New Web Sites/Blogs

Champions of Change (Asylum Seeker Resource Centre) [access]
- Not a new blog, but new to me! Focus is on Australia.

European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE) [access]
- ECRE has dramatically transformed their web site, adding more color and highlighting the Weekly Bulletin and social media connections. They deserve particular commendation for adopting a Creative Commons license which more clearly defines how visitors can use their content. Now if they can just update their RSS feed... !

Refugee Council of Australia (RCOA) [access]

- The RCOA's web presence has been given a new look and enhanced navigation, providing easier access to news and key sections of the site.

RefugePoint [access]
- Formerly Mapendo International. The name might have changed, but the mission remains the same: To provide assistance to "individuals, families and groups of people overlooked by existing aid programs." Read the press release to learn more about the name change and subscribe to the RSS feed to keep up with new content.

Resource Centre: Free Movement and Migration (European Council) [access]
- Provides access to backgrounders, news, multimedia, and event information relating to freedom of movement and migration.

Tagged Web Sites/Tools.

New Publications

Afghanistan: Responsible U.S. Transition Must Address Displacement Crisis (Refugees International, June 2011) [text]

"Criminalising the Enemy and its Impact on Humanitarian Action," Journal of Humanitarian Assistance (June 2011) [text]

Exiles from Libya Flee to Egypt: Double Tragedy for Sub-Saharan Africans (FIDH, June 2011) [text via ReliefWeb]

No Other Option: Testimonies from Asylum Seekers Living in Ukraine (JRS Europe, June 2011) [text]

Snakes in Ireland: Questioning the Assumption of 'Collective Responsibility' to Protect Refugees, Amsterdam Law School Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2011-12 (Univ. of Amsterdam, posted June 2011) [text via SSRN]

Tagged Publications.

Focus on "Boat People" in Europe

Hirsi v. Italy Case:

22 June, 09.15 CEST, ECtHR Grand Chamber Hearing in Hirsi and Others v. Italy (Migrants at Sea Blog, June 2011) [text]

Case Watch: Italian “Push-Backs” of Migrant Boats Under Scrutiny (Open Society Blog, June 2011) [text]

Hirsi v Italy: Summary of Oral Submission made by Govt. of Italy to Grand Chamber ECtHR (Migrants at Sea Blog, June 2011) [text]

Italy’s Migrant Rights Record Under Scrutiny (Open Society Blog, June 2011) [text]

UNHCR's Oral Intervention at the European Court of Human Rights - Hearing of the Case Hirsi and Others v. Italy (UNHCR, June 2011) [text]

Inquiries and Resolutions:

HRC Adopts Resolution on Migrants and Asylum Seekers Fleeing North Africa; Calls for Inquiry Into Allegations of Failures to Rescue Boats in Distress (Migrants at Sea Blog, June 2011) [text]

PACE Adopts Resolution and Recommendation Regarding the Interception and Rescue at Sea of Asylum Seekers, Refugees and Irregular Migrants (Migrants at Sea Blog, June 2011) [text]

PACE Launches Inquiry into Responsibility for Lives Lost in the Mediterranean (PACE, June 2011) [text]
- See also link to web file on "Europe's boat people."

Publications:

"A Double Bind: Malta and the Rescue of Unwanted Migrants at Sea - A Legal Anthropological Perspective on the Humanitarian Law of the Sea," International Journal of Refugee Law, Advance Access, 22 June 2011 [abstract]

Fishers of Men? The Interception of Migrants in the Mediterranean Sea and Their Forced Return to Libya (INEX, Oct. 2010; posted June 2011) [text via SSRN]

[Photo credit: Wikipedia]

Tagged Publications.

Round-up of Climate Resources

Event:

Environmental Change and Migration in Historical Perspective, Munich, 4-6 August 2011 [info]
- Will focus on the "historical intersections between environmental change and migration."

Events after the fact:

Climate Change and the Risk of Statelessness: The Situation of Low-lying Island States (UNHCR, May 2011) [text]

- Updated for the Expert Roundtable on Climate Change and Displacement, Bellagio, 22-25 February 2011.

Climate Change Displacement and International Law: Complementary Protection Standards (UNHCR, May 2011) [text]

- Prepared for the Expert Roundtable on Climate Change and Displacement, Bellagio, 22-25 February 2011.

