Thematic Focus: Children/Education

Event & opportunity:

Job opening: Research Officer, Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict [info]
- Apply by 16 October 2013.

Illegality, Youth, and Belonging, Cambridge, MA, 25-26 October 2013 [info]
- Pre-register by 18 October 2013.

Publications:

"Bringing Universities to Refugee Camps in Kenya," New York Times, 7 Oct. 2013 [text]

CGRS Argues Before Fifth Circuit in Potentially Precedent-Setting Children's Case (CGRS, Sept. 2013) [text]

Children's Participation in Humanitarian Programming (Save the Children, Sept. 2013) [access via ReliefWeb]
- Follow the link for a review and guidelines.

Decisions Concerning Migrant Children Must Always be Based on their Best Interests (Human Rights Comment, Sept. 2013) [text]

"Refugees Embrace Power of Education," Independent Education, no. 2 (Aug. 2013) [full-text]
- Scroll to p. 30.

Tagged Publications and Events & Opportunities. 

New Issues of FRLAN, Germ. Yrbk. Intl. Law, Intl. Law Rev. Colomb., Intl. J. HR

Fahamu Refugee Legal Aid Newsletter, no. 41 (Oct. 2013) [full-text]
- News and information for refugee legal aid providers.

German Yearbook of International Law, vol. 55 (2012) [contents]
- Includes focus section on "Disaster Preparedness and Response."

International Law: Revista Colombiana de Derecho Internacional, no. 22 (Jan./June 2013) [full-text]
- Special issue on forced migration, with articles on the environmentally displaced, IDPs in Colombia, and free movement in the EU.

International Journal of Human Rights, vol. 17, nos. 5-6 (2013) [contents]
- Mix of articles including "Constructing Humanitarian Space in Darfur" and "The Inter-American Human Rights System: A New Model for Integrating Refugee and Complementary Protection?"
 
Tagged Periodicals.

Thematic Focus: Statelessness, esp. in the DR

Events:

Free Legal Training on New Immigration Rules on Statelessness, Birmingham, UK, 28 October 2013 [info]
- Register by 15 October 2013.

Call for Presenters: Global Forum on Statelessness Forum, The Hague, 15-17 September 2014 [info]
- Submit proposals by 1 December 2013.

Publications:

Côte d'Ivoire Takes Big Step to End Statelessness by Acceding to Conventions (UNHCR, Oct. 2013) [text]

Examining the Human Impact of Legal Identity Documentation – One Client at a Time (ENS Blog, Sept. 2013) [text]

Liverpool Law Clinic Launches Statelessness Project (ENS Blog, Oct. 2013) [text]

UNHCR Statelessness Research Award Interviews...Eva Mrekajová (Statelessness Programme Blog, Oct. 2013) [text]

A Week in Northern Italy Discussing Statelessness in MENA (Statelessness Programme Blog, Sept. 2013) [text]

Persons of Haitian Descent in the DR:

A Crisis of Nationality: Dominicans of Haitian Descent (Open Society Foundations, Oct. 2013) [text]

Dominican Republic Court Ruling Raises Mass Statelessness Threat (Open Society Foundations, Oct. 2013) [text]

Dominican Republic Court Ruling Will Render Thousands of People Stateless (JRS, Sept. 2013) [text]

A Huge Step Backwards in the Dominican Republic (RI Blog, Oct. 2013) [text]

UNHCR Concerned by Potential Impact of Dominican Court Decision on Persons of Haitian Descent (UNHCR, Oct. 2013) [text]

Tagged Publications and Events & Opportunities. 

Regional Focus: Syria

Back from the Field: Lebanon & Turkey (Refugees International, Oct. 2013) [text]

"Countries Agree to Special Quotas for Syrian Refugees," New York Times, 1 Oct. 2013 [text]

"Each Tragic Step: Where Syrian Refugees are Seeking Safety," The Economist, 9 Sept. 2013 [text]

The Government of Turkey and Syrian Refugees: A Gender Assessment of Humanitarian Assistance Programming (Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security, 2013) [text]
- See also related project note.

