Talking about flight and migration –PhD workshop at the University of Osnabrück – by Raphaela Bollwein and Lena Christoph
On 21 September 2023, Lena Christoph and Raphaela Bollwein took part in the PhD workshop of the Gesellschaft für Exilforschung e.V. at the University of Osnabrück. Interdisciplinary presentations by doctoral students on the topic of “Migration, Flight and Exile” were at the center of attention. The workshop was led by Kristina Schulz, Andrea Hammel and Wiebke von Bernstoff. Both doctoral students put their focus on marginalized groups of displaced persons, whose resettlement proved particularly difficult after the end of the Second World War. The invisibility of the migration paths of unaccompanied children and persons who went to and through the Philippines were discussed.
Raphaela Bollwein set her focus on permanent resettlement strategies of unaccompanied children in-between the need for protection and national, political interests. The title of the presentation was “Our Children. The Future of our Nation. Resettlement strategies of unaccompanied children in the state of tension between the need for protection and national, political interests”. She spoke about the challenges in the course of mediation activities between UNRRA (United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration) and potential adoptive families who wanted to take in children orphaned as a result of the war. Specific requirements of the adoptive parents and the precarious situation of children whose names, origins and ages could often not be ascertained by the child tracing service were contrasted. In addition, the situation was illuminated in the context of which the children were seen as the best possible immigrants who could be formed according to specific ideas. As a result, it was stated that the new home countries did not always act in the best interests of the children, rather they became objects of different migration policies.
In her presentation, Lena Christoph introduced her dissertation project “The Philippines as a Place of Transit and Destination. Jewish, Russian, and Chinese Displaced Persons in Search of Old and New Homes, 1945-1952”. Her research takes the Philippines as a point of departure to compare the three groups of displaced persons, the various reactions of various state and non-state actors towards them, and the different transit and resettlement experiences. The Philippines constitute a unique and understudied setting of post-colonial state building, post-war reconstruction, and refugee resettlement. Apart from the central questions, archival material, and the methods of the thesis, Lena Christoph presented first outcomes of her research. While prejudice – such as anti-Semitism, anti-Chinese sentiments, and anti-Communist politics – complicated the resettlement of all refugee groups, the Jewish and Russian DPs were ultimately successful in their effort to find new homes. In contrast, the overseas Chinese aiming to return to their former place of residency, the Philippines, were not. Reasons that played into a successful resettlement include the effective pressure of refugee and community organizations as well as racist population policies of countries that welcomed white refugees.
