Crossing borders for protection: The relationship between an internationally displaced person and their host State under international law

Abstract

This Paper seeks to establish what duties are owed to an asylum-seeker by his or her host State under international law. The Paper explains how an individual can be recognised as a genuine refugee, as opposed to an asylum-seeker and what exactly this means under the relevant international law instruments. It analyses what responsibilities and duties are owed to refugees by their host State and when these can be revoked.

Focusing on the large influx of displaced people from Syria who have come into Europe recently, the Paper concludes that the majority of Syrians would not meet the requirements for recognition as a genuine refugee. However, while the instruments do not place binding duties on States to offer protection to displaced persons, a number – for example, Geneva Convention IV and Additional Protocol I, Human Rights instruments and the responsibility to protect – do place discretionary duties.

In the past, the EU – mainly through the Courts – has shown a willingness to be bound by these discretionary duties. Whether this will continue in regards to the Syrian asylum-seekers remains unclear at time of writing. The Paper canvases a number of alternative ways for Europe to approach the Refugee Crisis.