Countries Of Asylum Research Articles

Strategic Behavior in Refugee Repatriation

The authors present a game-theoretic analysis of negotiations involving two players: the government of a country of origin and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), in which the latter represents refugees, countries of asylum, and donor countries at the negotiating table. Ordinal preference orderings of outcomes allow the authors to represent the attitudes of governments in countries of origin toward their refugees as well as the urgency of repatriation for countries of asylum and donor countries. For alternative configurations of preference orderings, the authors analyze repatriation negotiations using classical game theory and the theory of moves, which assume different rules of play. They find the theory of moves is better suited for understanding efforts to achieve repatriation agreements in actual refugee crises and conclude with reflections on the difficulties of reaching repatriation agreements in recent years.

African Refugees: Development Aid and Repatriation

This is a collection of 12 papers on aspects of the refugee problem in Africa. first brief section provides the legal framework for defining and assisting refugees. The second section considers the lack of resources that contribute to refugee production and inadequate relief aid. Since relatively few African refugees are able to avail themselves of one permanent solution to their plight--resettlement abroad--the third section discusses the two other permanent solutions utilized--settlement in countries of first asylum and repatriation. The fourth and final section examines issues concerning refugees and the problems of economic development in Africa. (EXCERPT)

States, statelessness and education: Post-return integration of Namibians trained abroad

The form and extent of education in countries of asylum is the product of refuge-seeker persistence in articulating demand, the scope for NGO educational support and host government attitudes to the refuge-seekers in question. (Over the past decade, strategy has been to discourage education that would facilitate labour market access in countries of asylum.) In camps, the result has been generally poor quality basic education for a minority of refugee children and rudimentary skills training for a tiny proportion of adults. Huge efforts are also made for small numbers of refugees to pursue studies at upper secondary and tertiary levels, often in third countries willing to offer specially negotiated places. While there is little information about the intrinsic or instrumental worth of such training, in countries of asylum, resettlement or origin, governments play a crucial role in allowing exiles to work or not and in providing mechanisms for qualification recognition. A study of post-war integration in Namibia included components on employer attitudes to former exiles and a large-scale tracer study of those who as refugees had received training abroad. Initial fears on the part of the stayer population, of labour market saturation by well-educated returnees, have proved unfounded as formal qualifications are not matched with work experience. Nevertheless, returned exiles are better educated overall than stayers and, only three years after independence, are more likely to be in employment. In a country with high and growing unemployment, this has been made possible by bureaucratic expansion and affirmative action. Employers have strong feelings about the quality of training received in different countries, (data suggest that this may have more to do with levels of training provided than with national politics). Few of those with basic vocational skills have found work, although some are seeking further qualifications. The government has done little to help. The competency rating scheme is inefficient although plans are being made to strengthen it. The system of credit transfer applied to professional and academic qualifications, still bound by South African restrictions, is seen by many as the biggest obstacle to public sector employment. Loopholes have been found to enable non-recognised educational and health professionals to work, often outside conventional career structures. There is much bitterness among those who remain excluded. This, the frustration of those to be retrenched in bureaucratic contraction and the anger of ex-combatants with no tangible gain for their sacrifice combine to produce a potent threat to national stability.

TOT v. Netherlands and Another

14Aliens — Refugees — Asylum — First country of asylum — Determination of — Geneva Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, 1951, and Protocol, 1967 — Requirement to apply for refugee status in first country of asylum — Turkish national arriving in the Netherlands after residing in Italy — Whether applicant entitled to apply for refugee status in the Netherlands — Significance of views of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees — Whether return of applicant to Italy violating duty of non-refoulement — The law of the Netherlands

Resettlement or Repatriation: Screened-out Vietnamese Child Asylum Seekers and the Convention on the Rights of the Child