Climate Change Induced Displacement: Adaptation Policy in the Context of the UNFCCC Climate Negotiations (UNHCR, May 2011) [text]

- Prepared for the Expert Roundtable on Climate Change and Displacement, Bellagio, 22-25 February 2011.

Publications:

"At the Water's Edge: Legal Protections and Funding for a New Generation of Climate Change Refugees," Ocean and Coastal Law Journal, vol. 16, no. 1 (2011) [full-text]

Maladapted Migration: What Does It Mean? (Centre for Refugee Research, May 2011) [text]
- Adapted from "Chapter Three of the author's current PhD study on climate-change induced migration at UNSW."

An Ounce of Prevention: Preparing for the Impact of a Changing Climate on US Humanitarian and Disaster Response (CNA & Oxfam America, June 2011) [text]

Tagged Publications and Events & Opportunities.

New Health-related Publications

Acculturation and Psychosocial Adjustment of African Adolescent Refugees in the United States: The Role of Social Support, Dissertation submitted to the Graduate School (University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 2011) [text]

"Clinical Trial of Extended-dose Chloroquine for Treatment of Resistant Falciparum Malaria among Afghan Refugees in Pakistan," Malaria Journal 10:171 (June 2011) [open access article]

HIV/AIDS and Refugees, UN Doc. No. EC/62/SC/CRP.15/Rev.1 (EXCOM Standing Committee, June 2011) [text]

Medical Innovations in Humanitarian Situations: The Work of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF, 2011) [text]

"Suicide Death and Hospital-treated Suicidal Behaviour in Asylum Seekers in the Netherlands: A National Registry-based Study," BMC Public Health 11:484 (June 2011) [open access article]

Tagged Publications.

New Items on Refugee Law & Protection

"The Board of Immigration Appeals's New 'Social Visibility' Test for Determining 'Membership of a Particular Social Group' in Asylum Claims and its Legal and Policy Implications," Berkeley Journal of International Law, vol. 29, no. 2 (2011) [full-text]

Europe: Refugee Protection – Illusion or Reality? (JRS Europe, June 2011) [text]

An End to Deterrence and Detention: How a Regional Protection Framework for Refugees in the Asia-Pacific Would Improve Australia's Compliance with International Refugee Law, Thesis submitted to the Department of International Relations (University of Amsterdam, May 2011) [text]

No Credibility: UKBA Decision Making and Section 4 Support (Asylum Support Appeals Project, April 2011) [text]

Polish Asylum Procedure and Refugee Status Determination: Report Following the Mission to Poland from 12 to 15 September 2010 (Belgian Refugee Council, June 2011) [text]

Tagged Publications.

Trafficking in Persons Report 2011

The 2011 edition of the Trafficking in Persons Report (TIP) was released yesterday by the U.S. Department of State. The report assesses over 180 countries, including the U.S., on their efforts to combat trafficking. Countries are placed into one of three Tiers, as follows:

• Tier 1: Countries whose governments fully comply with the TVPA’s minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.
• Tier 2: Countries whose governments do not fully comply with the TVPA’s minimum standards but are making significant efforts to bring themselves into compliance with those standards.
• Tier 3: Countries whose governments do not fully comply with the minimum standards and are not making significant efforts to do so.

A more detailed explanation about the Tiers is available here.

Previous editions of the TIP can be accessed here.

Tagged Publications.

New Periodical Issues

Coping with Crisis, no. 2/2011 (June 2011) [full-text]

- Includes a focus on Japan.

International Migration Review, vol. 45, no. 2 (Summer 2011) [contents]
- Mix of articles including "Human Smuggling in Austria: A Comparative Analysis of Data on Smuggled Migrants from Former Yugoslavia and the Russian Federation."

IOM Research Newsletter (May 2011) [full-text]
- New periodical with updates on IOM's research activities.

Women's Asylum News, no. 102 (May/June 2011) [full-text via Refworld]
- Lead article is "Women seeking asylum in Merseyside: Access to support for survivors of sexual violence in conflict and civil unrest."

Tagged Periodicals.

