Book Review: Being Social: Ontology, Law, Politics
| Date | 01 April 2016 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0964663916637717c |
| Author | Samuel Kirwan |
| Published date | 01 April 2016 |
| Subject Matter | Book Reviews |
immediately struck me. For instance, to what extent are the findings and observations in
these Karen refugee camps applicable for other refugee contexts including Africa and
Middle East? Since the Karen refugee camps are comprised virtually of a single ethni-
city, how does governance function in refugee camps with mixed ethnicities or nation-
alities with diverse cultural and social backgrounds? What do governance systems for
urban refugees living outside camps look like – do they simply conform to the legal
system of the host government or municipalities? Or like the Karen refugees, do they
establish their own justice or governance structures in parallel with official legal entities
in the host country? These research themes are important but very little scholarship exists
on them.
Whilst McConnachie’s book represents a remarkable contribution to the fields of law,
human rights and (forced) migration, it will also be a valuable reference for academics
and students in the areas of anthropology, criminology as well as regional studies.
Crucially, it offers useful implications for practitioners, particularly in light of increasing
interest in the rule of law and justice mechanisms in refugee contexts. For these reasons,
this inspiring work by McConnachie deserves wider readership among scholars, students
and policymakers interested in gaining insights into the legal and political complexities
and dynamism taking place inside a space of long-term encampment.
NAOHIKO OMATA
University of Oxford, UK
References
Agamben G (1995) Homo Sacer: Sovereign Power and Bare Life. Stanford: Stanford University
Press.
Agier M (2011) Managing the Undesirables. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Lischer S (2005) Dangerous Sanctuaries: Refugee Camps, Civil War, and the Dilemma of Huma-
nitarian Aid. Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press.
Turner S (2010) Politics of Innocence: Hutu Identity, Conflict and Camp Life. Oxford and New
York: Berghahn Books.
TARA MULQUEEN and DANIEL MATTHEWS (eds), Being Social: Ontology, Law, Politics. Oxford:
Counterpress, 2015, pp. 133, ISBN 1910761001, £10 (pbk).
Being Social: Ontology, Law, Politics is the first text to be published by Counterpress, a
publishing offshoot of the ‘Critical Legal Thinking’ group. Through its blog the group
have done much to introduce both a critical approach to law and, perhaps more impor-
tantly, a critical legal approach to the politics of ‘neo-liberalism’. This edited book is
both an expression of this politics and engagement with the thinker (Jean-Luc Nancy)
and philosophical field (post-foundationalism) that guide many of these interventions.
Whilst readers looking for a comprehensive introduction to these themes might look to
James (2006) and Marchart (2007), those carrying out research at the margins of law and
society will find considerable food for thought here, both in terms of understanding the
256 Social & Legal Studies 25(2)
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