Towards a reliable asylum regime
The terror of war has all through history left millions of people traumatised, displaced, rejected under deplorable conditions, and mostly generated crucial human rights concerns.
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Such instances forced the international community to create the 1951 Refugee Convention which, together with its subsequent protocol of 1967, forms the cornerstone of the present international asylum regime.
By ratifying this convention, Ghana has vowed to respect the right of individuals to seek asylum and refrain from returning refugees to places where their lives or freedom would be at risk.
Ghana has accepted refugees over the years from Liberia to Sudan, Sierra Leone to Somalia, Ethiopia to Iraq and from all other parts of the world.
Current figures in the country show the presence of more than 20,000 refugees and asylum seekers.
This country therefore deserves a sincere commendation for the benevolence and solidarity it has shown in sharing this international humanitarian responsibility.
Meanwhile, let us pause for a moment to think about the numerous human rights abuses that accompany refugee movements around the world today.
Challenges
Instances of rape, child abuse, unlawful detention, lack of access to education, human trafficking, torture and many others have become too common in situations of forced displacement.
These abuses have assumed such epic magnitudes as to require extra attention on the part of the international community.
The frequency of these occurrences means that there are too many examples around us. For instance in the 'Mediterranean graveyard,' mostly Africans and Syrians perish daily in large numbers on the perilous voyage for safety, shelter and to seek decent living. In most cases these migrants do not get to their destination.
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On June 13, 2015, Turkish security forces used water canons and fired warning shots to push back thousands of Syrian refugees massing behind barbed wire fences around the Turkish border at Akçakale, according to AFP news.
This action violates the principle of non-refoulment; one of the core principles upon which international protection is established.
These refugees were fleeing a looming disaster as Kurdish forces advanced on the Syrian town of Tal Abyad, held by Islamic State fighters, which is just across the Turkish border.
This is only an epitome of how the lives and dignity of refugees are not respected in most instances, even by countries that are signatories to conventions that seek to protect refugees.
For refugees, their governments' unwillingness or inability to protect them leaves them in the hands of the international community which has the responsibility for ensuring their safety.
However, the failure of the asylum system in some countries and of the Refugee Convention itself are responsible for the abuses suffered by these Persons of Concern.
Understanding the factors that underpin refugee flights and their painful search for safe haven will be a necessary first step in the resolution of the huge problems presently confronting refugee protection.
Underpinning challenges
Countries are tightening their borders due to increasing threats of terrorism and illegal migration which are grounded on huge perceptions of international injustice, and a concretely widening gap between the north and south.
The mention of border tightening helps us to remember the refusal of entry to the Rohingya refugees who were recently left stranded in deplorable conditions off the coasts of Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia; or the request made by the Kenyan government for the Dadaab refugee camp to be shut down due to threats of terrorism posed by Al Shabab from neighbouring Somalia; a request, that if granted, would see vulnerable persons stranded across borders in a volatile region.
The Hungarian government's plans to build a fence on its border with Serbia to keep out migrants is equally worrying, according to The Telegraph.
This move will also leave a large number of refugees stranded as Hungary, apart from Sweden, received more refugees per capita than any EU country in 2014.
Among the underpinning factors, the world also faces the problem of lack of durable solutions for the plight of most asylum seekers or even persons recognised as refugees.
Most persons remain refugees forever or too long before they are integrated locally, resettled or helped to repatriate voluntarily.
These persons are forced to pursue very dangerous options to end their plights.
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The Mediterranean Military Mission launched by EU leaders against migrant smugglers, for instance, will surely not be the solution as it does not translate into a durable solution to the thousands of desperate refugees waiting to embark on this 'necessary' journey.
The many instances of protracted conflicts and post-conflict instabilities around the world also contribute largely towards underpinning the challenges confronting the asylum system.
Prescriptions
The tightening of borders, closing down of refugee camps, returning of refugees to places where their lives and freedom will be at risk, unlawful detentions and many other inhumane treatments do not conform to the humanitarian and human rights values upon which the international asylum system is built.
The international community needs to pursue sustainable solutions towards closing the north-south gap, ensuring international justice and morality, and resolving conflicts in Somalia, South Sudan, Syria, Burundi, etc, while more commitment is also attached to finding timely and durable solutions to ending the plight of refugees.
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Picking up early warning signals and appropriate and timely responses is necessary for safeguarding humanity from the numerous unnecessary humanitarian crises happening presently.
We all have roles to play and institutions with direct responsibilities will need to step up their efforts.
The safety, protection needs, and human rights of all refugees should be of prime concern as we get ready for a potential influx from Cote d’Ivoire due to that country’s upcoming elections. Ghana is already recording new arrival of refugees from that country, though not in large numbers.
Dwindling funds
The world’s refugee population now exceeds an unprecedented 50 million people, and has implications for foreign aid and donor budget. While funds for refugee protection keeps dwindling, it is imperative that anyone who can lend a hand to do so by supporting the institutions mandated to protect refugees.
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Refugees are not faceless people; fraternising with them would enable us to appreciate the need to protect them and provide their needs. They are human beings like all of us so their rights must be respected without any conditionality.
Writer’s email: del.dems@yahoo.com