УВКБ ООН: международная защита беженцев

Abstract

The article is devoted to the fiftieth anniversary of the noble activities of the Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), twice awarded by the Nobel Prize for Peace. It is to take place on the first of January 2001. The article sums up in brief the system of the international protection of refugees and is aimed at the readers, who have to settle the problems of various aspects of refugee protection due to their professional or social involvement and also at students and researchers. It does not present a collection of recipes but rather aims to fill a certain gap in this particular and rather n ew for the Belarusian reader area. It is also an appeal for the collaboration of scholars and practitioners, for promoting the activities of various administrative bodies (beginning with the parliament and ministries and offices to a rank-and-file judge, border guard and militiaman, experts, specialists, NGO's) and all people and organisations concerned with the refugee problems to settle these problems successfully. The article consists of 10 sections: the Refugee problem, the Background of the problem, the 1951 Convention Relating to the Refugees, the 1967 Protocol pertaining to Refugees, International Protection, the term "refugee", the rights of refugees, UNHCR in Belarus, NGOs — the UNHCR partners in Belarus. Section 1 stresses that the problem of refugees is one of the global problems facing mankind. There were 21.4 million refugees in the world in 1998. This problem is comparatively n ew for the Republic of Belarus. But it has been getting more acute in recent years. Since it is new and raises a lot of questions, the optimal decision is not always guaranteed. Section 2 enumerates the cases of the most massive exodus of refugees, beginning with 695 BC to our times. The article describes the emergence of the model and the mechanism of international actions on refugee protection. In 1949 the U N General Assembly defined the main principles of actions relating to refugees. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) was established by the decision of the General Assembly in December, 1950. It has the mandate to provide international aid to refugees and to promote durable solutions of the refugee problem. The main documents, determining procedures and criteria in defining the status of the refugee, are the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees (Section 3) and the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees (Section 4) adopted with regard to the necessity of providing legal definition of the refugee in n ew post-war conditions. The Convention gives the definition of the t e rm "Refugee", defines the legal status of refugees, in particular, the personal status. Article 35 of the Convention and Article 2 of the Protocol contain the commitments of the states to collaborate with the UNHCR in implementing their functions and to promote the provisions of these documents. Section 5 throws light to the issues of international protection of refugees. International protections is, first and foremost, the responsibility of states for the protection of their citizens. When the states are unwilling or unable to protect their citizens, individuals may suffer so much from the violation of their personal rights that they would seek security in another country. Since, b y definition, the main rights of refugees are not protected by the authorities of their native countries, the responsibility for the guarantee of respect and observance of the abovementioned main rights is assumed b y international community. The word-combination embraces the whole range of activities by which the rights of refugees are guaranteed. International protection of refugees is the actions of states or the UNHCR in the name of individuals seeking asylum or in the name of refugees with the objective of attaining a guarantee of observance of their rights, security and well-being in accordance with the recognized international standards. The UNHCR is the only agency of the U N with the mandate for the protection of refugees. The UNHCR has been working for refugees protection for 50 years. The evolution of the t e rm "the refugee" since the time of the League of Nations till n ow is summarized in Section 6. The objective of the search for precise definition of "the refugee" is to ground and facilitate rendering aid and protection. In case of the person's situation meeting the established criteria this proves, that the given individual can claim the corresponding rights and benefits. At present the t e rm "the refugee" is the international legal t e rm of a universal character, defined by the 1951 Convention and 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees. The term "the refugee" is an exact term, that is, its content is defined in accordance with the principles of custom international law. As a rule, states insist of restricting criteria in establishing the individuals entitled to the refugee status and asylum. Only 10—12 % of the asylumseekers outside their country are qualified as refugees in accordance with the 1951 Convention. Section 7 of the article is devoted to setting out the rights of refugees. In 1988 the Executive Committee of the UNHCR in its Conclusions N 52 (XXXIX) on the issues of international solidarity and protection of refugees expressed deep concern over serious violations of human rights, causing mass movements of refugees and also over relocations and suffering of millions of people. There are inalienable human rights which pertain to refugees as well, without regard to the place where they are, since the host country should respect the rights of all individuals on its territory, including aliens and refugees. The protection of the rights of refugees is part of the universal culture of human rights. Provisions must be made for the refugees to enjoy all human rights and freedoms within the meaning of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights during the examination of their application. In addition to the rights provided by international protection within the meaning of the UNHCR Charter, the 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol, all refugees have the fundamental human rights provided b y the U N Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The right to asylum is especially complex and controversial. This right was not included into the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, probably due to the fact that the asylum issues like all immigration issues require direct regulation. States avoid restructuring their sovereignty through assuming commitments in this area, except for those which were adopted on the basis of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. The very concept of "asylum" is threatened by denial under the pressure of economic migration. Formally, "the right to asylum" does not exist: this right is notprovided for by any legally valid international instrument. But the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) states that "everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution" (Article 14). The most important right, given detailed provision in the Convention is the "non-refoulement" principle according to which the asylum-seeker is protected from forced return to the country of origin. De facto it means that the "nonrefoulement" ban is a part of international common law. It means that all states must respect this principle, even if they are