Displaced and Dispossessed: Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights for Women in Hopley, Zimbabwe

Hopley is a peri-urban community situated in Harare, the capital city of Zimbabwe. The majority of the people that live in Hopley are forced migrants who came to reside in here in the wake of the forced migration campaign named Operation Murambatsvina. Forced migration and internal displacement leads to the dispossession of one's home and shelter. In addition, forced migration is also associated with deprivations of basic services such as health. This paper draws from data gathered from the experiences of ten displaced women in Hopley communi h) collected through semi-structured interviews. It fowses on perceptions of internal displacement in relation to sexual and reproductive health. The paper uses the women's narratives to unpack the implications of being dispossessed of one's home and in a sense, one's body and the women's rights in the context of their bodies. Social Constructionist Theory is used to contextualise these women's lived experiences in terms of sexual and reproductive health rights. Findings suggest that the women in Hopley are victims of double vulnerability, stemming from their displflcement, which has depri~d them of their homes and in tum also led to the 'dispossession' of their bodies.