Protection Of The Right To Seek And Obtain Asylum Under The African Human Rights System

This Commentary draws on the applied use of international human rights law under the African System of Human Rights to provide protection to those who need it most- refugees.

The African human rights system has undergone some remarkable developments since the adoption of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights, the cornerstone of the African human rights system, in June 1981. The year2011 marked the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the African Charter. It also marked 25 years since the African Charter entered into force on 21 October 1986.This book aims to provide reflections on most of the major human rights issues in the past 30 years of the African human rights system in practice and discussion on the future: the African Charter s impact and contribution to the respect, protection and promotion of human rights in Africa; the contemporary challenges faced by the African Human rights system in responding adequately to the demands of rapidly evolving African societies; and how the African human rights system can be strengthened in the future to ensure that the human rights protected in the African Charter, as developed in the jurisprudence of the African Commission since the Commission was inaugurated in 1987, are realised in practice.The chapters in this volume bring together the work of 20 human rights scholars and practitioners, with expertise in human rights in Africa, under the following general themes: rights and duties in the African Charter; rights of the vulnerable under the African system; implementation mechanisms for human rights in Africa; and towards an effective African regional human rights system.

This book is a comprehensive assessment of regional responses to the crisis in the asylum/refugee system and critically examines how different regions tackle the problem. With contributions on Africa, Europe, Latin America, South Asia and the Middle East, the collection strives to appreciate what informs each region’s approach to the asylum process and asks if there are issues common to every region and if regions can learn from one another.

This Handbook draws together leading and emerging scholars to provide a comprehensive critical analysis of international refugee law. This book provides an account as well as a critique of the status quo, setting the agenda for future research in the field.

This book analyses the legal framework for refugee protection in Africa, including both refugee and human rights law as well as treaty and institutional elements. The regime is addressed in two parts. Part One analyses the relevant treaties: the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, the 1969 Organization of African Unity Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa and the 1981 African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights. The latter two regional instruments are examined in depth. This includes the first fulsome account of the African Refugee Conventions drafting, an interpretation of its unique refugee definition and original analysis of the relationships between the three treaties. Significant attention is devoted to the systemic relationship between the international and the regional refugee treaties and to the discrete relationships of conflict and complementary relationships between the two refugee instruments, as well as to the relationships between the African Refugee Convention and African Charter. Part Two focuses on the institutional architecture supporting the treaty framework. The Organization of African Unity is addressed in a historical sense, and the contemporary roles of the African Union, the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights and the current and contemplated African human rights courts are examined. This book is the first devoted to the legal framework for refugee protection in Africa.

This Commentary draws on the applied use of international human rights law under the African System of Human Rights to provide protection to those who need it most- refugees.

This book examines the socio-economic rights challenges of refugees and asylum seekers in Africa. It seeks to fill a major gap in the literature by providing a nuanced discussion of the barriers to the realisation of the socio-economic rights of refugees and asylum seekers in Africa. It equally aims to provide some concrete recommendations to African governments towards the realisation of the socio-economic rights of refugees and asylum seekers. With the aid of lessons from selected African countries, this book highlights the gaps, challenges and good practices regarding the realisation of the socio-economic rights of refugees and asylum seekers in the region. The book will be useful to researchers, students, academicians, policymakers, and international organisations or institutions interested in advancing the rights of refugees and asylum seekers.

Research Paper (postgraduate) from the year 2017 in the subject Politics - International Politics - Topic: Public International Law and Human Rights, grade: Principle of non-refoulement, University of Yaounde I (Catholic Institut of Yaounde (Cameroon) - Academy of Peace and Human Rights at the Catholic University of Central Africa (Cameroon)), course: Refugee Protection, language: English, abstract: There are many international standards or instruments which protect the rights of refugees to non-refoulment. These instruments are: the United Nations convention relating to the status of refugees of 1951 and its protocol of 1967, the international covenant on civil and political rights of 1966, the United Nations convention against torture of 1989 and the Convention of the Organization of the African Unity governing the specific aspects of refugee problems in Africa adopted in 1969. These instruments play a great role in favoring the implementation of the principle of non-refoulement.

Civil and Political Rights

It is not often acknowledged that the great majority of African refugee movement happens within Africa rather than from Africa to the West. This book examines the specific characteristics and challenges of the refugee situation in Sub-Saharan Africa, offering a new and critical vision on the situation of asylum-seekers and refugees in the African continent. Cristiano d’Orsi considers the international, regional and domestic legal and institutional frameworks linked to refugee protection in Sub-Saharan Africa, and explores the contributions African refugee protection has brought to the cause on a global scale. Key issues covered in the book include the theory and the practice of non-refoulement, an analysis of the phenomenon of mass-influx, the concept of burden-sharing, and the role of freedom fighters. The book goes on to examine the expulsions of refugees and the historical role played by UNHCR in Sub-Saharan Africa. As a work which follows the persecution and legal challenges of those in search of a safe haven, this book will be of great interest and use to researchers and students of immigration and asylum law, international law, human rights, and African studies.