The Comprehensive Plan of Action for Indo-Chinese Refugees (CPA), adopted at the Geneva conference in 1989, was premised on the 'new' assumption that not everyone leaving Viet Nam was a refugee. From then on all were to be screened in order to separate those entitled to refugee status from economic migrants, with the latter being returned to Viet Nam. A special screening procedure was provided for unaccompanied minors, based not only on the usual standard of 'well-founded fear of persecution,' but also on the 'best interests' of the child and the principle of family unity. In February 1994, the screened out population included nearly a thousand unaccompanied children under the age of 18, whom countries of first asylum have been reluctant to return. With only a few voluntarily choosing to go back, many have been confined to camps and separated from their families for up to three years or more. In 1993, the UNHCR decided to give priority to the repatriation of such children, under the 'Family Reunification Operation.' Implementation began slowly, but the CPA Steering Committee recently set the end of 1994 as the target date for family reunification and repatriation of all screened-out unaccompanied minors remaining in countries of first asylum. This article analyzes their situation and the important question of non-consensual repatriation, considered from the perspective of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and focusing on the rights of children who have endured prolonged separated from their families. Among other issues, the author concludes that while the best interests of the large majority of screened out child asylum seekers require prompt repatriation and reunification, the best interests of some individual children may require an exception to the rule.

An Environmental Argument Against Mozambican Refugee Camps in Malawi

Bach, R.L. (1991). Human Rights, Refugees and North South Relations Institute for Research on Multiculturalism and International Labour, New York: Unpublished manuscript. Dzimbixi, Lewis B. (1992). Managing refugees in Malawi an overview, Unpublished research report, Chancellor College. Dzirnbiri, Lewis B. (1992). Partidpation in Relief and Development Activities: The case of Tengani and Chifunga Camps in Conference paper, International Conference on First CountryofAsylum and Development Aid, Blantyre, Malawi, June 8 12. Government of Malawi (1992). Paper on Assistance of Mozambican Refugees, Conference paper, International Conference on First Country of Asylum and Dewlopmmt Aid, Blantyre, Malawi, June 8 12. Government of Malawi (1992). 'Paper on Impact of Refugees on Malawi Environment, M a l and Economic Infrastructure, Conference paper, International Conference on First Country of Asylum and Development Aid, Blantyre, Malawi, June 8 12. Long, L., L. Cecsarini and J. Martin (1990). The Loco1 Impact ofMozambican Refugees in Malawi. Prepared for U.S. Embassy and USAID/Malawi. Lilongwe, Malawi. Machika, M.R.E. (1992). Income Generation Activities Among Refugees: The case of Muloza Camp, Conference paper, International Conference on First Country of Asylum and Development Aid, Blantyre, Malawi, June 8 12. Malawi Daily Times. Various. Malawi Financial Post. Various, February, 1992. Meier-Braun, KH. (1992). T he New Mass Migration, Scala Magazine, Sept./Oct. UNHCR (1992). Briefing Notes on Mozambican Refugees in Lilongwe. An Environmental Argument Against Mozambican Refugee Camps in Malawi

Refugees as a Development Resource: The case of the Mozambican refugees in Malawi

There are three acceptable durable solutions to refugee problems: voluntary repatriation, resettlement in a third country or integration into the host community. In this paper it is argued that integration appears to be the best solution for the Mozambicans in Malawi because, although the war which forced them to flee from their homeland has officially ended, the situation there is still insecure and many refugees will remain in Malawi for some time. Considering that their country of asylum has limited resources, some effort should be made to increase agricultural potential through irrigation and reclaiming marshy areas. For development approaches such as these, we need the support of our donors. Although relief aid is crucial, it is not sufficient in places where refugees stay for extended periods. Lengthy periods of asylum require some provisions for development.

Refugee-Host Interactions: A Field Report from the Ukwimi Mozambican Refugee Settlement, Zambia

As a result of the civil war which has been raging in Mozambique for 16 years, an estimated 1.7 million Mozambican people have sought refuge in neighbouring countries and more than 3.5 million have been internally displaced (World Refugee Survey 1993:67). At present, Mozambique has the largest registered refugee population on the African continent. By the end of 1992,l.l million Mozambicans had found asylum in Malawi, more than 300,000 in South Africa1 and the KaNgwane, Gazankulu, Lebowa and KwaZulu homelands, about 264,000 in Zimbabwe, 72,000 in Tanzania, 25,000 in Zambia and 20,000 in Swaziland (ibid.). Local integration in the country of first asylum has been the only durable solution for these longterm refugees, most of them having a rural background. Rural refugees either spontaneously settle in border areas or are channelled towards assigned areas where they are regrouped, registered and assisted. Self-settled Mozambican refugees are found in border areas in Zambia, Tanzania, Malawi, Swaziland and Zimbabwe. According to World Refugee Survey (1993), up to 130,000 Mozambicans have settled spontaneously in the Zimbabwean countryside. They are also found in the homelands of Gazankulu, KaNgwane, Lebowa and Kwazulu. Self-settled refugees create small villages or settle among the local population. They manage to integrate and survive with the assistance of local people, by gaining land from local chiefs, trading or by obtaining agricultural wage labour. They

The Vietnamese Experience in America.

