The Limitations of the International Refugee Regime

Abstract

Abstract The international refugee regime is rapidly being overwhelmed by the unprecedented refugee crises that began during the past decade, and it is ill equipped to address either the causes or the consequences of the problems involved. Host and resettlement countries feel that the economic, social, and political costs of dealing with refugee problems have become too high. The traditional hospitality of many Third World countries has been replaced by intolerance and restrictionist policies. Industrialized countries have become increasingly reluctant to finance international refugee aid, to resettle refugees from the Third World, or to admit asylum seekers and to consider their claims fully. Any humanitarian consensus seems to have vanished; the international cooperation that helped resolve the postwar refugee problem in Europe and alleviate refugee crises in Africa, Asia, and Latin America during the 1960s and 1970s is more difficult to obtain. Many observers feel that the international refugee regime, and in particular the UNHCR, is not doing enough to contain a deteriorating situation. Yet in reality the major responsibility for providing protection, assistance, and long-term solutions lies with states. Governments have traditionally sought to preserve their territorial sovereignty by controlling their borders.