not parties to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees (have not signed it). Section 8 of the article presents information about the UNHCR, the office which was created specially b y the U N to implement the international mandate to protect refugees and render t h em various assistance. The UNHCR started operating on January 1, 1951. The UNHCR plays the principal role in coordinating assistance to refugees. The UNHCR is called upon to provide under the aegis of the UN, the care of those who come under its concern, through promoting adoption and ratification of the International Conventions relating to refugees, monitoring the implementation of the provisions of these conventions and suggesting the necessary amendments to them; by concluding various agreements with the governments helping to realize every measure relieving the refugees' situation and reducing the member of refugees, who need assistance. Its other activities are assisting state and private efforts to promote voluntary repatriation of refugees or their integration in other countries' territories, implementing the measures to obtain the permit to move the refugees' property, necessary for their settlement; obtaining information from the states on their situation and also on the laws and roles pertaining to refugees; maintaining close contacts with the state and interstate bodies concerned; establishing the most purposeful and effective contact with the N G O ' s concerned with refugees; facilitating coordination of the efforts of NGOs assisting refugees. Regional and inter-regional offices of the UNHCR operate in 120 countries of the world. The UNHCR promotes spreading of knowledge and understanding of international standards for the treatment of refugees at the world and regional levels. The High Commissioner, in accordance with the UNHCR Charter, is regarded as the authority which has the mandate for international protection of refugees, assistance in signing and ratification b y states of international conventions relating to refugees and their monitoring. The activities of the UNHCR on international protection of refugees include: providing the refugees' access to conventions and legislation on refugees and the implementation of such laws; guaranteeing the treatment of refugees in accordance with the recognised international standards; guaranteeing granting asylum to refugees and ensuring the application of the "non-refoulement" principle, prohibiting forcible return of persons to a country they fled; establishing the corresponding procedures for recognition of a certain person as a refugee in accordance with the provisions of the 1951 Convention and the positions formulated as regional conventions; assisting the refugees in providing durable solutions of their problems through voluntary repatriation, local integration or their settlement in a third country; help in reintegration of the refugees in their country of origin; and also providing protection and assistance to internally displaced persons in case of their application for it. One of the functions of the UNHCR under its Charter is the search for durable solutions for the plight of refugees. Section 9 of the article reflects the specific features of the activity of the UNHCR Office in the Republic of Belarus, which began operating in September 1995. B y n ow its activities have embraced all six regions of Belarus. The Office is constantly undertaking actions aimed at strengthening organisational potential of those state bodies, which are called upon to implement in practice, in accordance with the internationally recognised norms and standards, the law on Refugees of the Republic of Belarus. As of the end of February 2000 the status of a refugee was granted to 319 people in Belarus. The territorial migration agencies of the Republic have registered over 600 applications from the seekers of the status of a refugee. The status of the applicants must be determined by the Committee on Migration at the Ministry of Labour of the Republic of Belarus. The UNHCR in accordance with its mandate strives to provide all asylum-seekers with access to fair and effective procedure of determining the status of a refugee in all regional centres of the Republic. The UNHCR assists two categories of refugees: the officially recognised as refugees with the corresponding status granted and those who are registered at the UNHCR as asylum-seekers. Since the UNHCR Office in Belarus opened it has registered over 2900 asylum-seekers. The UNHCR Office is implementing 3 projects in Belarus: the annual programme "Care and Maintenance of Refugees" and two special programmes "Government Capacity Building" and "Technical and Financial Support to NGOs". The programmes are aimed at promoting the concern of state and non-governmental organizations in the solution of the refugees' problem. The key role in providing protection for asylum-seekers and refugees who stay in the territory of Belarus is played by the legal help for refugees service. The principal objectives and functions of this service are: informing asylum-seekers on access to the asylum procedure, carried out b y the government; assisting asylum-seekers in filing an appeal to a court of review in case of a negative decision; ensuring aid to asylum-seekers and refugees in case of arrest, detention, persecution or intimidation on the part of the authorities; registering refugees and asylum-seekers with the a im of compiling statistical data; assisting refugees and asylum-seekers in the search of solution of the problems they face. The main objectives of the UNHCR Office in Belarus for 2000 are: perfecting the work of the national system of asylum procedure so that it might meet international standards; extending this system to the whole territory of Belarus; promoting Belarus becoming party to the 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol relating to Refugees; assisting the establishment and development of effective and coordinated sector of NGOs which would be able, in conjunction with the government, to implement effectively the programmes of assistance to refugees and their protection; providing legal help and social services to the most vulnerable groups of asylum-seekers: women, children and the aged; enchancing information service to promote understanding and respect for the rights of refugees and asylum-seekers among Belarusian population. The total budget for the 2000 programmes amounts to over 500,000 US dollars.Since the Republic of Belarus is not yet a party to the treaties relating to the Status of Refugees, special attention will be paid in the UNHCR Office activities in Belarus to promoting and stimulating Belarus to j o in these international documents. Besides the UNHCR will step up efforts in strengthening organisational and operational capacity of the governmental bodies of Belarus. In building up their capacity the UNHCR strives achieve a higher level of coordination of action and cooperatrion among the bodies concerned with the solution of refugees' problems and to extend the asylum procedure to all regions of the Republic. Section 10 describes some aspects of practical work in refugees' protection of NGOs — the UNHCR's partners in Belarus. The conclusion emphasises the point that the protection of refugees is a joint responsibility. Only acting together, complementing the strong points of each other, can the NGOs, separate states and international organisations provide effective protection which refugees need and deserve.