Preface Acknowledgments I. The Vietnamese Entrance into America The Fall of Saigon The First and Second Waves of Refugees Subsequent Waves of Refugee Peoples Refugees and Immigrants The Countries of First Asylum The Counries of Second Asylum II. Emigration to the United States The Flight Experiences in Transit Entry and Orientation III. Initial Resettlement U.S. Resettlement Policies Community Reception Community Conflict Vietnamese Culture in America Vietamese Religious Life Vietnamese Community Organizations Mutual Assistance Associations IV. The Vietnamese-American Community Adaptation and Stabilization Cultural Continuity The Boat People The Orderly Departure Program V. Societal Integration and Adjustment Employment Occupational Characterizations and Patterns Assistance Programs and Utilization Coping and Education Transportation Housing Health Care and Cultural Values Mental Health Problems Interethnic Competition Intraethnic Competition VI. Personal Adjustments and Self-Identity Language Acquisition Family Customs and Kinship Family Size and Characteristics The Emerging Family and Economics Changing Roles with the Family Courtship, Marriage, and Family Traditions Amerasians and the Resettlement Process The Celebration of Tet VII. Contemporary Vietnamese-American Society Stability and Fluidity An Emergining Model of Adaptation Achievement in America The Outlook for the Future Appendix Notes Suggestions for Futher Reading Index Illustrations follow chapter 4.

Health and social problems of refugees

Today over 15 million refugees are scattered around the world, most of them in poor Third World countries [ New Sci., pp. 14–15, September 1991]. But whether they seek ‘safe havens’ in rich or poor countries they continue to suffer from the malaise of being uprooted, struggling to survive in new and alien environments. Their health and social problems extend beyond the obvious emergency short-term phase. It is now clear that the number of refugees has increased beyond expectations and most have stayed long enough to expect final resettlement in their countries of asylum, a process which requires wider, more comprehensive and long-term management and rehabilitation interventions. This paper will attempt to highlight issues of health and social problems in their wider context, surveying comprehensive and integrated approaches in assessing the needs of refugees, whether they are in developing or industrialised countries, with emphasis on the latter and, when appropriate, using the United Kingdom experience as an example.

Rural Settlements for African Refugees in First Countries of Asylum: Problems of Integration and Self-Sufficiency

Rural Settlements for African Refugees in First Countries of Asylum: Problems of Integration and Self-Sufficiency

Refugee Status Determination under the Comprehensive Plan of Action (CPA): A Personal Assessment

