ESL Blogs

Are countries obligated to accept refugees?

We not only have a legal obligation to honor our commitments,

we have a moral obligation to provide the coverage

we promised to provide to these people.

Bob Ney

Once a person asked a question: ''why the European countries are asked to help the refugees..they are not obliged to help them...they only help them out of their civilized nature..isnt it?" 

To answer this question, we have to look up for key words, such as:

-          Refugee.

-          Obliged or Obligation to help.

-          Civilized nature

Go back to history, after World War II, when hundreds of thousands of refugees were displaced across Europe (and World itsef), The 1951 Refugee Convention (Convention and Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees) was created.

So, according to definitions of this Convention, refugee is: “A person who owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country; or who, not having a nationality and being outside the country of his former habitual residence as a result of such events, is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to return to it”.

Or simply

“a person who flees for refuge or safety, especially to a foreign country,as in time of political upheaval, war, etc”

Convention's mission and aim: "Since, by definition, refugees are not protected by their own governments, the international community (Countries, who have signed Convention) steps in to ensure they are safe and protected," and "refugees deserve, as a minimum, the same standards of treatment enjoyed by other foreign nationals in a given country and, in many cases, the same treatment as nationals,"

Rights granted by this Convention:

1. The right to not be sent back home into harm's way, except under extreme circumstances. 

2. The right to not be punished for illegally entering countries that signed on to the Convention and Protocol

3. The right to housing

4. The right to work

5. Access to education

6. Access to public assistance

7. Access to courts

8. The right to get identification and travel documents.

So, I think, this information is enough to answer question, if European countries are obligated to help refugees. 

Simple answer: Yes, but obligatory only for those who have signed Convention. To see the list of countries, who have signed Convention, click here.

And also, talking about 2nd part of question: "their civilizated nature",look for Gulf countries. 

Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman and the United Arab Emirates didn't sign Convention and Protocol, so technically they are not obligated to accept refugees. And they didn't, which is their right. They didn't want to show "Civilized Nature" due to some reasons.

This is example of Civilized Nature, and ask yourself, would European countries help if they didn't sign Convention and Protocol, or they would claim that it is their right (not to accept refugees)? 

*** all info used in this blog taken from: "Are countries obligated to take in refugees? In some cases, yes"  ***