The International Refugee Crisis

There may be 20 million refugees around the world today. For many, their search for freedom ends in camps in countries of first asylum. There they wait for offers of permanent resettlement in the West. This book explores how two countries traditionally noted for their humanitarian treatment of refugees have responded to the refugee crisis of the 1980s and 90s, how they have recast their admission criteria, developed reception policies and constructed resettlement programmes.

This fact-filled resource helps readers understand the current turmoil and controversy surrounding the global refugee problem. Here, in one volume, can be found a thorough overview of the refugee crisis—from the early 1900s to the present day. The events that created refugee populations and the efforts of international agencies and governments to deal with the crisis, as well as the financial and legal constraints those organizations face, are all covered in detail. Biographical sketches of refugee activists and notable refugees are also included. A directory of international organizations and resettlement agencies and annotated lists of print and nonprint resources assist readers in further study efforts. The Global Refugee Crisis delivers solid, useful information that can serve as a foundation for decision-making, research, or simply enhanced understanding of this critical subject.

With more than 18 million refugees worldwide, the refugee problem has fostered an intense debate regarding what political changes are necessary in the international system to provide effective solutions in the 1990s and beyond. In the past, refugees have been perceived largely as a problem of international charity, but as the end of the Cold War triggers new refugee movements across the globe, governments are being forced to develop a more systematic approach to the refugee problem. Beyond Charity provides the first extensive overview of the world refugee crisis today, asserting that refugees raise not only humanitarian concerns but also issues of international peace and security. Gil Loescher argues persuasively that a central challenge in the post Cold-War era is to develop a comprehensive refugee policy that preserves the right of asylum while promoting greater political and diplomatic efforts to address the causes of flight. He presents the contemporary crisis in a historical framework and explores the changing role of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Loescher suggests short-term and long-term reforms that address both the current refugee crisis and its underlying causes. The book also details the ways governmental structures and international organizations could be strengthened to assume more effective assistance, protection, and political mediation functions. Beyond Charity helps frame the debate on the global refugee crisis and offers directions for more effective approaches to refugee problems at present and in the future.

This edited volume examines European approaches to migrants, European Union migration policies, and the EU-Turkey refugee agreement through macro-level and micro-level analysis. It analyzes issues related to migration in Turkey and Syria and specifically studies at the Syrian refugee crisis. The contributors explore the migration phenomenon through economic and judicial perspectives.

According to a UN tally, more than 1 million people fled violence and persecution in 2015. Of these, more than half were children. Thousands died along the way. The Syrian civil war as well as armed conflicts in Nigeria, Afghanistan, Yemen, Somalia, and the Central African Republic contributed to the continuing exodus of people into Europe and North America. Learn more about these modern mass exoduses, what is fueling them in the 21st century, how nations are addressing the crises, how refugees contribute to and strain communities, and what kinds of solutions could help. Along the way, you'll meet actual refugees and the people who are trying to help.

This book documents the current global refugee crisis and examines the interrelated factors of immigration enforcement, international human rights law, political violence, and refugee protection. There are two disparate components to the global refugee crisis: first, there are about 46 million refugees and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), most of whom are struggling to survive in the poorest and most violent countries in the world, and second, our interpretation of international human rights law allows this state of affairs to worsen. Refugee protection has been a longstanding policy that ostensibly protects victims of human rights violations from other countries. In actuality, protection is largely negated by systematic efforts by industrialized states to reduce the number of refugees arriving at the borders. This book provides a comprehensive examination of this worldwide problem and rejects the idea that the majority of asylum seekers abuse the system to gain entrance into the country.

How should we respond to the worst refugee crisis since the World War II? What are our duties towards refugees, and how should we distribute these duties among those at the receiving end of the refugee flow? What are the relevant political solutions? Are some states more responsible for creating the current refugee situation, and if so, should they also carry a larger burden on solving this situation? Is people smuggling always morally wrong? Are some groups, for example children, owed more than others, and should we thus take active measures to remove them from conflict zones? How are the existing refugee regimes, in Europe, North-America, or Australia, challenged by the current crisis? Are some of their measures more justified than others? Refugee Crisis: The Borders of Human Mobility discusses the various ethical dilemmas and potential political solutions to the ongoing refugee crisis, providing both theoretical and practical reflections on the current crisis, as well as the ways in which this crisis has been handled in public debate. The contributors to the volume include some of the most prominent political theorists and experts on the current refugee situation, as well as some of the upcoming young scholars working on the theme. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Global Ethics.