The Comprehensive Plan of Action (CPA) was adopted in response to continued refugee exodus from Vietnam and the resulting political consequences of what had become a protracted international dilemma. The approach inherent in the CPA was to address in a comprehensive manner all aspects of the problems relating to the Vietnamese Boat People (VNBP), including the causes of their flight. Unlike most other refugee situations, this required the co-operation and participation of the country of origin. Many of the features of the CPA required the participation of the United Nations High Commissioner of Refugees (UNHCR), most notably its active involvement in refugee status determination in countries which had no previous experience in this regard. The objectives of the CPA were to end the flow of non-refugees, determine on an individual basis the refugee status of all VNBPs arriving in first asylum camps, resettle refugees to third countries and return non-refugees to the country of origin. Mass information campaigns in Vietnam were used to explain the CPA and the possibility of legal departure under the Orderly Departure Programme. The main feature, on which all the other elements rested, was the Refugee Status Determination (RSD) of asylum seekers who arrived in first asylum countries after an agreed cut-off date (March 1989). Previously, Vietnamese fleeing their country were resettled under an arrangement agreed by governments participating in the 1979 Geneva Conference. The adoption of the CPA in 1989 brought an end to automatic resettlement and required that all VNBPs arriving after the cut-off date be screened to determine their individual refugee status. Many found this extremely difficult to accept, particularly the Vietnamese Boat People themselves, given the previous fifteen years' practice. It was critical to the success of the CPA that Refugee Status Determination proceedings be fair and that the special historical circumstances of the VNBPs were taken into account. The political environment in which the CPA was drafted recognized that the refugee definition contained in the 1951 UN Refugee Convention and 1967 Protocol would guide the RSD proceedings, but that account should also be taken of other international instruments relating to refugees. It was furthermore acknowledged that humanitarian consideration should be given to the particular situation of the Vietnamese, and that there be respect for maintaining family unity. Interpretation regarding the weight given to each of these factors dictated the screening process and created controversy among the various interested parties. Non-governmental organizations, in particular, felt that increased weight should be given to the humanitarian aspects of the CPA. Others, particularly resettlement countries, were concerned about a too liberal interpretation of the refugee definition and an elastic application of the principle of family unity. In addition, positive changes in Vietnam made it necessary to put increased weight on the requirement to show a well-founded fear upon return. UNHCR was given the task of monitoring the procedures and training the government officials who were to screen the asylum seekers. This paper examines the factors contributing to the RSD process, analyzes their significance and assesses the results of the RSD exercise.

Refugees and the Asylum Dilemma in the West

In recent years, political asylum and refugees have become acute issues in public debate in Western Europe and North America. The debate has become especially heated since 1989 and the breaching of barriers between Eastern and Western Europe, with East Germans, Albanians, Romanians, and Yugoslavs all trying to move west. Most asylum-seekers continue to come from the Third World. Those who manage to enter the West face growing hostility, poverty, and even violent attacks. In France immigration has already shifted political discourse sharply to the right, testing the nation's tolerance toward foreigners and shaking its liberal foundations. Xenophobia and brutal physical attacks on foreigners by skinheads and extreme right-wingers throughout Germany have caused politicians in Bonn to reconsider their country's asylum provisions. Governments everywhere appear reluctant to open their doors when they are not sure how many will benefit from their hospitality and for how long. To many industrialized countries, asylum-seekers are perceived mostly as economic migrants in search of a better life. Actual migratory pressures from the South and perceived threats of exodus from the East have only served to reinforce this restrictive attitude to asylum. The refugee problem has reached such a critical point that the very institution of asylum is being threatened.

The Concept of Country of First Asylum

The Concept of Country of First Asylum

"Resettled Refugees from Ethiopia: Who gets into the United States?"

introduction Success in flight from one's country of origin does not guarantee a secure place of refuge. Most refugees languish for years, even decades, in a neighboring country of first asylum. In general terms, relocation in the industrialized North depends upon individual initiative and application of receiving-country admission policy. This article identifies main waves of post-revolution refugees from Ethiopia who have managed to secure resettlement in the US and investigates characteristics which distinguish the admitted from their counterparts who have not moved beyond first refuge in Sudan. The First Step

Australia's New Refugee Policies: A Practitioner's Point of View

Australia, one of the major resettlement countries for the world's refugees, is to become a country of first asylum. As a result of recent amendments, Australia will recognize two classes of refugees; those granted refugee status overseas and accepted for resettlement, and those granted refugee status within Australia. Proposed changes to the refugee status determination procedures will include, defining ‘refugee’ in the Migration Act in terms of the definition in the 1951 UN Convention and 1967 Protocol; procedural and evidential provisions; and the incorporation of ‘natural justice’ safeguards. The author queries whether the UNHCR Handbook requirement, providing for formal reconsideration of negative decisions, will be adequately addressed, for a decision by the Minister to refuse refugee status will not be reviewable under Australia's improved immigration review system. Furthermore, the natural justice’ safeguards do not empower the court to consider a case ‘on the merits', an option of vital importance to unsuccessful applicants. In contrast with refugees admitted to Australia under the resettlement programme, those recognized in theinland procedure will be issued temporary entry permits valid for not more than four years, at which time they may apply for permanent residence, subject to the availability of places. If permanent residence is refused, but a continuing need for protection remains, a further temporary entry permit may be granted. In the past, such ‘onshore' refugees were promptly processed for residence; by stepping back from this practice, Australia joins the ranks of countries willing to provide only temporary solutions, effectively becoming not only a ‘country of first asylum', but also a country of uncertain sanctuary.

