Across the world, millions of people live without the protection of citizenship—stateless, displaced, and politically marginalized. Forced migration and statelessness remain among the most pressing challenges of the twenty-first century, shaped by exclusionary citizenship regimes, border politics, and evolving technologies of governance. In South Asia, these dynamics are particularly visible in the experiences of the Rohingya, one of the world’s largest stateless populations, who have faced systematic exclusion from citizenship in Myanmar and increasingly restrictive forms of governance in host countries across the region.

This project examines the intersection of forced migration, statelessness, security, and digital governance, with a particular focus on Rohingya refugees in South Asia. Drawing on critical security studies and postcolonial approaches, the research investigates the ways in which state anxieties surrounding borders, national identity, and belonging shape refugee governance. The research focuses on the growing role of digital technologies in migration management and security governance. In particular, the project examines how biometric identification systems, digital identity infrastructures, and data-driven governance mechanisms transform the regulation of refugee populations. Focusing on Rohingya refugees in India, the research analyzes how systems such as Aadhaar, originally introduced as tools of social inclusion, can become instruments of surveillance, monitoring, and exclusion.

在全球各地，數以百萬計的人在缺乏公民身份保護下生活——無國籍、流離失所，及政治邊緣化者。強制移民與無國籍問題仍是二十一世紀最迫切的挑戰之一，受排他性公民制度、邊境政治及治理技術演進所影響。在南亞，這些動態在羅興亞人的經歷中尤為明顯，羅興亞是全球最大的無國籍族群之一，他們在緬甸面臨系統性排除公民身份，以及該地區東道國日益嚴苛的治理形式。

本計畫探討了被迫遷移、無國籍、安全與數位治理的交織關係，並將核心特別聚焦於南亞的羅興亞難民。本研究結合批判性安全研究與後殖民主義方法， 探討國家對邊界、國族認同與歸屬感的焦慮如何影響難民治理。近年來，研究聚焦於數位技術在移民管理與安全治理中日益增長的角色。特別的是，計畫檢視了生物識別系統、數位身份基礎設施及數據驅動的治理機制，如何改變了對難民群體的管制方式。 透過聚焦於印度的羅興亞難民，分析了像Aadhaar這類最初作為社會包容工具而引入的系統，如何可能演變成監視、監控與排斥的工具。

• Verma, Monika, 2026, “Navigating Access and Ethics: Methodological Challenges in Rohingya Refugee Research in Bangladesh.” In International Center for Cultural Studies, https://cjdproject.web.nycu.edu.tw/2026/04/22/navigating-access-and-ethics-methodological-challenges-in-rohingya-refugee-research-in-bangladesh/.
• Verma, Monika, 2025, “The Politics of Repatriation: Analyzing Myanmar Military Junta’s Rohingya Return Initiative in 2025.” In International Center for Cultural Studies, https://cjdproject.web.nycu.edu.tw/2025/11/02/the-politics-of-repatriation-analyzing-myanmar-military-juntas-rohingya-return-initiative-in-2025/.
• Verma, Monika, 2025, “Myanmar junta’s Rohingya Return Initiative is nothing more than a strategic pretense.” In Central European Institute of Asian Studies (CEIAS), https://ceias.eu/myanmar-juntas-rohingya-return-initiative-is-nothing-more-than-a-strategic-pretense/.
• Verma, Monika, 2025, “Artificial Intelligence: Refugee Registration and Identity Management in India.” In International Center for Cultural Studies, https://cjdproject.web.nycu.edu.tw/2025/03/24/artificial-intelligence-refugee-registration-and-identity-management-in-india/.
• Verma, Monika, 2024, “Refugees or Threats? The Role of Media in Shaping India’s View on the Rohingya.” In Myanmar Studies Center, Department of Asian Studies, Palacký University Olomouc, https://msc.upol.cz/nc/zprava/clanek/refugees-or-threats-the-role-of-media-in-shaping-indias-view-on-the-rohingya/.
• Verma, Monika, 2024, “The Nexus of Hindu Nationalism, Democratic Governance, and Refugee Rights: A Case Study of Rohingya Refugees in India.” In International Center for Cultural Studies, https://cjdproject.web.nycu.edu.tw/2024/07/09/the-nexus-of-hindu-nationalism-democratic-governance-and-refugee-rights-a-case-study-of-rohingya-refugees-in-india/ .
• Verma, Monika, 2024, “Rohingya Children in India: Access to Education and the Quest for a Better Future.” In International Center for Cultural Studies, https://cjdproject.web.nycu.edu.tw/2024/02/16/rohingya-children-in-india-access-to-education-and-the-quest-for-a-better-future/ .
• Verma, Monika, 2022, “The Rohingya Crisis: An Overview of the Psychosocial Challenges of the Rohingyas in Exile.” In International Center for Cultural Studies, https://cjdproject.web.nycu.edu.tw/2022/12/07/the-rohingya-crisis-an-overview-of-the-psychosocial-challenges-of-the-rohingyas-in-exile/ .
• Verma, Monika, 2021, “Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019: The Pernicious Outcomes of the Altering Equation of Citizenship in India.” In International Center for Cultural Studies, https://cjdproject.web.nycu.edu.tw/2021/07/15/citizenship-amendment-act-2019-the-pernicious-outcomes-of-the-altering-equation-of-citizenship-in-india-2/ .
• Verma, Monika, 2021, “The Securitization of Migration: An Indian stance on the Securitization of Migration.” In International Center for Cultural Studies, https://cjdproject.web.nycu.edu.tw/2021/04/11/the-securitization-of-migration-an-indian-stance-on-the-securitization-of-migration/ .
• Verma, Monika, 2021, “The Issue of Land Acquisition/Grabbing-Induced Displacement in Myanmar: The Exacerbation of the Lives of Rohingyas.” International Center for Cultural Studies Working Paper, 40. https://iccs.chss.nycu.edu.tw/zh/wps_one.php?USN=42.
• Verma, Monika, 2020, “Trepidations and Ramifications of COVID-19: Rohingya Refugees in India.” In International Center for Cultural Studies, https://cjdproject.web.nycu.edu.tw/2021/12/04/trepidations-and-ramifications-of-covid-19-rohingya-refugees-in-india-2/.
• Verma, Monika, 2019, “Struggle for Life and Liberty: Rohingyas in India.” In International Center for Cultural Studies, https://cjdproject.web.nycu.edu.tw/2019/12/26/struggle-for-life-and-liberty-rohingyas-in-india/ .

Podcast 播客

• Verma, Monika, 2025, “In Conversation: Monika Verma on Securitization and the Rohingya Community in India.” In Global Development Institute podcast, https://www.buzzsprout.com/2017560/episodes/17437046 .
• Verma, Monika, 2025, “Studying Myanmar in Times of Crises.” In Nordic Asia Podcast, https://newbooksnetwork.com/studying-myanmar-in-times-of-crises .