Global Trends
Refugees
A refugee is recognised under the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees as a person who is outside their country of origin, and;
“…owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion, is unwilling to avail themselves of the protection of that country”.
This definition was expanded in the Conventions’ 1967 Protocol and the 1969 OAU Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa to those who have fled war or other violence in their home country.
In 2006 there were approximately 10 million people around the world recognised as refugees under the 1951 UN Convention/1967 Protocol and the 1969 OAU Convention.
Throughout this website and other Refugee Realities communications however, when we refer to “refugees” we are actually including all people who are of concern to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), including refugees, internally displaced peoples, returnees, asylum seekers and stateless people. There were approximately 34 million persons of concern to the UNHCR in 2006.
Internally Displaced Persons
An Internally Displaced Person (IDP) is someone who has been displaced by war, conflict or persecution but is still located within their country of origin. IDPs are therefore not able to claim refugee status or be considered for permanent resettlement in another country. However they the UNHCR extends protection and/or assistance to IDPs. There were more than 14 million IDPs around the world in 2006.
Returnees
Returnees are refugees or internally displaced peoples who have returned to their place of origin during the calendar year. There were approximately 2.6 million returnees around the world in 2006.
Asylum seekers
An asylum seeker is someone who has applied for refugee status but whose decision is pending, or who is otherwise registered with the UNHCR as an asylum seeker. In 2006 there were approximately 750,000 registered asylum seekers globally.
There are more than 12,000 asylum seekers in Australia living on a bridging visa, many of whom are denied the right to work. More…
Stateless people
A stateless person is not considered to be a national by any State under the operation of its laws. There were over 5 million stateless people in 2006.
Protection
“Protection” is all activities aimed at ensuring full respect for the rights of the individual in accordance with the letter and the spirit of the relevant bodies of law, i.e. human rights law, international humanitarian law, and refugee law.
Non-derogable rights
Non-derogable rights are human rights that cannot, under any circumstances, be lawfully denied to any human being. An example of a non-derogable right is the right to life.
Derogable Rights
Derogable rights are human rights that may be curtailed in extreme circumstances such as war or conflict. An example of a derogable right is the right to freedom of movement.
