Recent Journal Literature

Recent research articles identified through HighWire Press, Oxford University Press Journals, and Ingenta:

Carlsson, J.M. et al., "Mental Health and Health-Related Quality of Life: A 10-Year Follow-Up of Tortured Refugees," Journal of Nervous and Mental Disorders, vol. 194, no. 10 (Oct. 206) [abstract]

Dolma, S. et al., "Dangerous Journey: Documenting the Experience of Tibetan Refugees," American Journal of Public Health, vol. 96, no. 11 (Nov. 2006) [abstract]

Kotschy, B., "Austria: Asylum law in conflict with the Constitution," International Journal of Constitutional Law, vol. 4, no. 4 (Oct. 2006) [abstract]

Momartin, S. et al., "A comparison of the mental health of refugees with temporary versus permanent protection visas," The Medical Journal of Australia, vol. 185, no. 7 (Oct. 2006) [text]

Phillimore, J. and L. Goodson, "Problem or opportunity? Asylum seekers, refugees, employment and social exclusion in deprived urban areas," Urban Studies, vol. 43, no. 10 (Sept. 2006) [abstract]

Rikhof, J., "Complicity in International Criminal Law and Canadian Refugee Law: A Comparison," Journal of International Criminal Justice, advance access (Oct. 2006) [abstract]

Shah, S.A., "Resistance to Cross-cultural Psychosocial Effortsin Disaster and Trauma: Recommendations for Ethnomedical Competence," The Australasian Journal of Disaster and Trauma Studies, vol. 2006-2 (2006) [text]

Wolton, S., "Immigration Policy and the 'Crisis of British Values'," Citizenship Studies, vol. 10, no. 4 (Sept. 2006) [abstract]

Posted in Publications and Periodicals.

North Korean Asylum Seekers

The International Crisis Group released a report on 26 October 2006 that it describes as one of "the first to look comprehensively at networks of North Korean asylum seekers and the policies of related countries." Included as Appendix C is an overview of international refugee law and its application to North Korean refugees.

Reliable information about North Korea is hard to come by. As one report notes, "the DPRK is a notoriously difficult subject to study. Aside from the fundamental shortage of data that can be independently verified, a significant proportion of the available literature and reports concerning the country are heavily influenced by a variety of biases, and/or are based on source material of questionable origin." (Mahr, 2002, p. 1)

Previous background reports have focused on China and the situation of North Koreans once they arrive there. See Refugees International, the U.S. Committee for Refugees, and WriteNet for examples and further references. More general studies on North Korean border-crossers and strategies for dealing with North Korean displacement are also available.

Titles of reports referenced:

1. Acts of Betrayal: The Challenge of Protecting North Koreans in China (Refugees International, May 2005) [text];
2. The Border-Crossing North Koreans: Current Situations and Future Prospects (Korea Institute for National Unification, May 2006) [text];
3. China: Background Paper on the Situation of North Koreans in China (WriteNet, Jan. 2005) [text];
4. "China," World Refugee Survey 2006 (USCRI, 2006) [text];
5. North Korea: Scenarios From The Perspective Of Refugee Displacement (Mahr, Feb. 2002) [text];
6. Perilous Journeys: The Plight of North Koreans in China and Beyond (ICG, Oct. 2006) [text].

Posted in Publications.

RSC News: New Working Papers, Forthcoming FMR, FM List Book Prize

The Refugee Studies Centre (RSC) in Oxford has published six new working papers. Their numbers and titles are as follows:

37: The Medium of Testimony: Testimony as Re-Presentation [text]

36: The Politics of Extraterritorial Processing: Offshore Asylum Policies in Europe and the Pacific [text]
- Note: COMPAS also recently published a paper on "externalizing" EU asylum policy to Africa.

35: Protection Against Torture in Western Security Frameworks: The Erosion of Non-Refoulement in the UK-Libya MOU [text]

34: Asylum and Childhood in the UK: A Highly Political Relationship [text]

33: Negotiating Access and Culture: Organizational Responses to the Healthcare Needs of
Refugees and Asylum Seekers living with HIV in the UK [text]

32: The Use of Diplomatic Assurances in the Prevention of Prohibited Treatment [text]
- Note: UNHCR recently prepared a Note on Diplomatic Assurances and International Refugee Protection.

