‘Stateless’ face strict preconditions for receiving UN relief funds
CAIRO: While Jordan may be considered one of the leading destinations for asylum-seeking Palestinian refugees in comparison to other Arab states such as Lebanon and Syria, Palestinian-Jordanians still face extensive socio-economic discrimination in the Hashemite kingdom, research fellow Gudrun Kroner said.
According to statistics from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), as much as 60 percent of the Jordanian population is believed to be of Palestinian origin.
In addition, UNRWA estimates that there are approximately 1.84 million Palestinian refugees and 100,000 displaced persons in Jordan, while Kroner estimates a higher number of 800,000 displaced persons in her research.
Palestinian refugees residing in Jordan may possess the same civil rights as Jordanian nationals, but it is still hard for Palestinians to become naturalized citizens of Jordan due to the fluid definition of ‘a Palestinian refugee’ as well as UNRWA’s strict rules and regulations.
In order for Palestinian refugees to receive help from UNRWA, for example, they not only have to live in UNRWA-regulated areas but also have to have lost both their homes and livelihood in order to qualify for UNRWA assistance as a Palestinian refugee, Kroner continues.
However, Rula Khalafawi, head of UNRWA’s Cairo office, argues that there is a wide range of special criteria available for Palestinian refugees who are not eligible to apply for official refugee status from UNRWA.
“To be able to officially register with UNRWA as a Palestine refugee, you have to have been a resident of Palestine between June 1, 1946 and May 15, 1948 and have lost both home and livelihood. Once you possess official refugee status, all your descendants including adopted children will inherit your status as a refugee, Khalafawi told The Daily Star Egypt.
Non-registered refugees, including those who have lost their livelihoods but not homes or vice versa, are eligible for UNRWA assistance even though they may not reside in one of the areas that are regulated by the agency.
Also, UNRWA offers assistance in the form of cash, food, and shelter in cases of ‘special hardships,’ particularly for those residing in certain parts of the occupied Palestine territories, Khalafawi said.
Khalafawi attributes the discrimination faced by Gaza-Palestinians to the fact that the group has been subject to displacement twice and thus are considered a stateless and foreign people in Jordanian society.
First, they were displaced into Gaza in 1948 and then driven out of the same area following the 1967 war, Khalafawi points out.
Currently, Gaza Palestinians are only eligible to apply for two-year Jordanian residency permits, which are very hard to renew once they expire.
In addition, Gaza Palestinians face severe discrimination in regards to employment, housing, and education in Jordan, both Kroner and Khalafawi state.
For example, every Gaza Palestinian needs to be cleared by Jordanian security officials before being allowed to seek employment, Khalafawi says.
Moreover, the group is not allowed to purchase land in Jordan, which complicates their ability to settle.
In regards to education, both Kroner and Khalafawi argue that Gaza Palestinians have a hard time being accepted at Jordanian universities since they are considered in theory ‘Arab foreigners’ due to their stateless status.
Universities in Arab countries may only enroll five percent of Arab foreigners into their curriculums without charging extra fees.
Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) currently provides education, healthcare, social services and emergency aid to more than 4.3 million refugees living in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and the Syrian Arab Republic.
