Refugee Survey Quarterly - current issue

Foreword

Chetail, V. — 2008-04-28

Introduction: UNHCR and the Global Cold War

Hanhimaki, J. M. — 2008-04-28

The Politics of Refugee Protection

Goodwin-Gill, G. S. — 2008-04-28

This article looks back to the 1920s, and tries to tease out the politics of refugee protection as it evolved in the practice of States and international organizations in a period of growing ideological divide. The question addressed is whether the politics of protection at any particular moment are humanitarian or whether they serve primarily other purposes, in which the refugee is merely instrumental. It is unrealistic to imagine that the problem of refugees can ever be entirely non-political. What the history of the 1920–55 period confirms is the continued vitality of self-interest as a motivating factor in the responses of States to refugee flows. The international refugee regime that emerged in the late 1940s and early 1950s defined refugees through the politics of denunciation in a persecution-oriented definition that continues to limit and confuse, not only at the international operations level, but also in national asylum procedures. In this context, the article concludes that the art for UNHCR is not to allow solutions or assistance to have priority over protection. For if it cannot provide protection, it will be judged a failure and accountable, and not merely excused because it tried hard in difficult political circumstances.

The Evolution of Humanitarian Action

Morris, N. — 2008-04-28

A brief review of overall trends in humanitarian action following the end of the Cold War is followed by examination of UNHCR's evolution from a narrowly focused, non-operational organization to one with a wide field presence and whose concerns are not limited to refugees. Three changes are highlighted: the increase in the range of UNHCR's interlocutors; the shift from never questioning causes to an explicit concern with them; and the impact of the field presence. The conclusion suggests that humanitarian action that is not accompanied by political action to address causes may eventually face insurmountable problems, and that while UNHCR will continue operate in unstable environments and for mixed caseloads, its unique responsibility for refugees must override wider interests and concerns.

Some International Protection Issues Arising During the 1970s and 1980s with Particular Reference to the Role of the UNHCR Executive Committee

Jackson, I. C. — 2008-04-28

Following a brief historical summary regarding the origins of the UNHCR of Executive Committee (ExCom) and its concern with international protection matters this article describes the action of ExCom in regard to International Protection during the 1970s and 1980s. During this period efforts were undertaken by UNHCR not only to address current protection problems but also to ensure that the principles of international protection were clarified, rendered more articulate and, when necessary, further developed. In carrying out these tasks UNHCR was greatly assisted by ExCom, whose Conclusions on international protection provided an important conceptual framework for UNHCR's action. The article concludes that it would not be correct to regard the action of the international community in adopting the United Nations refugee instruments and in establishing the Office of UNHCR as primarily related to the "Cold War". Rather it was comparable to the action taken by the international community under the League of Nations to address the humanitarian needs of successive groups of refugees prior to the Second World War.

UNHCR Operations in Pakistan in the Early 1980s

Walzer, G. — 2008-04-28

The aim of this article is to describe the largest and longest operation carried out by the UNHCR in providing protection and assistance to refugees from April 1979, when the Government of Pakistan requested UNHCR to urgently help deal with the rising influx of Afghan asylum-seekers. This refugee crisis was but one consequence of the engagement of the superpowers in this strategically significant part of the world. The analysis focuses on three main factors: the magnitude of the refugee crisis, the complexity of the logistics, and the nature of the security situation. The challenge facing the Government of Pakistan, as well as the international community, was an enormous one. UNHCR, in addition to its mandated protection role, assumed the overall coordination of the international relief effort, including the mobilization of resources, as well as being responsible for the international procurement of relief supplies, material and equipment. This task was complicated by the security situation and the fact that local population was outnumbered by the refugees with whom it had to share already meagre resources.

UNHCR and the Afghan Refugees in the Early 1980s: Between Humanitarian Action and Cold War Politics

Schoch, R. — 2008-04-28

This article examines the UNHCR operation in Pakistan during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan as a case study for the tension between UNHCR's strictly humanitarian mandate and the diverging interests of states. After situating the Afghan refugee crisis in the broader historical context of the Cold War, it analyses a number of documents from the UNHCR archives with a focus on the humanitarian principles that guide UNHCR's work on the one hand, and the influence of states and their political, economic, or military objectives on the UNHCR's operation on the other. It concludes that UNHCR was aware of the negative impact of states’ policies and actions on the humanitarian nature of its operation. However, due to the power difference between UNHCR and its members states as well as states hosting its operations, UNHCR had to accept these negative effects in order to assure minimum assistance and protection for the Afghan refugees in need.

Afghan Migratory Strategies and the Three Solutions to the Refugee Problem

Monsutti, A. — 2008-04-28

The present article proposes three main theses: the normality of movements and the prior existence of transnational networks in and around Afghanistan; the resilience and inventiveness of the Afghan population, especially illustrated by the remittance system; the relevance of migratory movements and of transnational networks for the reconstruction of the country and the stability of the region. In contrast to the migratory strategies developed by the refugees, the three solutions to the problem of the refugees promoted by the UNHCR (voluntary repatriation in the country of origin; integration in the host country; resettlement in a third country) are based on the idea that solutions are found when movements stop. But mobility may be seen as a key livelihood strategy. A more comprehensive solution is needed, which takes into account the full range of strategies and responses developed by the Afghan population, including the back-and-forth movements between Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran and beyond.