New Publications

Disaster-conflict Interface: Comparative Experiences (UNDP, 2011) [text via PreventionWeb]

Exploding the Myths: UNRWA, UNHCR and the Palestine Refugees (Ma'an News Agency, June 2011) [text via PRRN Blog]

Global Phenomenon, Invisible Cases: Human Trafficking in Sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific (ACP Observatory on Migration, Feb. 2011) [text]

Memorandum of Understanding between the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR, June 2011) [text]

Navigating the Refugee Fact Free Zone (Centre for Policy Development, June 2011) [text]

Shelter from the Storm: A Real-time Evaluation of UNHCR’s Response to the Emergency in Côte d’Ivoire and Liberia, PDES/2011/07 (UNHCR, June 2011) [text]

UNHCR's Contribution to the Secretary-General's Report on Progress and Implementation of the General Assembly Resolution 64/169 on the Initiatives Contributing to the Activities in the Framework of the International Year for People of African Descent (UNHCR, May 2011) [text]

Tagged Publications.

Publications: Asylum Seekers/Israel, Failed States, Recommend. re. Racism, Ref. Week Celeb., Resettlement Toolkit, Withdrawal of Ref. Status/S. Africa

Failed States Index 2011 (Fund for Peace, June 2011) [text]

In the Matter of: Lieutenant-General Faustin Kayumba Nyamwasa’s Presence in South Africa (Southern Africa Litigation Centre, posted June 2011) [text]

- See also related press release.

On the Morality and Legality of Borders: ‘Hot Returns’ and Other Policies Towards Asylum Seekers at the Israeli-Egyptian Border (ExpressO, June 2011) [text]

Reasons to be Cheerful: 10 Things to Celebrate during Refugee Week (OpenDemocracy, June 2011) [text]

UNHCR-NGO Toolkit for Practical Cooperation on Resettlement (UNHCR, June 2011) [text]

UNHCR’s Contribution to the Secretary-General’s Report with Recommendations on Global Trends in the Fight against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia, and Related Intolerance to the General Assembly for Its 66th Session Pursuant to A/RES/64/148 (UNHCR, June 2011)[text]

- See also GA Resolution A/RES/64/148.

Tagged Publications.

World Refugee Day Web Sites/Resources

Think Africa Press launched a special series of articles that examine who a refugee is, some of the many challenges they are confronted with, and the contributions they make to their new environments.

The Guardian produced an interactive map using UNHCR's latest statistics to show where refugees come from, where they go, and how many return.

Refugees International created an interactive online quiz with 15 questions to help readers test their knowledge of refugee issues.

The U.S. State Department's DipNote Blog posted a number of stories from State Dept. employees who were former refugees.

Finally, you can use ReliefWeb to search for any stories that reference "World Refugee Day." From your results list, click on the RSS icon on the right side to generate a customized feed, then subscribe to this feed to receive alerts any time a new reference to WRD appears.

Tagged Publications and Web Sites/Tools.

More info. on events in June and July

I highlighted several meetings scheduled to take place just after World Refugee Day in an earlier post. At the time, only limited information was available, so I am re-referencing them so readers have a chance to review background papers on issues that will be discussed.

51st Meeting of EXCOM's Standing Committee, Geneva, 21-23 June 2011 [work programme]
- Visit ICVA for a list of documents under discussion; most are not yet available in full-text but they will eventually be posted on the UNHCR web site.

Expert Meeting on International Cooperation to Share Burden and Responsibilities, Amman, 27-28 June 2011 [concept note/draft agenda] [discussion paper]

UNHCR/NGO Consultations, Geneva, 28-30 June 2011 [info]

- Here is the final agenda, the theme of which is "60 Years of Partnerships: The Road Ahead." In addition, background papers for the thematic and regional sessions have now been posted, along with information on two side events (Distance Learning and Strengthening National RSD Systems). Some of the issues to be addressed during the thematic sessions include statelessness among children, urban refugees, resettlement as a protection tool, UNHCR's regional dialogues with women and girls, housing/land/property rights, durable solutions for IDPs, Sudan, and detention.

In addition, some new information on IASFM13, which will be held in Kampala, 3-6 July 2011: A draft programme is now available .xls format. The programme lists all the panels and notes presenters for each. Titles of specific presentations can be located here.

[Photo credit: UNHCR/NGO Consultations, 2010]

Tagged Publications and Events & Opportunities.

