Who is a refugee?

How many times have you had the chance to interact with an asylum seeker or a refugee? How much do you know about their problems at home? Have you ever listened to a refugee telling his or her story of why he or she had to leave his or her country of origin? Do you know what makes a refugee a refugee? What is the difference with an asylum seeker?
The 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees is the key legal document in defining who is a refugee, their rights and the legal obligations of states. The 1967 Protocol removed geographical and temporal restrictions from the Convention.

Article 1 of the Convention defines a refugee as:

"A PERSON WHO IS OUTSIDE HIS/HER COUNTRY OF NATIONALITY OR HABITUAL RESIDENCE; HAS A WELL-FOUNDED FEAR OF PERSECUTION BECAUSE OF HIS/HER RACE, RELIGION, NATIONALITY, MEMBERSHIP IN A PARTICULAR SOCIAL GROUP OR POLITICAL OPINION; AND IS UNABLE OR UNWILLING TO AVAIL HIMSELF/HERSELF OF THE PROTECTION OF THAT COUNTRY, OR TO RETURN THERE, FOR FEAR OF PERSECUTION."

Refugees who ask for protection under the Refugee Convention in the UK are called “asylum-seekers.” The authorities - the Home Office - assess their claim against the Convention and decide whether they will officially recognise the person as a refugee. In the UK, recognised refugees are awarded Indefinite Leave to Remain as a Refugee (ILR). Those who are not recognised as refugees, within the terms of the Refugee Convention, but who can never the less demonstrate that they have a need for international protection or have other compelling reasons for not being removed, may be granted Humanitarian Protection (HP) or Discretionary Leave (DL). These forms of leave replace what was previously called Exceptional Leave to Remain (ELR).

Sharing your Experiences

You can also be part of this web page that aims to change the behaviour of people towards asylum seekers and refugees.
If you are an asylum seeker, refugee or you work for an organization that deals with refugees, please send me your personal story or experiences so people, unfamiliar with this topic, can relate to your problems.
People who are not asylum seekers or refugees can also share their experciences with refugees as well as their point of view in this subject.

Have a look at the articles, stories and reports below:

United Kingdom

Bad press adding to the woes of asylum seekers by Aideen McLaughlin, the Sunday Herald, June 18, 2006.

Review on the definition of terrorism in UK law, by the Refugee Council, May 2006.

Helping by Understanding by Justo Casal - LLM International Human Rights Law student - Spaghetti Junction, the University of Central England magazine, Issue 3 May 06, pg 13.

Trust me, I'm a junior doctor: is asylum an excuse to ignore suffering? by Max Pemberton, The Telegraph, May 15, 2006.

UK wins Zimbabwean asylum appeal BBC News, April 12, 2006.

More than 2,000 children of asylum-seekers detained by Nigel Morris, The Independent, March 28, 2006.

In the hysteria over illegal asylum seekers, refugees like my Nepalese friend Tham are being let down by the system by Maureen Lipman, The Guardian, March 24, 2006.
Click on Special Report to read several articles on immigration, asylum and refugees issues in the U.K. (Source: The Guardian)

Israel

World Refugee Day 2006- Who Really Receives Protection? by Physicians for Human Rights, Scoop Independent News, June 22, 2006

Sudan
A Loss of Hope Inside Darfur Refugee Camps by Emily Wax, Washington Post, April 30, 2006
Darfur's children deserve our protection, by William Hague -shadow foreign secretary-, The Guardian, April 16, 2006.

Somalia

Somaliland's prosperous refugees return to invest in their country by Kitty McKinsey, UNHCR News Stories, March 24, 2006.

Kenya

Where Showing Skin Doesn't Sell, a New Style Is a Hit by Marc Lacey, The New York Times, March 20, 2006.

Please contact me on:
Justo Casal
asylum.refugees@googlemail.com