Processes of Environmental Migration and the Production of Justice: A Case Study of Slum Dwellers in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Abstract

As we look to urban spaces, especially in the sprawling slums overtaking many of Bangladesh’s cities, it is not hard to see a lack of safe and adequate spaces for the influx of newcomers, as years of increased cyclone activity, sea level rise, river flooding and crop failure due to the effects of climate change has pushed millions from their homes in order to secure food, shelter and work. As a marginalized section of society, those who live in Dhaka’s slums (bosti) have traditionally been left out of the conversations surrounding justice, yet their numbers continue to grow by the hundreds of thousands each year, and only continue to increase. The urban slums of Dhaka represent an important case study in how a city adapts to climate change and the crucial support that non-state actors now play in providing additional development. This thesis examines how migration is understood and was undertaken by the slum dwelling populations residing in Korail, Ershadnagar and Rampura, Dhaka, Bangladesh as well as the initial perceptions of justice it has produced along the way. Furthermore, this research analyzes the current conditions of these communities and how they have created and shaped perceptions of justice as they relate to life, livelihoods and socioeconomic relations and networks within the slums. The two main frameworks this study employed engage concepts of the drivers of environmental migration and a newly developed theory that incorporates recognition, rights and responsibilities and distributional and procedural faces of climate justice. This research challenges a notion stated in the latter framework that states urban spaces are inherently already providing city residents with a form of justice. This research used an ethnographic, qualitative method design, consisting of semi-structured with 28 bosti residents and 8 development workers. A key priority of this research was to give a voice to those experiencing some of the greatest injustices and to understand how the government and non-state actors are responding to these urban crises. The analysis of this field research concluded that while there does exist justice at the local level for those living in slums, the degree in which it is perceived and experienced varies significantly between residents mainly due to differences in socioeconomic levels and networks within the slums as well as between slums. Justice is primarily being implemented by non-state actors but again, this is perceived and enacted at varying degrees based on status, networks and proximity, showing a greater focus and engagement of justice for slum populations in the country is needed from the formal, local levels of government.