Publications: Emerg. Response/UK, Palestinian Ref. & IDPs, Resettlement/Australia, Unacc. Minors & Health, UNHCR GBV Strategy

Action against Sexual and Gender-Based Violence: An Updated Strategy (UNHCR, June 2011) [text]

Cause for Hope? DFID's Response to the Humanitarian Emergency Response Review, HPG Briefing Note (ODI, June 2011) [text]

Economic, Social and Civic Contributions of First and Second Generation Humanitarian Entrants (National Centre for Social Applications of Geographical Information Systems, University of Adelaide, June 2011) [text via BROCAP]

Q&A: What You Need to Know about Palestinian Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons (Badil, May 2011) [text]

Unaccompanied Minor Asylum Seekers' Health Promotion in a Reception Center: Recommendations for Good Practice, Thesis submitted to Dept. of Health Care (Laurea University of Applied Sciences, 2011) [text]

Tagged Publications.

Focus on Statelessness

UNHCR announced recently that Panama will accede to the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons and the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, which brings the total states parties to 66 and 38, respectively.

Elsewhere, some new publications:

"Addressing Statelessness," Global Report 2010 (UNHCR, June 2011) [text]

Children without a State: A Global Human Rights Challenge (MIT Press, March 2011) [info]
- Click on the widget to view the table of contents and read sample pages. See also an interview with the editor, Jacqueline Bhabha.

"Nationality and Statelessness," chapter in Foundations of International Migration Law (Cambridge University Press, forthcoming 2012) [eprint via SSRN]

Prevention and Reduction of Statelessness and Protection of Stateless Persons in the Americas, Doc. No. AG/RES. 2665 (XLI-O/11) (OAS, June 2011) [text via Refworld]

Statelessness: A Hidden Crisis, Fact Sheet (U.S. State Department, May 2011) [text]

Tagged Publications.

Focus on Asylum in Europe

Asylum Improvement Project: Report on Progress (UK Border Agency, May 2011) [text]

Asylum Lawmaking in the EU and Codecision, Paper presented at the 2011 Meeting of the European Public Choice Society, Rennes, France, 28 April-1 May 2011 [text]

En-gendering the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) (Amnesty International et al., May 2011) [text]

Improving Policies in the Field of Asylum and Human Rights Protection in the US and EU, EU-US Immigration Systems, no. 2011/13 (European University Institute, June 2011) [text]

UNHCR Statement on Religious Persecution and the Interpretation of Article 9(1) of the EU Qualification Directive (UNHCR, June 2011) [text]

Tagged Publications.

Focus on Human Trafficking

Events:

Preventing Trafficking in Human Beings for Labour Exploitation: Decent Work and Social Justice, Vienna, 20-21 June 2011 [info]
- The 11th High-level Alliance against Trafficking in Persons conference, organized by the OSCE. Parts of the conference will be streamed live.

2011 Interdisciplinary Conference on Human Trafficking: What we know and what we need to know, Lincoln, Nebraska, 29 September-1 October 2011 [info]

- The programme will be posted mid-summer. Papers from the conference will be made available via the University of Nebraska's institutional repository.

New Journal Issue:

Revue Internationale de Droit Penal, vol. 81, no. 3/4 (2010) [contents]

- Focus is on human trafficking.

Publications:

Disposable Victims: How the TVPA Fails to Protect Victims of Human Trafficking (ExpressO, 2011) [text]

Joint United Nations Submission on the Future European Union Comprehensive Anti-Trafficking Strategy (UNHCR et al., May 2011) [text]

Preventing and Combating the Trafficking of Girls in India Using Legal Empowerment Strategies: A Rights Awareness and Legal Assistance Program in Four Districts of West Bengal, June 2010 – March 2011 (IDLO, 2011) [text]

Web Resource:

The CNN Freedom Project: Ending Modern-Day Slavery [access]

- The aim of the project is to "amplify the voices of the victims, highlight success stories and help unravel the complicated tangle of criminal enterprises trading in human life."

Tagged Events & Opportunities, Publications, Periodicals and Web Sites/Tools.

