A number of international instruments establish and define basic standards for the treatment of refugees. The most important are the 1951 UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees and customary international law - customary norms apply to all States irrespective of whether they are a party to relevant treaties or not.
Who is a refugee?
According to the 1951 Convention, a refugee is a person who:
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is outside his or her country of nationality or habitual residence;
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has a well-founded fear of persecution because of his or her race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion;
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and is unable or unwilling to avail himself or herself of the protection of that country, or to return there, for fear of persecution.
Rights under human rights law
Asylum seekers and refugees are entitled to all the rights and fundamental freedoms that are spelled out in international human rights instruments. Additionally, refugees are entitled to the specific rights related to their status as refugees under the UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its Protocol and customary international law.
The CRC
The Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which nearly every State in the world is a party, applies to all children without discrimination, including child refugees and asylum-seekers. Article 22 of the Convention addresses the rights of refugee children and children seeking asylum. It stipulates that every child seeking refugee status has a right to protection and humanitarian assistance in the enjoyment of the rights set forth in that Convention and in others to which the State is a party.
The principle of non-refoulement
The fundamental principle of refugee law, the principle of non-refoulement, refers to a refugee’s right to be protected against forcible return, or refoulement. It puts an obligation on States not to return a refugee to “the frontiers of territories where his life or freedom would be threatened on account of his race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion.” (article 33(1) of the UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees).
The Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment also provides for protection from refoulement, or forced return, to situations where there is a significant risk of torture. The non-refoulement provision of the Convention against Torture is absolute, unlike the non-refoulement provision of the Refugee Convention, which requires that protection be linked to a fear of persecution because of a person’s race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion.
It is widely accepted that the prohibition of refoulement is part of customary international law. This means that even States that are not party to the Refugee Convention must respect the principle of non-refoulement.
Refugees in host countries: the case of Syria
In the context of the refugee movement in the Middle East, largely originating from Syria, hundreds of thousands of refugees have travelled to Iraq, Lebanon and Jordan. These countries have not ratified the UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. Refugees are therefore primarily addressed through their laws on foreigners and immigrants.
As a result, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq have taken measures to limit the entry of refugees through:
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Tighten border controls;
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Constant changes in the documentary requirements for entry or admission;
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Burdensome visa or permit fees or other requirements; and
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Detention of refugees for lack of status.
Turkey, in contrast, has been a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention since 1962, although it has applied the Convention’s geographic restrictions and recognises only refugees from Europe. Turkey implemented a temporary protection policy towards refugees from Syria almost immediately at the start of the crisis and in April 2014, adopted a new law which codified refugee protection, temporary protection, and asylum provisions to govern refugees of all national origins.