Scribd
Upload
45 views

Chapter I

This document discusses the international legal framework for refugee protection. It outlines that international refugee law originated from League of Nations initiatives in 1921 and is now comprised of customary law, peremptory norms, and legal instruments like the 1951 Refugee Convention and 1967 Protocol. The UNHCR was established in 1951 to aid and protect refugees and stateless people, and its mandate has expanded over time. International refugee law is interconnected with international human rights law, humanitarian law, and criminal law to comprehensively address refugee issues.

Uploaded by

yeabsira semu
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
45 views

Chapter I

This document discusses the international legal framework for refugee protection. It outlines that international refugee law originated from League of Nations initiatives in 1921 and is now comprised of customary law, peremptory norms, and legal instruments like the 1951 Refugee Convention and 1967 Protocol. The UNHCR was established in 1951 to aid and protect refugees and stateless people, and its mandate has expanded over time. International refugee law is interconnected with international human rights law, humanitarian law, and criminal law to comprehensively address refugee issues.

Uploaded by

yeabsira semu
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 3

Chapter I: The International Legal Framework for Refugee Protection

 In mid-2022, 103 million people were forcibly displaced worldwide due to persecution, conflict,
violence, and human rights violations.
 Refugee law, a branch of international law, deals with the rights and duties states have towards
refugees.
 There are differing opinions on the relationship between refugee law and international human
rights law or humanitarian law.
 States are responsible for protecting their citizens' rights, but if governments fail to do so,
refugees may face serious threats and seek safety elsewhere. This is known as "international
protection," where another country ensures the refugees' basic rights are respected.

1.1 Sources of International Refugee Law:

 International refugee law has its roots in the League of Nations' initiatives in 1921, but failed to
address the mass displacement caused by World Wars I and II.
 Refugee law includes customary law, peremptory norms, and international legal instruments.
o The 1951 United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and
o the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees are the only international
instruments directly applying to refugees.
 The 1951 Convention defines a refugee as someone who fears persecution, left their country, or is
unable to safely return to their country. Both instruments are open to states but can be signed
separately. The OAU Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugees Problems in
Africa, adopted in 1969, defines a refugee as anyone who, due to well-founded fear of
persecution, is outside their country of nationality.
 The OAU Refugee Convention mirrors the UN Convention's wording but expands the definition
of the term'refugee', requiring a 'well-founded fear of being persecuted' as a fundamental
precondition for refugee status. It also applies to anyone who, owing to external aggression,
occupation, foreign domination, or events seriously disturbing public order, is compelled to leave
their country of origin and nationality.
 Other international instruments include the Treaty on Political Asylum and Refuge, Bangkok
Principles on Status and Treatment of Refugees, Declaration on Territorial Asylum, Declaration
on the Protection of Women and Children in Emergency and Armed Conflict, and New York
Declaration for Refugees and Migrants

1.2. International Oversight Institutions and their Mandates and Responsibilities


 The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency
established in 1951 to aid and protect refugees, forcibly displaced communities, and stateless
people. It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, with over 17,300 staff working in 135
countries. The agency's mandate is based on its Statute, which stipulates that UNHCR's work
should be non-political, humanitarian, and social in character. The Statute also mandates UNHCR
to encourage states to admit refugees to their territory and obtain information from governments
concerning the number and condition of refugees, as well as States' laws and regulations
regarding refugees.
 Over time, the UN General Assembly and the UN Economic and Social Committee (ECOSOC)
have expanded UNHCR's responsibilities to include functions and groups not covered by the
original Statute, such as refugees who have returned home voluntarily, stateless people, and
internally displaced persons. UNHCR's mandate is significantly broader today than when it was
first established, and it is involved in the UN system's response to almost all complex
emergencies.
 The UNHCR's role in providing protection and assistance to refugees includes material
assistance, which can often help make it possible for a country to accept refugees, as it relieves
some of the financial burden. Effective legal protection is essential for refugees, but they must
also be able to meet their basic needs – shelter, food, water, sanitation, medical care, and
education. Over the years, UNHCR has increasingly been called upon to provide protection and
assistance in countries where there is ongoing conflict.
 Approximately 90% of UNHCR's staff are based in the field, living and working alongside
refugees in dangerous, desolate, and remote places. Their job includes providing protection and
assistance in refugee camps, settlements, urban areas, responding to emergencies, relocating
refugees away from borders, ensuring refugee women have a say in food distribution and social
services, reuniting separated families, visiting border crossing points and detention centers, and
advising governments on draft asylum laws, policies, and practices. UNHCR also maintains
offices in the capital cities of many countries, working regularly with ministries in charge of
foreign and interior affairs, officials in charge of justice, immigration, human rights, police and
the military, education and social affairs, and local authorities.
UNHCR’s supervisory role:

 The UNHCR is responsible for supervising the implementation of international instruments on


refugees, as assigned by the UNHCR's Statute, the 1951 Convention, and its 1967 Protocol.
Paragraph 8 of the Statute grants the High Commissioner authority to supervise the application of
international conventions for refugee protection. Article VIII of the OAU Refugee Convention
commits States parties to cooperate with UNHCR. In Europe, UNHCR's supervisory
responsibility is reflected in European Union law, which includes provisions for UNHCR to be
consulted on asylum policy matters. UNHCR works with over 900 agencies, including
governments, intergovernmental organizations, international bodies, and NGOs. Its partnerships
include IOM, ILO, UNICEF, UNDP, OCHA, and OHCHR.
International refugee law, a part of the 1951 Convention and its 1967 Protocol, is interconnected with
other bodies of law such as international human rights law, international humanitarian law, and
international criminal law. These bodies operate in a non-hierarchical manner, ensuring a
comprehensive and interconnected approach to addressing refugee issues.

International human rights law protects asylum-seekers and refugees, ensuring they have two partially
overlapping sets of rights: those States are obliged to respect and fulfill under international human
rights law and the specific rights of refugees. Some guarantees, such as prohibitions of torture and
slavery, cannot be restricted or suspended for any reason, while others may be derogated under
specific conditions to uphold public order, health, or protect the rights of others. Derogations must not
be applied discriminatorily and must be officially proclaimed and in accordance with the law.

The Convention against Torture (CAT) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child are human
rights instruments that provide important protections to asylum-seekers and refugees. CAT prohibits
refoulement to situations where there are'substantial grounds for believing' a person would be in
danger of torture. Article 22 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child states that every child
seeking refugee status or who is a refugee has a right to appropriate protection and humanitarian
assistance in the enjoyment of the rights in the Convention. The Convention on the Rights of the
Child states that in all actions concerning children, whether undertaken by public or private social
welfare institutions, courts of law, administrative authorities, or legislative bodies, the best interests of
the child shall be a primary consideration.

International humanitarian law, also known as the laws of war or of armed conflict, seeks to limit the
means and methods of warfare and the effects of armed conflict on persons who are not or who are no
longer participating in it. It is binding on all parties to a conflict, both government forces and non-
state armed groups. The most serious violations of international humanitarian law are regarded as war
crimes.

International criminal law is designed to prohibit particularly egregious conduct. The Rome Statute of
the International Criminal Court (ICC) provides jurisdiction over the core crimes of genocide, war
crimes, and crimes against humanity, including rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced
pregnancy, enforced sterilization, and other forms of sexual violence of comparable gravity.

You might also like