Forced Migration Review's next issue will focus on "Sexual violence in conflict and beyond." It will be produced in collaboration with UNFPA and is due to be published in November. FMR is available online in English, Arabic, French and Spanish. English-language issues are also searchable on Forced Migration Online.

Finally, Forced Migration Online (FMO) is offering a book prize for the 1000th member to join the forced migration discussion list. Visit FMO's home page for more details.

Posted in Publications and Events & Opportunities.

New Pubs.: Girls/Armed Conflict, High-Level Dial., IDPs/North Caucasus, Minority Rights/Darfur, Providing Aid, South Asia Migration, UNHCR Evaluation

The girl child and armed conflict: Recognizing and addressing grave violations of girls’ human rights, EGM/DVGC/2006/EP.12 (D. Mazurana and K. Carlson, Sept. 2006) [text]

Minority Rights, Early Warning and Conflict Prevention: Lessons from Darfur (MRG, Oct. 2006) [text]

Providing aid in insecure environments: trends in policy and operations, HPG Report 23 (A. Stoddard, A. Harmer and K. Haver, Sept. 2006) [text]

Real-time evaluation of UNHCR’s response to the emergency in Lebanon and Syria, July - September 2006, PDES/2006/RTE1 (S. Sperl, K. Diagne, and D. Snider, Oct. 2006) [text]

Summary of the High-level Dialogue on International Migration and Development: Note by the President of the General Assembly, A/61/515 (Oct. 2006) [text]

An Uncertain Future: The Challenges of Return and Reintegration for Internally Displaced Persons in the North Caucasus (IDMC, Oct. 2006) [text]

See also the research reports produced by the five South Asia Migration Research Network fellows for 2004-2006. Titles and texts available here.

Posted in Publications.

New Research Papers: EU Asylum Policy, IDPs/Iraq, IDPs/Nigeria, Refugee Label, Refugees/Uganda

(List updated 27 Oct. 2006)

“Because we are refugees”: utilizing a legal label, New Issues in Refugee Research Paper, no. 130 (K. Inhetveen, Oct. 2006) [text]

Management of internal displacement in Nigeria, Rosemarie Rogers Working Paper, no. 35 (O. Olagunju, Oct. 2006) [access in HTML or PDF]

The 'refugee aid and development' approach in Uganda: empowerment and self-reliance of refugees in practice, New Issues in Refugee Research Paper, no. 131 (S. Meyer, Oct. 2006) [text]

Refugees in Rhino Camp Refugee Settlement and Aura Town, Refugee Law Project Briefing Paper (Oct. 2006) [text]

Sectarian Violence: Radical Groups Drive Internal Displacement in Iraq, Brookings-Bern Project Occasional Paper (A. al-Khalidi & V. Tanner, Oct. 2006) [text]

Towards a Common European Asylum Policy, EPC Issue Paper No. 49 (S. Bertozzi & F. Pastore, Oct. 2006) [text]

Posted in Publications.

FGM: Legal/Medical News

The Guardian reported yesterday that the House of Lords in England recommended a grant of asylum to a woman from Sierra Leone on the basis of her fear of female circumcision. The UK’s Home Office has developed asylum policy instructions for gender issues but, as the article notes, some NGOs suggest that gender-based persecution is still not readily recognized as a valid claim for asylum.

Gender guidelines from other government agencies are listed here.

The World Health Organization published a study in the June 2006 issue of the Lancet that determined "women who have had Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) are significantly more likely to experience difficulties during childbirth and that their babies are more likely to die as a result of the practice." A summary of the study is provided in this press release and the text of the study is made available here.

Posted in Publications.

EU: Externalizing Asylum Policy

Two recent papers critique different aspects of the European Union's practice of "externalizing" refugee protection to either regions of origin or transit countries.

1. European Union: Managing Migration Means Potential EU Complicity in Neighboring States’ Abuse of Migrants and Refugees (Human Rights Watch, Oct. 2006) [text]

2. The Externalisation of EU Asylum Policy: The Position of African States (A. Betts, J. Milner, 2006) [text]

An earlier paper from OXFAM provides background on the various practices undertaken by the EU to manage migration outside of its borders. Read "Foreign Territory: The Internationalisation of EU Asylum Policy."