Humanitarian Agencies Welcome Unanimous Security Council Statement Calling for Unimpeded Humanitarian Access in Syria, Urge Swift Implementation (Refugees International, Oct. 2013) [text]

Hunger in a War Zone: The Growing Crisis Behind the Syria Conflict (Save the Children, Sept. 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]

Syrian Refugees in Jordan and Lebanon: A Snapshot from Summer 2013 (ISIM, 2013) [access]

Tagged Publications. 

Regional Focus: Europe

A boat carrying over 500 migrants, mainly from Eritrea, caught fire and capsized near the island of Lampedusa, Italy yesterday; only 155 survived.  For more information, see:
- Deaths at Sea off the Italian Coast: ECRE Calls for Safe Channels for Refugees to Reach Europe (ECRE)
- Divers Resume Search after Sicily Migrant Boat Disaster (Thomson Reuters)
- More than 100 Migrants Die in Second Horrific Shipwreck This Week (Amnesty International)
- Rescue Efforts Focus on Survivors of Lampedusa Boat Tragedy as Search Suspended (UNHCR)
- Tragic Accident Outside Lampedusa: Statement by European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Cecilia Malmström (European Commission)

This article in the Telegraph lists other "worst asylum seeker ship disasters."

Publications:

Asylum Trends 2010-2012: Provisional Statistical Figures for Central Europe (UNHCR, 2013) [text]

"Asylum-Seekers and People in Need of International Protection," Chapter 5 in Social Benefits and Migration: A Contested Relationship and Policy Challenge in the EU (CEPS, Sept. 2013) [text]

Support for Asylum Seekers in Ireland: 2013 Survey Results (Trinity College Dublin, Sept. 2013) [access]

Resource:

Immigration and Asylum Appeal Decisions (UK Ministry of Justice) [access]
- This new service "allows you to find judges’ decisions on immigration and asylum appeals, which have been decided by the Upper Tribunal Immigration and Asylum Chamber (UTIAC)."  It includes all reported decisions of the Tribunal as well as unreported decisions issued after 1 June 2013.  See also related press release.

Upcoming event:

Refugee Protection and the Dublin System: Can They Ever Be Compatible?,  Dublin, 6-8 December 2013 [info]
- Registration is now open; deadline to register is 4 November 2013.

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

Regional Focus: MENA

DFID’s Support for Palestine Refugees through UNRWA (Independent Commission for Aid Impact, Sept. 2013) [text via PRRN Blog]

"Freedom of Movement of Afghan Refugees in Iran," Forced Migration Review, no. 44 (Sept. 2013) [open access text]

Land and Post-Conflict Peacebuilding: The Durability of Middle Eastern Civil Codes and Durable Solutions to Displacement (Terra Nullius, Sept. 2013) [text]

Nace una red para defender los derechos de los refugiados y de los inmigrantes subsaharianos en Marruecos = Birth of a Network to Defend the Rights of Refugees and African Immigrants in Morocco (CEAR, Oct. 2013) [info via ECRE]

A New Year for Israel’s Refugees? (Oppenheimer Chair, Sept. 2013) [text]

Researching Refugee Dynamics, Southern Populations and Migration Dynamics in Post-revolution Libya (Altai Consulting, May 2013) [access via Good Practices for Urban Refugees ]
- Scroll down to locate title; currently, no search mechanism will locate the report on this web site.

Tagged Publications. 

Regional Focus: Americas

Opportunity:

Overview of Recent Immigration and Refugee Policy Changes, Webinar, 17 & 22 October 2013 [info]
- Will be offered in either French or English on the different days.

