conflict and violence. In the most obvious case, the money for aid can go directly to militants who will continue to try to stir up conflict. In another instance, the money can give support to militants' families; if these families were forced to go without assistance, militants would face strong incentive to end the fighting. If militants levy taxes on humanitarian aid, or sell it, then it can contribute to sustaining a war economy. Finally, by giving a sense of legitimacy to the militants and acknowledging that there is something unacceptable about conditions in their homeland, humanitarian aid bolsters the militant cause.

Lischer uses three case studies to illustrate her points. The first involves the Afghan refugees who took up residence in Pakistan and Iran. Pakistan's government supported war plans laid by the Afghan rebels, while the Iranian government did not. The refugees in Afghanistan eventually did engage in armed conflict with the Soviet-backed Afghan regime, while the refugees in Iran did not. Similarly, Rwandan Hutus who went into exile in Zaire, where they were encouraged in their militancy, eventually launched attacks on Rwanda, leading to a multinational war. Exiles in Tanzania, where war was not encouraged, remained peaceful. And in Bosnia, Muslims who took up residence in Croatian refugee camps first planned and executed attacks against Bosnia, then later became nonaggressive. Lischer shows how changing policies in Croatia led to this change in behavior. The author goes on to make suggestions about ways that humanitarian agencies can ensure that aid provided by them does not foment the spread of violence. She advocates keeping civilians separate from noncivilians in refugee camps and being sure to provide balanced information rather than allowing political propaganda to be spread among refugees. She believes that ultimately, if stated conditions are not met by the refugee groups, humanitarian aid should be cut or withdrawn altogether.

"This book is sensible and well written," stated Straus. Despite a few "minor criticisms," he found it a "significant contribution," one that "advances and systematizes debates about humanitarian aid while offering a careful argument about how and when refugees will spread war." Reviewing the book for the Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, Rebecca Napier-Moore noted: "Interestingly, in emphasising politics Lischer nowhere mentions the value of the refugee's political voice. Refugee politicisation is only a factor in determining whether conflict will break out or increase. Having attached negativity to conflict, and having determined that increased refugee politicisation leads to a higher risk of increased conflict, the political voice of a refugee is, intentionally or not, given negative connotations and implications."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Choice: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries, October 1, 2005, D. Peretz, review of Dangerous Sanctuaries: Refugee Camps, Civil War, and the Dilemmas of Humanitarian Aid, p. 367.

Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, March 1, 2006, Rebecca Napier-Moore, review of Dangerous Sanctuaries, p. 316.

Journal of Peace Research, September 1, 2005, Idean Salehyan, review of Dangerous Sanctuaries, p. 644.

Political Science Quarterly, September 22, 2006, Scott Straus, review of Dangerous Sanctuaries, p. 527.

SAIS Review, June 22, 2005, Julian C. Westerhout, review of Dangerous Sanctuaries, p. 187.

Yale Journal of International Law, June 22, 2006, Kristen E. Eichensehr, review of Dangerous Sanctuaries, p. 536.