United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees: Note on the Applicability of Article 1D of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees to Palestinian refugees

2002 ◽  
Vol 14 (2 and 3) ◽  
pp. 450-456
2020 ◽  
pp. 300-316
Author(s):  
Wout Van Doren ◽  
Julie Lejeune ◽  
Marjan Claes ◽  
Valérie Klein

This paper reflects upon the issue of statelessness, Palestinians and a recent evolution of Belgian caselaw. When seeking to apply the definition of a ‘stateless person’, as found in art 1 of the 1954 Convention Relating to the Status of Stateless Persons to Palestinians, judges are confronted with specific challenges. Since 2016, divergent standards are developing as to the question of whether, and in which circumstances, Palestinians may be stateless for the purposes of international law. This evolution takes place in a national landscape characterised by a statelessness determination procedure that falls short of standards set out in the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Handbook on Protection of Stateless Persons in a number of areas, while a growing number of asylum seekers originating from Palestine are registered over the period 2016–19. This paper exposes, anno 2020, the protection gaps left open by the remarkably divergent approaches to this question taken by the different national actors involved.


1970 ◽  
pp. 36-44
Author(s):  
Rouba Beydoun

The year 2003 was a turning point in the Arab region. The Coalition Forces invaded Iraq causing the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime and the subsequent violence. This has led to a massive influx of refugees throughout the Arab region. Around 4.2 million Iraqis left their homes due to the violence in their country. Some two million have fled to neighboring countries, including Lebanon (UNHCR, 2007). Lebanon is also host to an estimated 400,000 Palestinian refugees who fled Palestine largely as a result of the formation of the Israeli state in 1948 (Shafie, 2007). Aside from Palestinians, Iraqis currently account for the vast majority of refugees in Lebanon (DRC, 2005). The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that around 50,000 Iraqi refugees are residing in Lebanon (IRIN, 2007). The Lebanese State is not a signatory to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, thus the vast majority of Iraqis have had to enter the country illegally (IRIN, 2007).


2011 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 119-125
Author(s):  
Volker Türk

AbstractThis year marks the 60th anniversary of the UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and the 50th anniversary of the Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness. And yet there are almost 5 million refugees and internally displaced persons in the OSCE area. The crisis in North Africa and the Middle East is creating a vast new displacement challenge, including for OSCE participating States. What are the legal and policy gaps in terms of protection? And what steps are the OSCE and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) taking to tackle the problem of IDPs, refugees and statelessness in the OSCE?


2008 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 60-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Winnie Lau ◽  
Trang Thomas

Interest in the psychological well-being of refugees and asylum seekers has steadily grown in recent years. Latest estimates indicate there are 32.9 million people of concern to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (2006). A refugee is defined as being in that position because of a well-founded fear of persecution due to race, religion, nationality, social group or political opinion, and who is consequently outside and unable to return to his or her country. The status of ‘refugee’ is contrasted with that of a person seeking asylum, whose experiences may be similar but who is not formally determined in the same way.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 1215-1226
Author(s):  
Sarah Mahmoud Al-Arasi ◽  
Khalid Rbye Ayd Alhuayan

Purpose: According to the importance of the refugee issue and refugee rights and since that Hashimte Kingdom of Jordan did not join the 1951 convention of refugees status and its 1967 protocol and managed to sign the memorandum of understanding instead with UNHCR, this study aimed to tackle the issue of refugees rights and duties between reality and implementation in Jordan. Methodology: This study adopted the descriptive, analytical, and comparative methodology of international and regional conventions, in addition to the comparison between the Jordanian legislation and the Memorandum of Understanding on Refugees with the provisions of international law. Also, it utilized the empirical method by conducting a field study. Main Findings: Results gained from the questionnaire concluded the refugees on Jordanian territory got rights more than what was stipulated on in the memorandum of understanding signed between the Jordan government and the United Nations high commissioner for refugees’ affairs (UNHCR). It also found out that the majority of refugees committed to their responsibilities in maintaining general security and order. Implications/Applications: This study has addressed the implications of the memorandum of understanding signed between the Jordan government and the United Nations high commissioner for refugees' affairs (UNHCR) by its analysis and application on a random sample of 150 refugees in Jordan, including Syrians in the biggest refugee camp in Jordan; Al- Zaatari refugee camp, in addition to the implications of the memorandum on Iraqi and Yemeni refugees in Jordan. Novelty/Originality of this study: This study was based on the memorandum of understanding between Jordan and (UNHCR) that was signed in the background of the refugee crisis that our countries witnessed. However, this study was the first to analyze the articles of the memorandum of understanding mentioned above and was backed up with a field study on a random sample of 150 Syrian refugees in Jordan refugees’ camps.


1984 ◽  
Vol 78 (2) ◽  
pp. 480-484 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luke T. Lee

Since its founding in 1950, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has rendered invaluable services and assistance to millions of refugees throughout the world. Indeed, in recognition of its services, it has twice been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. However, the “entirely non-political character” of its work has been interpreted as precluding it from actively seeking solutions to the generation of refugees, particularly when the responsibilities of source countries are involved. The UNHCR is debarred altogether from concerning itself with the Palestinian refugees, even though the role of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), which was created specifically to aid them, is considerably narrower than that of the UNHCR vis-à-vis other refugees.


Author(s):  
François Crépeau ◽  
Leanne Holland

AbstractThe system of temporary protection set out in accordance with the conclusions of the Executive Committee of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (Excom) offers the necessary guarantees for the protection of the refugee under such a system. However, regimes of temporary protection recently established in a number of states (for example Germany and the United States) do not respect the conclusions of Excom nor theConvention Relating to the Status of Refugees of 1951and are based on the objective of controlling migratory flows.


Author(s):  
Filippo Grandi

This chapter examines the contradictions between the United Nations's essential humanitarian role in advocating for Palestinians and its failure in the more political process of ensuring their self-determination. The issue of refugees from Palestine has been a compelling political and humanitarian crisis since 1948. In the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, about 750,000 Palestinians either fled or were forced to flee from their homes in what would become the state of Israel. UNRWA was created by the UN General Assembly in 1949 to address the needs of the Palestinian refugees until a political solution to their plight could be found. Drawing on experience as a former commissioner-general of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and the current United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the chapter reflects on the everyday struggles and resilience of Palestinian refugees and explains why leading UNRWA is one of the UN's most challenging managerial tasks.


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