Int’l Law – Organizations + Refugees Sources: - Many listed in the note Understanding the Law 1996 Dimensions of Law 2004

Nongovernmental Organizations What is an NGO? Human rights are monitored and advocated for by many NGOs globally Human rights violations are measured by three factors: Scope – nature or severity of abuse. This measure addresses the qualitative factor (whipping is less severe than public execution) Intensity – number of time the abuse has occurred within defined time. Regular occurrence vs. isolated incident? Quantitative measure. Range – size of the group whose rights are being violated – Larger the group, the worse the abuse

Amnesty International Amnesty International – works to uncover HR violations across the globe Uses aggressive letter writing campaigns and exposes violations to the UN General Assembly/ HR Committee – very effective! How do you think social media can influence or support NGO’s like Amnesty International? Puts a name/face to the victims – adds to effect and puts more pressure on governments that violate HR Can you name a few other NGOs that specifically deal with human rights? Safiya Hashi v. The State of Somalia What is Habeas Corpus? Look it up!!

International Migration/Movement Difficult to track sometimes… People leaving Greece… http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jan/19/young-talented-greek-generation-g-worlds-biggest-brain-drain People leaving Syria… http://data.unhcr.org/syrianrefugees/regional.php https://www.mercycorps.org/articles/iraq-jordan-lebanon-syria-turkey/quick-facts-what-you-need-know-about-syria-crisis Why do people leave? What to do with these people without passports, jobs, money? International Obligations?

Nationality The link between a person and his/her state – determines which state is responsible for which people (NOT citizenship) Canada owns you (is responsible for you)…and can protect you aboard if a HR violation occurs International law gives you the right to basic human rights globally – Canada can act if this doesn’t happen A country could split up, or nationality taken away due to serious crimes/treason Might also renounce nationality to avoid military service Stateless – meaning you cannot legally enter/leave a country – no one is responsible for you.. What are the implications of being stateless? UN Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness (1978) – sought to reduce this issue – default state would be that of birth Important to note that it is up to the state to determine criteria for nationality (Int’l Law insists on a link between granting nationality and the person receiving it)

Asylum This involves State B protecting nationals from State A because of fear of harm – People from State A would be seeking Political Asylum (must get to embassy, convince them to grant asylum, and leave through diplomatic channels) Not very likely – many complications… State A doesn’t have to let you leave, they just cant get you inside the embassy… Territorial Asylum – the offering of permanent settlement and granting nationality by one state to individuals/groups of another state Often the result of mass migration due to civil war/human rights violations Would citizens fleeing Syria (or Greece) meet this definition of Territorial Asylum? Potential issues of offering nationality to a large group?

Refugees A refugee is someone who is fleeing his/her country due to a “well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, or social/political group” National courts decide what a “well-founded fear of being persecuted” is What do you think it is? Countries can refuse entry to refugees at the boarder, but once a refugee is inside the country, the country must treat them as nationals and allow them to seek legal admission (Article 32 + 33 of the Convention Relating to the Status of refugees 1951) Important to note that not everyone “qualifies” as a refugee – they must seek immigration through normal means, go back to their country or seek help at relief camps (often set of by NGOs during mass migrations)

Refugees in Canada They have rights coming into Canada – The Charter of Rights/Freedoms in in effect for ALL people in Canada They can work and children can go to school while their application for refugee status is under review http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/refugees/outside/arriving-rights.asp Canadian Law has adopted the Convention 1951 in the Immigration Act and Charter

Take a look! Protecting refugees – UN Refugee Agency http://www.unhcr.org/3b779dfe2.html Chicago Tribune

Your turn! Difference between Nationality and Citizenship? What issues arise from mass migration? What is Canada doing for Syrian refugees? Pros and cons?

R v Hape – implications for human rights and the Charter?