Governance, Governmentalities, and the State of Exception in the Palestinian Refugee Camps of Lebanon

Based upon data collected from four focus groups, this paper examines life in the Nahr al-Bared, Beddawi, and ‘Ayn al-Hilweh refugee camps in Lebanon from a governance perspective. The authors contend that a lack of legitimate governance structures in the camps has inhibited the improvement of socio-economic and living conditions for the residents and jeopardized the security of Palestinians and Lebanese alike. The authors discuss the history of Palestinian governance in Lebanon, the securitization of the camps, and following Giorgio Agamben, ‘the state of exception’ prevailing within them. Furthermore, the authors posit that, in the near-absence of legitimate government, Islamism and an ‘economy of morals’ has emerged to help ensure the daily functioning of the camps.