Refugees

CHENNAI3rd Floor, ‘Creative Enclave’,

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REFUGEE

By

Sinduja Amudanathan

People floating like pollen

in search of more fertile soil.” ― Andrew Crofts.



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What brings Refugees?Refugees, are those people

who are uprooted from there home country and seeking asylum and protection in another country.

REASONS

Refugees and asylees leave their countries because of war or persecution due to their nationality, race, religion, political opinion or membership in a group



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Who can be REFUGEE

A person who flees from ones own country to another only on political prosecution

When a person flees for economic reasons will not be accepted as Refugee.-> political Refugees are accepted not Economic Refugee..

Assylam should be due to political prosecution.

He should be a person without any protection from his home country.



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REFUGEES AND OTHER FOREIGNERS

Temporary Residents and TravellersPersons under this category come to India for a specific purpose and duration with the prior permission of the Government of India. However, in certain circumstances any one in this category could become eligible for being a refugee

Illegal Economic MigrantsAny foreigner who might have left his or her country of

origin without due authorisation solely to improve his or her economic prospects, is not a refugee

Criminals, Spies, Infiltrators, Militants etcNone of these can ever become eligible to be refugees. They have to be dealt with under the provisions of the Indian criminal laws

Internally Displaced Persons (IDP)

Those persons who are fleeing persecution and human rights violations from one region of the

country and have sought refuge in another region of the same country, fall

under this category. Such persons cannot be

categorised as ‘refugees’ as they have not crossed any international border.



Chennai - 600 004.Tel: +91 - 44 - 2498 4821



Bangalore - 560 001.Tel: +91 - 80 - 6546 2400



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INDIA’S INTERNATIONAL COMMITTMENTS

•India does not have on its statute book a specific and separate law to govern refugees. •all existing Indian laws like The Criminal Procedure Code, The Indian Penal Code, The Evidence Act etc. apply to the refugees as well. •India is not a signatory to the 1951 Convention on refugees and also the 1967 Protocol, •India is a signatory to a number of United Nations and World Conventions on Human Rights, •India became a member of the Executive Committee of the High Commissioner’s Programme (EXCOM) in 1995. •India voted affirmatively to adopt the UN Declaration of Territorial Asylum in 1967. •India accepted the principle of non-refoulement •India ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR •ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989 •India ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)[15] in 1974



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INDIAN-PRINCIPLES• Refugee rights under the Convention and Protocol

consist of two primary components.

• First, the principle of non-refoulement, which prevents the states from returning a refugee to his or her home country where he has a well-founded fear of persecution. It is often considered as the duty of the host state than as a right of the refugee.

• Second relates to those rights available for the refugee which affects his day to day life in the host country. These like the right to education, the right to hold property, etc.

• The later rights arise only when the first principle is exercised.



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principles of ‘non-refoulement’ In the matter of Gurunathan and others vs. Government

of India and A.C.Mohd.Siddique vs. Government of India and others , the High Court of Madras expressed its unwillingness to let any Sri Lankan refugees to be forced to return to Sri Lanka against their will.

In the case of P.Nedumaran vs. Union Of Indiabefore the Madras High Court, Sri Lankan refugees had prayed for a writ of mandamus directing the Union of India and the State of Tamil Nadu to permit UNHCR officials to check the voluntariness of the refugees in going back to Sri Lanka, and to permit those refugees who did not want to return to continue to stay in the camps in India.

The Bombay High Court in the matter of Syed Ata Mohammadi vs. Union of India[21] , was pleased to direct that “there is no question of deporting the Iranian refugee to Iran, since he has been recognised as a refugee by the UNHCR.”



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RIGHTS TO REFUGEES• Right to work• Right to education• Right to social security• Right to access in courts • Freedom of religion• SC in National Human

Rights Commission v. State of Arunachal Pradesh”->“refugees are a class apart from foreigners deserving of the protection of Article 21 of the Constitution”



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Refugee Statistics

Total number of displaced refugees 92,600,000

The following is for refugees, asylum-seekers, disaster displaced, internally displaced persons (IDPs), returnees (refugees and IDPs), stateless persons, and others of concern to UNHCR by origin.

Top Refugee Country of Origin Number of Displaced Refugees

India 9,000,000

Nigeria 6,100,000

China 5,500,000

Philippines 3,700,000

Afghanistan 2,600,000

Iraq 746,000

Somalia 1,100,000

Syria 729,000

Dem. Rep. of the Congo 455,852

Sudan 348,500

Vietnam 339,289

Myanmar 206,650

Eritrea 197,313

Serbia 195,167

Central African Rep. 154,005

Turkey 146,385

Sri Lanka 145,711

Angola 141,020

Rwanda 129,108

Russian Federation 109,454



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Doctrine of Responsibility to protectThe aim of the doctrine is to restore the primary functions of a state as the protectors of its citizens.

Elements under the doctrine-• “The Responsibility to Prevent”- This

concentrates on the root cause and the direct cause of the problem which makes humanitarian crises.

• “The Responsibility to react”- response is to be made to the situation making appropriate measures which even includes military intervention in extreme cases.

• “The Responsibility to Rebuild”- giving assistance to recover, reconstruct and recon ciliate. The three elements exist with that what Evans said as 'continuum of obligations’.



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Voluntary Repatriation

If changes happen in their homeland making it safe to return home, refugees are repatriated. This is the first hope for those forced to leave their homeland. Unfortunately, this seldom happens quickly, if ever. The feelings repatriated refugees experience include:•Fear of reprisal•Anticipation of reunions with friends and family•Fear that deaths of loved ones will be confirmed•Fear that loss of possessions will be confirmed•Fear of government’s intentions•Concern about re-integration



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1) Those who receive full protection according to the standard set by the Government of India eg. The Srilankan Tamil refugees and the Jumma people from Bangladesh.

2) Whose presence in Indian territory is acknowledged by the UNHCR and protected under the principles of non-refoulement eg. Is that of Afgan, Somalian, Sudaneese, Burmeese etc.

3) Who have entered India and have assimilated into their communities. Their presence is not acknowledged either by the Indian Government or by UNHCR. Eg. Tribal refugees, Nagas from Burma.

MAJOR REFUGEE CATEGORIES IN INDIA

The major categories of refugees existing in India may be explained under three heads.



Chennai - 600 004.Tel: +91 - 44 - 2498 4821



Bangalore - 560 001.Tel: +91 - 80 - 6546 2400



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CONCLUSITION

India needs to review its unsurerefugee law policy, evolve a regionalapproach and enact rules or legislation toprotect persecuted refugees. This is onestep towards supporting a humanitarian lawfor those who need it. As a refugee-pronearea, South Asia requires India to take thelead to devise a regional policy consistentwith the region's needs and the capacity toabsorb refugees under conditions of globalequity.



Chennai - 600 004.Tel: +91 - 44 - 2498 4821



Bangalore - 560 001.Tel: +91 - 80 - 6546 2400



Tel: +91 - 422 – 6552921

EMAIL

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WEBSITE

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A Presentation

BySinduja Amudanathan

Refugees

Documents

Transcript of Refugees