The issue of the refugees

Festival d'Europa – draft proposals by the migration group at the RSCAS

The issue of the refugees

Recent and current refugee crisis s in the world; asylum laws in the EU; as a sub-theme of this broader issue, we have Asylum in Europe - History of the right of asylum and current European asylum policy.

This module is first meant to present refugee issue in a historical and essentialist perspective. It will be reminded how and why asylum has been a basic principle of humanity and states’ history. The second objective is to present the evolution of states’ response to the need of refuge from a historical / legal perspective. The 1951 Geneva convention was adopted as an harmonized response to the refugee crisis in Europe and, from the 60s it has been extended and strengthened to become a universal instrument of refugee protection. Yet, since the 90s, the more the world has been globalized, the more states have been willing to develop alternative notions to universal principles and go back to protecting neighbors and selecting refugees.

We will explain how the EU, through its member states, has interpreted the 1951 Geneva convention and then influenced an harmonized approach of asylum, and how UNHCR has tried to orientate these evolutions.

Languages: English and Italian

Delphine Perrin