Publications:

"Access to Medicines among Internally Displaced and Non-displaced People in Urban Areas in Colombia," Cadernos de Saúde Pública, vol.28, no.12 (Dec. 2012) [full-text]

"El desplazamiento forzado en Colombia y su ardua reparación," Araucaria: Revista Iberoamericana de Filosofía, Política y Humanidades, año 15, nº 29 (2013) [full-text]

A Review of the Implementation of UNHCR's Urban Refugee Policy in Ecuador, PDES/2013/15 (UNHCR, Sept. 2013) [text]

The Risk of Returning Home: Violence and Threats against Displaced People Reclaiming Land in Colombia (Human Rights Watch, Sept. 2013) [text]

UN Refugee Agency Welcomes Brazil Announcement of Humanitarian Visas for Syrians (UNHCR, Sept. 2013) [text]

Tagged Publications. 

Thematic Focus: Humanitarian Assistance

Cooperation from Crisis? Regional Responses to Humanitarian Emergencies (International Peace Institute, Sept. 2013) [text]

The End of CIDA and AusAID: The Disconcerting Demise of Aid Agencies (Lugar Center Blog, Oct. 2013) [text]

Humanitarian Futures (IRIN, Sept. 2013) [access]
- New "In-depth" feature from IRIN, with interviews, news stories, and infographics.

Humanitarian Policy Group Annual Report 2012-2013 (ODI, Sept. 2013) [access]
- In this "first interactive annual report from the Humanitarian Policy Group (HPG), ...you'll be able to hear - and view - our researchers talking about their work, access our publications and learn about achievements from the past year."

A Networked Response? Effective Humanitarian Networks, London, 20 Sept. 2013 [access]
- Follow link for video of the event.

Placing Protection at the Centre of Humanitarian Action: Study on Protection Funding in Complex Humanitarian Emergencies (Global Protection Cluster, Sept. 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]

Tagged Publications.

Ripple Effects...

"Here’s How the Shutdown Affects Immigration Services," ABC News, 1 Oct. 2013 [text]

"Immigration Courts Remain Partly Open but Political Asylum Cases Delayed," Washington Post, 1 Oct. 2013 [text]

"On Day 1 of the Shutdown, It's Business as Usual for US Aid," Devex, 2 Oct. 2013 [text]

Shutdown of the Federal Government: Causes, Processes, and Effects (U.S. Congressional Research Service, Sept. 2013) [text via InfoDocket]

*"US Government Says We'll Protect You to Refugees, but What Happens during Shutdown?," PRI, 2 Oct. 2013 [text]

"U.S. Government Shutdown Could Hit Foreign Aid," IPS, 1 Oct. 2013 [text]

What Happens during a Government Shutdown (AILA, Oct. 2013) [text]

A few examples of the impact the U.S. Government shutdown is having on access to information:

Catalog of U.S. Government Publications
- Accessible but won't be updated.

Department of Homeland Security
- Web site not being actively managed.

Library of Congress
- Web site is not accessible.

Office of Refugee Resettlement
- Information on web site not being updated.

PubMed
- Minimal staffing and updates.

*updated

Tagged Publications and Web Sites/Tools.

High-level Segment on Syrian Refugees

As a follow-up to my earlier post re. the High-Level Segment of the Executive Committee of the High Commissioner's Programme on Solidarity and Burden-Sharing with Countries Hosting Syrian Refugees, here are several recently posted documents:

*- HC's opening remarks
*- HC's closing remarks
- the text of the Final Statement
- the text of the NGO Statement
- a UNHCR news story on the segment
*- a brief outline of resettlement/humanitarian admission solutions for Syrian refugees

*updated

Tagged Publications and Events & Opportunities. 

Thematic Focus: Law/Policy Items

Events & opportunities:

Early Career Academic in the Refugee Law Initiative, School of Advanced Study, University of London [info]
- Apply by 3 October 2013.

Legal Officer, ILPA, London [info]
- Apply by 7 October 2013.

CFP: Access to Asylum: Current Challenges and Future Directions, Prato, Italy, 29-30 May 2014 [info]
- Submit abstracts by 8 November 2013.

