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Introduction

from ETHICAL ISSUES

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 March 2012

Edited by
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Summary

‘Refugee’, the Concise Oxford English Dictionary tells us, is ‘a person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster’. Thus, even this simple dictionary definition makes ‘refugee’ a person living on the edge of human existence and at the mercy and will of ‘others’ (i.e. the willing and, most of the time, unwilling, even hostile ‘host-states’). And, the definition becomes complex and varied if we move through various international instruments that defined ‘refugee’ since the days of the League of Nations and the definition provided by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

Pooja Ahluwalia's ‘Ethical Origins of Refugee Rights’ thoroughly deals with these definitions, especially with the later ones developed by the UNHCR and other organizations under the UN. Although the UNHCR definition is seen by critics as ‘too narrow’, as it does not include all the reasons that clearly inform us why someone might actually become a refugee, it is the world's largest refugee rehabilitation organization that is striving to protect refugee rights since its inception in 1950.

Ahluwalia meticulously follows the evolution of the discourse of definition provided by the UNHCR since the 1951 Convention and the subsequent development of another crucial category of Displaced Persons. This thorough and meticulous nature of the article makes it ‘a must’ for all who care for refugee rights.

Type
Chapter
Information
The Fleeing People of South Asia
Selections from Refugee Watch
, pp. 3 - 5
Publisher: Anthem Press
Print publication year: 2009

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  • Introduction
  • Edited by Sibaji Basu
  • Book: The Fleeing People of South Asia
  • Online publication: 05 March 2012
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.7135/UPO9781843317784.003
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  • Introduction
  • Edited by Sibaji Basu
  • Book: The Fleeing People of South Asia
  • Online publication: 05 March 2012
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.7135/UPO9781843317784.003
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Introduction
  • Edited by Sibaji Basu
  • Book: The Fleeing People of South Asia
  • Online publication: 05 March 2012
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.7135/UPO9781843317784.003
Available formats
×