HUJI2021/22

International Refugee Law explores a major area of public international law that regulates a (limited) exception to the principles of state sovereignty and migration control. The 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees (the 1951 Geneva Convention) concerns the protection of persons who have crossed an international border and who are outside their state of origin owing to well-founded fear of persecution in that state for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion. Global debates continue regarding the nature of the protection that refugees should be granted, the role of the international community, and the obligations of states of asylum. The course will provide students with a critical understanding of the international regime of refugee protection by highlighting its virtues and shortcomings. It explores the history, structure, and aims of the 1951 Geneva Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. Subsequently, the module considers criteria for the attainment (‘inclusion’), exclusion from, and cessation of refugee status; the non-refoulement principle; regional (complementary and subsidiary) protection regimes; challenges arising in the context of displacement from conflict; and the treatment of asylum-seekers in Israel.

SEMINARS/MODULE STRUCTURE
This intensive module is taught in five seminars (29/12/2021 – 6/1/2022).
1. The global refugee protection framework and the refugee definition
2. Exclusion from and cessation of refugee status
3. Non-refoulement and access to protection
4. Regional protection regimes and displacement from conflict
5. Asylum-seekers in Israel: a case-study