Human Rights and Refugees : Problems Laws and Practices

Contents: Preface. 1. Introduction, 2. International human rights laws. 3. Determination of refugee status: analysis and applications. 4. International humanitarian assistance for refugees: a survey. 5. Indian position on legal status of refugees. 6. Humanitarian assitance for refugees in India. 7. Conclusion. Annexures. Bibliography. Index.

"One of the biggest political and human tragedies of this century has arisen in the shape of more than fifty million refugees and displaced persons in the world today. The impact of the problem is felt world-wide. A major portion of the time devoted by the Security Council of the United Nations in recent years has been concerned with various refugees generating conflicts in the world. Humanitarian Organisations are struggling to keep pace with the demands of new exodus, while governments around the world are becoming increasingly reluctant to offer refuge to these victims of violence. It is of course, true that violation of human rights is the major cause of refugee influx in the world today.

Recently, a number of questions have been raised regarding the effectiveness of the present international refugee law, especially the 1951 Refugee Convention. Should it be replaced by a new one? Is it justified to say that existing refugee law reaches a dead-end as human rights law because it collides with the Principle of national sovereignty? The book examines in detail all these questions taking into consideration the existing refugee laws and human rights laws. Besides, the study also concentrates on the present Indian practices of the international refugee laws with special reference to the Tibetans, Tamils, Chakmas and other refugee groups residing in various camps in India. " (jacket)