Publications:

Cross-Cultural Complications: Assessing the Credibility of Asylum Applicants' Testimony, Thesis (Lund University, Spring 2013) [text]

"Introduction to CA7 on Belarus, Changed Country Conditions: Boika v. Holder," Fahamu Refugee Legal Aid Newsletter, no. 41 (Oct. 2013) [full-text]

Narrating Atrocity: Obstacles to Proving Credibility in Asylum Claims, Working Paper, no. 7 (Refugee Law Initiative, Aug. 2013) [text]

"The Reach of the Exclusion Clause to the Refugee Convention," Fahamu Refugee Legal Aid Newsletter, no. 41 (Oct. 2013) [full-text]

Refugee Burden-Sharing: A Modest Proposal, Fifteen Years Later (Yale Law School, July 2013) [text via SSRN]

Tagged Publications and Events & Opportunities. 

Thematic Focus: Detention

Alternatives to Immigration Detention Prove Cheaper, More Humane (IRIN, Aug. 2013) [text]

"Detained in Obscurity," NACLA Report on the Americas, vol. 46, no. 3 (Fall 2013) [text via ImmigrationProf Blog]

"Detention, Alternatives to Detention, and Deportation," Forced Migration Review, no. 44 (Sept. 2013) [open access text]
- Issue includes 36 articles addressing this theme.

Detention of a Stateless Refugee (ENS Blog, Sept. 2013) [text]

The Experiences of Irregular Maritime Arrivals Detained in Immigration Detention Facilities (University of New South Wales & Australian Survey Research Group, July 2013) [text]
- See also Research Methodology Addendum.

Researching Immigration Detention (Border Criminologies, Sept. 2013) [text]

Undocumented Migrants in Resistance against Detention: Comparative Observations on Germany and France, Working Paper, no. 8 (Refugee Law Initiative, Aug. 2013) [text]

UNHCR's Position on the Detention of Asylum-seekers in Malta (UNHCR, Sept. 2013) [text]
- See also related press release.

Tagged Publications. 

New Book Titles

FYI, please check out my Pinterest page for new books due out in October 2013. I've also added information about new titles to the book boards for Legal Texts, Sept. 2013 and Aug. 2013.

I have been using Pinterest for a year now to highlight published works in my Forced Migration Library.  I hope it's proving a useful resource for you!

Tagged Publications. 

64th Session of EXCOM

The 64th session of the Executive Committee of the High Commissioner's Programme (EXCOM) began this morning in Geneva and will continue through the end of the week.  As I noted in yesterday's post, the first day of meetings is devoted to the Syrian refugee crisis and how best to support host countries.  Discussions will close after the Tuesday morning session; general debate will open in the afternoon.

Here is the provisional agenda with annotations and the estimated schedule.  For the first time, portions of the meeting will be livestreamed.

Side events taking place this year include:
- Protection of Syrian Refugee Children
- The High Commissioner’s Global Initiative on Solutions for Somali Refugees
- The Nansen Initiative: Results Achieved and Activities Ahead
- Implementation of the Solutions Strategy for Afghan Refugees: Achievements and Challenges
- Thinking Outside the Camp: Urban Profiling and Assessment
- Assessing Credibility in Asylum Procedures

In addition, the Nansen Refugee Award ceremony will be held this evening, with the honors going to Sister Angélique Namaika.  (See also this profile.)

Plenary session documents are provided here.

Tagged Publications and Events & Opportunities. 

Regional Focus: Syria

Event:

Syria will be high on the agenda next week at the 64th meeting of the UNHCR Executive Committee.  The first two days will include sessions devoted to a "High-level Segment on Solidarity and Burden-sharing with Countries Hosting Syrian Refugees."  Here is an agenda for the segment, along with a concept paper and an outline of the HC's opening remarks.  Background documentation that has been made available includes a refugee fact sheet, funding updates for UNHCR and for all agencies, and a time line.  Also scheduled is a side event on "Protection of Syrian Refugee Children."