Anatomy of A Crisis: Relations Between the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the Federal Republic of Germany from the 1970s to the 1980s

Milzow, K. — 2008-04-28

This analysis takes for its starting point an internal United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) memorandum, which criticized West German asylum practices in rather strong terms, leaked, and generated considerable controversy in the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG), internationally and within UNHCR. The article inscribes these events within the broader evolution of the relationship between UNHCR and the FRG to present them as one of several initiatives envisaged within the refugee agency in order to bend West Germany's increasingly restrictive stance on asylum issues. In this sense, UNHCR's attempts to use confrontation as a diplomatic tool shed light on an international organization's avenues for influence and their limits. Tracing the emergence of the UNHCR's chosen course of action and attempting to assess its repercussions, the study emphasizes the interaction between various members of UNHCR staff in the organization's branch office in Bonn and its headquarters in Geneva, as well as between political factions within the FRG. Calling to mind that neither UNHCR nor the FRG are unitary actors, this opens the way for an analysis of the role individual agency may play within larger collective actors.

"Protection is the Art of Possible": Relations Between UNHCR and the United States in the Early 1980s -- The Case of Displaced Salvadorans

Elie, J. B. — 2008-04-28

UNHCR is often depicted as an agency highly influenced by the United States and the West during the Cold War. On the other hand, authors have insisted on the relative gradual emancipation process from great powers’ control experienced by UNHCR since 1951. In this context, this article asks how far the UN Refugee Agency could go in "criticizing" the United States or signaling a disapproval of US policies when warranted. What was the Agency's margin of action? To address these questions on the basis of recently declassified UNHCR documents, this article focuses on the case of displaced Salvadorans in the US and the American policy of deporting them back to their country of origin. Protection being the "art of possible", it is shown that UNHCR developed strategies designed to gather information on the plight of displaced Salvadorans and press the Reagan Administration on this issue. While the UN Refugee agency was obviously not in a position to coerce the US Government, it nevertheless did all it could to fulfill its humanitarian mandate, in a clear Cold War context.

Orderly Departure from Vietnam: Cold War Anomaly or Humanitarian Innovation?

Kumin, J. — 2008-04-28

In May 1979, UNHCR and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam signed a Memorandum of Understanding establishing a program for legal emigration from Vietnam, known as the Orderly Departure Program, or ODP. The ODP was intended to make it possible for persons wishing to leave Vietnam to do so in a safe and orderly manner, rather than having to join the ranks of the Vietnamese boat people. It is the only time UNHCR has extended its assistance on a large scale to help persons to leave their country of origin. Well over half a million people emigrated from Vietnam under the auspices of the program. The existence of the ODP made it possible for the international community to reach consensus on how to tackle problems relating to Vietnamese refugees and asylum-seekers at two major conferences, once in 1979 and another in 1987. This article explores the origins of the program in the context of the Cold War and the aftermath of the American withdrawal from Vietnam, attitudes within UNHCR to the program, and the contribution the ODP made to resolving the Vietnamese refugee crisis.

Research Access for 1971-84 Archival Records at UNHCR

McDonald, L. — 2008-04-28

Selection of Documents from UNHCR Archives

2008-04-28

The "UNHCR and the Global Cold War" project endeavored to describe, preserve and catalog the original records created by UNHCR field and headquarters operations between 1971 and 1984. The aim was to facilitate the production and dissemination of this UN Agency's institutional memory by making these tools available to UNHCR staff and external researchers. In the same spirit, the research team has selected a few documents that exemplify the richness of the "UNHCR Fonds 11 Series 2, Classified Subject Files 1971–1984". The first document is a mission report written by Sergio Vieira de Mello when he acted as UNHCR Regional Representative in South America. It is a good example of the kind of long and detailed memorandum one can find in the UNHCR Archives. The following documents on Afghan refugees, the "Toscani Report" and Displaced Salvadorans illustrate the articles written by the team of researchers from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies. Finally, the last document on the Orderly Departure Programme from Vietnam provides additional information on this very specific aspect of UNHCR activities during the 1970s and 1980s and thus illustrates Judith Kumin's article.

M.-C. CALOZ-TSCHOPP and P. DASEN (eds.), Mondialisation, migration et droits de l'homme: un nouveau paradigme pour la recherche et la citoyennete/Globalization, migration and human rights: a new paradigm for research and citizenship (Vol. I) * V. CHETAIL (ed.), Mondialisation, migration et droits de l'homme: le droit international en question/Globalization, migration and human rights: international law under review, (Vol. II)

Le Diraison, F. — 2008-04-28

SYLVIE SAROLEA, Droits de l'homme et migrations: de la protection du migrant aux droits de la personne migrante

Giacca, G. — 2008-04-28