As noted in this post from PolicyBlog, many of these issues were addressed in a 2005 conference jointly organized by Monash University in Australia, ICAR, and UNHCR. The papers from this conference will be published in a forthcoming issue of the International Journal of Refugee Law.

Posted in Publications.

New Pubs.: CCR Conf. Rpt., EU Asylum, Human Trafficking, IDPs/Sudan, Refugee Policy/Eurasia, Refugee Security

Conference Report, Canadian Council for Refugees International Refugee Rights Conference, 17-19 June 2006, Toronto [access to report and presentations]

ECRE Information Note on the Council Directive 2005/85/EC of 1 December 2005 on minimum standards on procedures in Member States for granting and withdrawing refugee status (ECRE, Oct. 2006) [text]

Member states fail on asylum (EurActiv.com, 11 Oct. 2006) [text]

Operational Guidelines on Maintaining the Civilian and Humanitarian Character ofAsylum (UNHCR, Sept. 2006) [text]

The Protection of Internally Displaced Persons in the Sudan: Applying International Law at the Field Level (Kirsten Zaat, Oct. 2006) [text on JHA]

Refugee policy in Eurasia: The CIS Conference and EU Enlargement Process 1996-2005 (Luise Druke, Aug. 2006; posted online Oct. 2006) [text on UNHCR]

Toolkit to Combat Trafficking in Persons (UNODC, Oct. 2006) [text]

Posted in Publications.

UNHCR News: Evaluation & Policy Dev., Library Acquisitions, Refugees Mag., Rescue at Sea

1. UNHCR's former Evaluation and Policy Analysis Unit (EPAU) has been upgraded to the Policy Development and Evaluation Service (PDES). For more information about PDES' objectives, read the presentation made by Jeff Crisp to EXCOM members and the report on evaluation and policy development.

2. A new issue of Refugees Magazine (no. 144) has been published. The theme is "Where Are They Now? The Hungarian Refugees, 50 Years On." Two pdf versions are available, one low-resolution and one high-resolution.

3. The library has issued an annotated list of new titles added to the collection as of September.

4. A brochure entitled "Rescue at sea: A guide to principles and practice as applied to migrants and refugees" has been prepared in conjunction with IMO for "masters, ship owners, government authorities, insurance companies, and other interested parties involved in rescue at sea situations." Available in English, Spanish, and French.

Posted in Publications.

NGO Reports: GBV, Housing Rights, Palestinian Displacement, UNHCR's RSD Procedures, U.S. Material Support Bar

Defending the Housing Rights of Children (COHRE & Cordaid, Sept. 2006) [text]

Displaced by the Wall: Forced displacement as a Result of the West Bank Wall and its Associated Regime (IDMC & Badil, Sept. 2006) [text]

Gender Based Violence Bibliography (RHRC, updated Sept. 2006) [text]

No Margin for Error: Implementation of UNHCR’s Procedural Standards for refugee status determination at selected UNHCR field offices in 2006 (RSDWatch.org, Sept. 2006) [summary and text]

And two reports that focus on the impact of a U.S. law that "bars refugees who provide material support to terrorist organizations from being granted asylum... ." Because the law uses broad definitions of "material support" and other terms, the reports contend that many victims of terrorist groups have been denied refugee protection.

Abandoning the Persecuted: Victims of Terrorism and Oppression Barred from Asylum (Human Rights First, Sept. 2006) [text]

U.S. Refugee Admissions Program for Fiscal Year 2006 and 2007: The Impact of the Material Support Bar (Refugee Council USA, Sept. 2006) [text]

Posted in Publications.

57th Session of the UNHCR Executive Committee

Today marks the start of the 57th Session of the Executive Committee of the High Commissioner's Programme in Geneva. The meeting will run through 6 October. EXCOM members convene to "review and approve the agency's programmes and budgets and to advise on protection matters." Read the High Commissioner's opening statement.

Some documents are already available in English and French on the UNHCR web site, including an agenda, the evaluation and policy development report (which includes a brief description of future projects), the Note on International Protection, and the Standing Committee report. Updates have also been prepared on UNHCR's operations within different regions.

The UNHCR/NGO 2006 PreEXCOM Consultations concluded last week, with High Commissioner Guterres summarizing the issues confronting the international refugee community. Some NGOs with observer status at the EXCOM session have begun to make their statements available online. See, for example, Amnesty International.

(updated 5 October 2006)

Posted in Publications and Events.