*Update: Two additional items have been posted today (30 Sept. 2013):
- Countries Hosting Syrian Refugees: Solidarity and Burden-sharing - Background Papers for the High Level Segment
- Solutions for Syrian Refugees

Opportunities:

UNHCR is recruiting applicants for a wide variety of positions to assist with the humanitarian response to the Syrian refugee crisis.  More information is available here.  The deadline for external applicants is 10 October 2013.

Publications:

Egyptian Coast Guard Fires on, Kills Syrian Refugees (The Asylumist, Sept. 2013) [text]

Getting Syrian Children Back to School: A Corporate Imperative (Brookings' Education+Development Blog, Sept. 2013) [text]

Iraq: The Impact of the Syria Crisis (IOM, Sept. 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]

Jordan: A Vulnerability Analysis Framework for Syrian Refugees in Jordan (ACAPS, Sept. 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]

Jordan's Za'atri Refugee Camp Takes off (UNHCR, Sept. 2013) [text]

No Welcome Mat for Syrians in Europe (IRIN, Sept. 2013) [text]

September Podcast: Educating Syrian Refugees, Service Delivery, MY World and Post-2015 (ODI, Sept. 2013) [access]

Syria: Overview of the Humanitarian Response (U.S. Congressional Research Service, Sept. 2013) [text via Refworld]

Syria in 6 Months’ Time: Why We Must Act Now to Fill the Aid Void (IDMC Blog, Sept. 2013) [text]

Tagged Publications and Events & Opportunities.  

Anniversary of Stateless Persons Convention

To commemorate the anniversary of the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons, I am reproducing the text of a UNHCR press release announcing the "inaugural winners of the UNHCR Award for Statelessness Research."  (Note: I inserted several hyperlinks below to direct readers to supplementary information.)

"In the undergraduate category, the winner is Amanda Cheong, whose thesis "Changing Conceptions of Citizenship Among Stateless Chinese-Bruneian Immigrants in Vancouver," was nominated by the Department of Sociology at the University of British Columbia in Canada. 

In the graduate category, the jury named two winners. The first is Eva Mrekajová, whose Master of Laws thesis on the "Naturalization of Stateless Persons" was nominated by the Department of International and European Law at Tilburg University. The second winner is Caroline McInerney, whose independent study paper entitled "Citizenship Laws of Madagascar: Future Challenges for a Developing Nation" was nominated by the University of Virginia School of Law in the United States. No prize in the doctoral category was awarded this year. 

UNHCR and Tilburg University in the Netherlands had invited academic institutions globally to nominate outstanding pieces of research at the undergraduate, graduate and doctoral levels in the field of statelessness. Fifteen papers were submitted. 

They were judged by a jury comprised of leading academics from around the world, working in the field of nationality and statelessness. The jury was co-chaired by UNHCR and the Statelessness Programme at Tilburg University. 

Each winner received a cash prize of €1,000. Their papers will be published in a special edition of the Tilburg Law Review. The winners will also be asked to present their research at the First Global Forum on Statelessness, which will be held in The Hague in September 2014, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the 1954 Statelessness Convention. 

UNHCR has a mandate to identify and protect stateless populations and to prevent and reduce statelessness. UNHCR's governing body, the Executive Committee, has requested the Office to undertake and share research on statelessness with academic institutions and governments, to promote understanding of the problem."

Additional details about the award winners are provided in this post on the Statelessness Programme's blog.

Tagged Publications and Events & Opportunities.  

Thematic Focus: Health

"Annual Research Review: Resilience and Mental Health in Children and Adolescents Living in Areas of Armed Conflict: A Systematic Review of Findings in Low- and Middle-income Countries," Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, vol. 54, no. 4 (April 2013) [free full-text]

Conducting Research on Mental Health with Refugees, Presentation at the Unity in Diversity Conference, 16-17 August 2013, Townsville, Australia [text]

Coordinated Primary Health Care for Refugees: A Best Practice Framework for Australia  (SAPCRU, Sept. 2013) [text]

"High Rate of Completion of Preventive Therapy for Latent Tuberculosis Infection among Asylum Seekers in a Swiss Canton," Swiss Medical Weekly, 143:w13860 (Sept. 2013) [open access text]

"Tuberculosis Case Finding Based on Symptom Screening among Immigrants, Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Rome," BMC Public Health, 13:872 (Sept. 2013) [open access text]

Tagged Publications. 