Assessment and Treatment of Psychosocial Problems in Refugees in Zambia

In 1968 there were 750,000, and in 1985, over six million, refugees in Africa.1 Ethiopia has been the biggest refugee producer: in 1980, 3.5 million were affected1.8 million were displaced within the country, and 1.7 million fled to Somalia or Sudan [1. P. 47]. The Mozambican government has estimated that there are more than a million displaced persons within the country, and several hundred thousand have fled to neighboring countries. In South Africa more than three million black people have been relocated; and in 1980, over eight million were living in wrong areas, which made them vulnerable to involuntary uprooting [2]. Refugees in Africa fall into two categories [3. P. 9]: 1. Large groups of rural refugees, who cross the borders of their country of origin and seek asylum in a neighboring area, which often is similar to their home environment, including from cultural and ethnic points of view. In the country of asylum, the usual solution to the problem of an influx of refugees is the creation of organized rural settlement areas.

Education of Refugees and Their Expectations in Africa: The Case of Returnees with Special Reference to Uganda

Refugees in Africa number about four million. Some of them, uprooted during the struggles for independence, have been in refuge for over 30 years. Others were uprooted during the post-independence period, when their views were considered revolutionary and dangerous to the regimes in power. As an attempt to solve the refugee problem, some countries, like Tanzania, have granted refugees the status of naturalized citizens. Other countries, like Zimbabwe and Uganda, have encouraged immediate return and repatriation. Others have a wait-and-see attitude. In all cases, refugees are placed in a very awkward postion. They have little say and their material possessions are meager. Uprooted from their motherland, they view educational attainment as, in most cases, their only hope for survival and for earning a respectable livelihood, either in the country of asylum or after they are repatriated. This desire is strengthened by their awareness that the educated in the young independent African states hold the reins of power. Refugees and returnees, therefore, look at education with great hope and expectations (Kabera, forthcoming). Most of the refugees in Africa come from rural areas where educational facilities are, on the whole, deficient or non-existent. The situation does not improve when they leave home. The hope of making up for an insufficient education while in asylum is curtailed when the refugees are placed in remote reception areas devoid of educational facilities. Other places simply offer few chances for educational attainment (CIMADE et al., 1986: 110). Arrangements to organize and run schools take more time and resources than are available.

5: Contrasting Patterns of Asian Refugee Movements: The Vietnamese and Afghan Syndromes

This chapter examines the main international migrations of Vietnamese after 1975 and Afghans after 1978. The two population flows are similar in many respects. They resulted from the same type of social conflict, consisting of revolutionary struggle compounded by foreign intervention. Both conflicts, moreover, became closely tied to the globalized confrontation between the two superpowers, and the people leaving both Vietnam and Afghanistan have been widely recognized as refugees by intergovernmental and governmental agencies. A striking difference between the two movements, however, is that most of the Afghans outside their country have remained in Asia, whereas few of the Vietnamese have. Apart from forming an interesting pair in and of themselves, the two cases are theoretically significant. They reveal crucial relationships between the causes and the directions of movement in certain types of migrations that are formally recognized as consisting of refugees. The Vietnamese represent the classic resettlement case involving a largescale, organized movement of people from Asia to Western Europe and the United States. The Afghans provide the contrasting case. Millions are concentrated in refugee camps or have spontaneously settled in neighboring countries, while only a tiny proportion has been resettled elsewhere.

Reinald v. Ofpra

The individual in international law — Aliens — Admission of — Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, 1951 — Fugitives leaving their country of origin with national passports and entry clearances for Israel — Refusal to settle in Israel and accept Israeli nationality — Renewal of national passports in Israel with a view to travelling to France to seek asylum — Whether Israel a country of asylum in such circumstances — Whether renewal of national passports amounting to voluntarily re-availing themselves of the protection of their country of nationality — Article 1C(1) of the Convention — The law of France