CFP/New Issues of Alert Q., Disasters, JIRS, Rev. Intl. Droit Penal, VOICE,

To mark World Refugee Day and to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the 1951 Refugee Convention, a special virtual issue of Disasters has been compiled which gathers together previously published articles on refugees and displaced persons and provides access to them in full-text.

Other new issues:

Alert Quarterly, vol. 12, no. 5 (Spring 2011) [full-text]

- The lead article is "Aid and Accountability: A Necessary Debate." Also includes report from Dagahaley Refugee Camp in Kenya.

Disasters, vol. 35, no. 3 (July 2011) [contents]

- Mix of articles.

Journal of Immigrant & Refugee Studies, vol. 9, no. 2 (2011) [contents]
- Includes "When Refugees Don't Go Home: The Situation of Liberian Refugees in Ghana," "Rohingya Refugees to Bangladesh: Historical Exclusions and Contemporary Marginalization," "Humanitarian Alliances: Local and International NGO Partnerships and the Iraqi Refugee Crisis," and "Job Search Methods of Refugees in the Netherlands: Determinants and Consequences." Also includes a book review of The Politics of Innocence: Hutu Identity, Conflict, and Camp Life.

Torture Journal, vol. 21, no. 2 (2011) [full-text]
- Includes "Psychotherapy and psychosocial care of torture survivor refugees in Hungary."

VOICE Out Loud, no. 13 (May 2011) [full-text]

- This issue examines the question "Is Independent Humanitarian Action a Myth?"

CFP:

Oxford Monitor of Forced Migration [info]

- This is a reminder that submissions for the second issue of this new periodical are due 24 June 2011.

Tagged Periodicals and Events & Opportunities.

Publications: Conservation Refugees, Dadaab Conditions, Fact Sheets, Palestinian Refugees, Pregnancy Outcomes/Thai-Burmese Border

Fact Sheets 2011 (U.S. Department of State, 2011) [access]

- Includes coverage of refugee admissions, protracted refugee situations, Iraqi refugee resettlement and more.

"Improved Pregnancy Outcome in Refugees and Migrants Despite Low Literacy on the Thai-Burmese Border: Results of Three Cross-sectional Surveys," BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 11:45 (June 2011) [open access article]

Locked Out: Palestinian Refugees and the Key to Peace (Christian Aid, June 2011) [text via ReliefWeb]

No Way In: The Biggest Refugee Camp in the World is Full (MSF, May 2011) [text]

- See also related article.

A Story of Conservation Refugees: Vulnerability and Coping Strategies, Paper presented at ICARUS II conference, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 5‐8 May 2011 [text]

Tagged Publications.

World Refugee Day, June 20th

Today is World Refugee Day (WRD). I posted earlier about some of the events that are being planned to honor refugees around the world, not only on this day but during the rest of the week as well.

UNHCR's official WRD campaign is Do 1 Thing. The site provides access to videos and photos, as well as encourages participation in raising awareness of refugee issues. The companion Facebook page offers this badge for people to show their support.

The refugee agency has also released its review of 2010: UNHCR Global Trends 2010; here's the press release. Statistical annexes are available on this page for downloading.

There are so many activities and events taking place to mark WRD 2011 that it is impossible to highlight them all! However, I will include references and links in my regular line-up of posts as I come across them and when they are appropriate and relevant.

Tagged Events & Opportunities, Publications and Web Sites/Tools.

Publications: Burden-sharing, Cash Transfer, Domestic Violence & Asylum, EASO, Education/Uganda, EU Presidency

Cash Transfer Programming in Emergencies, Good Practice Review, no. 11 (HPN, June 2011) [text]

Frequently Asked Questions: The European Asylum Support Office (EASO) (EUROPA, June 2011) [text]

"Insufficient Government Protection: The Inescapable Element in Domestic Violence Asylum Cases," Minnesota Law Review, vol. 95, no. 5 (2011) [full-text]

International Cooperation to Share Burden and Responsibilities, Expert Meeting in Amman, Jordan, 27 and 28 June 2011: Discussion Paper (UNHCR, June 2011) [text]

UNHCR’s Recommendations to Poland for its EU Presidency, July – December 2011 (UNHCR, June 2011) [text]

Unprepared for Peace: Education in Northern Uganda in Displacement and Beyond: Case Study on Education and Internal Displacement (IDMC, June 2011) [text]

Tagged Publications.