Thematic Focus: Climate Change/Environment

Upcoming event:

Climate Change-related Displacement: What Scope for Protection under Refugee and Human Rights Law?, London, 14 November 2013 [info]
 - Free seminar but registration required.

Publications:

"Brazil: Human Rights and Environmental Refugees," International Law: Revista Colombiana de Derecho Internacional, no. 22 (2013) [full-text]

Coalition Member Guest Post: Environmental Justice Foundation (UKCCMC, Sept. 2013) [text]

Environmental Change and Migration: What We Know, Policy Brief, no. 2 (MPI, Sept. 2013) [text]

Erosion littorale et migrations forcées de réfugiés environnementaux: L'exemple de Cotonou, Bénin, Paper presented at 8th IAG International Conference on Geomorphology, Paris, 27-31 August 2013 [text]

Neglected Displacement: Human Mobility in Pacific Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Adaptation Mechanisms (IDMC, Sept. 2013) [text via Refworld]

"¡La Protección Comienza en Casa pero no Termina Ahí! Las Dinámicas de las Obligaciones que Tienen los Estados de Proteger los Derechos Humanos de los Desplazados Ambientales," International Law: Revista Colombiana de Derecho Internacional, no. 22 (2013) [full-text]

Senegal: Climate Change vs. Development Policies (Thomson Reuters, Sept. 2013) [text]

Tagged Publications and Events & Opportunities.  

Regional Focus: Syria

Upcoming event:

Displacement from Syria: Putting the Common European Asylum System to the Test?, Oxford, 24 October 2013 [info]

Publications:

How the European Union is Failing Syria’s Refugees (MintPress, Sept. 2013) [text via Oppenheimer Chair]

Lebanon: Economic and Social Impact Assessment of the Syrian Conflict (World Bank, Sept. 2013) [text]
- See also related materials.

Protection of and Assistance to Internally Displaced Persons: Situation of Internally Displaced Persons in the Syrian Arab Republic, UN Doc. No. A/67/931 (UN General Assembly, July 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]
- See also related statement from the Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons.

Syria's Human Crisis: What is to be Done? (CSIS, Sept. 2013) [text]

"Syria’s Refugees: The Catastrophe," New York Review of Books, vol. 60, no. 15 (Oct. 2013) [full-text]

Resource:

Mass Information Toolkit (UNHCR) [access via ReliefWeb]
- Application to assist with providing information to Syrian refugees.

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

Thematic Focus: Statelessness

De Jure Statelessness in Serbia: A Critical Analysis of the Legal Framework with Regards to Combating Statelessness and the Protection of Stateless Persons, Thesis (University of Tromsø, May 2013) [text]

Detention of a Stateless Refugee (ENS Blog, Sept. 2013) [text]

Ivory Coast Set to Ratify Statelessness Treaty, 400,000 Children to Benefit (Thomson Reuters, Sept. 2013) [text]

The Poverty of Stateless People: How Do We Bridge the Gap between Need and Development Assistance? (DevLog@Bath, Sept. 2013) [text]

Q&A: Campaign against Statelessness Gains Ground (UNHCR, Sept. 2013) [text]

"Questioning De Facto Statelessness by Looking at De Facto Citizenship," Tilburg Law Review (Forthcoming 2014) [eprint via SSRN]

Romani Minorities Caught In-between: Impeded Access to Citizenship and De Facto Statelessness in the Post-Yugoslav Space (ENS Blog, Sept. 2013) [text]

Statelessness: Call for Referrals by Liverpool Law Clinic (Free Movement, Sept. 2013) [text]

The 'Withouts' of Kuwait: Nationality for Stateless Bidun Now (Amnesty International, Sept. 2013) [text]

Tagged Publications.