“I am the right man in the wrong place and at the wrong time”. The story of an Eritrean refugee in Kampala (Uganda).

Abstract

The article explores the lives and challenges faced by Eritrean refugees in Kampala, Uganda, through the life story of Berhane, a young refugee. The context of Uganda provides a crossroads for refugees seeking safety and better life opportunities than in their countries of origin. Berhane's narrative highlights the relationship between subjectivity and structural violence experienced during his life between Ethiopia, Eritrea, and the countries he passed through. Telling one's personal story allows the protagonist to reframe and give new meaning to his/her experience. The imperatives of speed and competitiveness coexist with exclusion and denial of rights, making the lives of refugees a paradigmatic example of contemporary global contradictions. The condition of waiting, the dynamics of resistance and adaptation of refugees, such as those that emerge from Berhane's story, reflect the forms of violence, structural inequalities and denial of rights that are the products of political organizations.