Women's Human Rights Resources Database

This brief essay addresses the debate over whether victims of domestic violence should be able to claim refugee status. The author notes that the greatest challenge in advancing this type of refugee claim is that domestic violence is private in nature and argues that refugee advocates have failed to clearly articulate the role of the state within domestic violence. The essay examines the particular elements of the refugee definition which are of greatest issue for those seeking refugee status due to domestic violence. In conclusion the author states that there is a need to shift the focus in cases of domestic violence towards the role of the state which will constitute a move beyond simply examining the gender dimensions of the problem. [Descriptors: Migration - Refugees and Immigration, Violence Against Women, International]

The article focuses on the international legal definition of a well-founded fear of persecution. The article surveys the interpretation of this element of the refugee definition within domestic courts, particularly those in Canada. The author argues that the traditional objective test often fails to incorporate the nature of a well-founded fear for women refugee claimants who have been victims of a sexual assault. The second part of the article focuses on the means for establishing and assessing the appropriate threshold of a well-founded fear. The author argues that it is appropriate to consider the claimant's own credibility and her particular circumstances in making this assessment. [Descriptors: Migration - Refugees and Immigration, Canada]

This article discusses the impact of the safe third country agreement between Canada and the United States which came into effect in 2004. The paper argues that this agreement will prevent Canada from fully protecting women refugees' claims of gender-based persecution. The article begins by reviewing the substance of the Agreement of Canada and the Government of the United States of America for Cooperation in the Examination of Refugee Status Claims from Nations of Third Countries. The article then highlights some of the challenges facing female refugees and why they may prefer to make asylum claims in Canada. The third part of the article contains a detailed assessment of the procedural and jurisprudential elements of the US asylum system to demonstrate the barriers facing women attempting to put forward a claim for asylum under gender-based persecution. [Descriptors: Migration - Refugees and Immigration, Canada]

This article examines access to healthcare services for pregnant migrant women. The authors conducted a study consisting of semi-structured interviews with 25 migrant women from Eastern Europe, Africa, Brazil, and Portugal. Participants were asked questions about their experiences with pregnancy and post-partum care, family planning and contraception, and any other particular barriers they faced. The authors identify barriers and hardships these migrant women faced in their pregnancies, including: language barriers, cultural differences, poverty, limited access to pre-natal care and healthcare facilities, and the daily stress of migrant life. The authors discuss the discrepancies in the experiences of women from different countries, and those with different socio-economic statuses and educational backgrounds. The article includes recommendations to better address the needs of pregnant migrant women and fostering stronger, more communicative relationships with these women over the course of their pregnancies.

This article discusses both the relationship and the tension between international human rights law and refugee law. The author specifically focuses on the expansion of refugee law under the human rights paradigm which has resulted in the development of gender asylum law. The article examines three issue areas which concern the intersection of gender, refugee law, and the human rights agenda: rape and sexual violence; female genital surgery; and family violence. The main argument is that refugee law needs to be transformative in its interpretations in order to fully recognize the reality of women's experiences. The article looks towards further developments in refugee law, such as the inclusion of economic and social rights in refugee claims and the challenges of addressing cultural relativism. [Descriptors: Migration - Refugees and Immigration, International]

The author summarizes EU anti-trafficking policies between 1996 and 2006, particularly focusing on the Framework Decision on combating trafficking in human beings and the Directive on the short-term residence permit for victims of trafficking.  The Framework Decision only moderately harmonized anti-trafficking efforts, leaving member counties to independently decide on the priority of enforcement, and define specifics of sexual morality, permissible migration, labour standards, and prostitution policies. The author describes the Directive as viewing victims suspiciously and using victims simply as a source of information regarding other criminal activity. The Action Plan adopted in 2005 represents some steps forward by recognizing the need for a human rights perspective, addressing the gender-based causes of trafficking, and mentioning the prospect of reducing the demand for trafficking. 

This research paper focuses on the role of international legislation in combatting the crime of women trafficking and reducing its effects. The article provides an in-depth examination of the situation in Lebanon given its significant records of human trafficking. The author conducts this by outlining the various forms and facilitations of women trafficking and suggesting solutions for Lebanese legislation that would also be compatible with international legislation. Some of these suggestions include developing an effective national system capable of investigating the crime, enacting regulations to compensate for damages suffered by victims, implementing victim protection programs, enhancing international cooperation to unify efforts to combat women trafficking, and encouraging Member States of the United Nations to submit annual reports outlining the efforts and actions taken to address human trafficking.

This article begins with a review of the historical development of Canada's Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) guidelines on gender-related persecution which were adopted in 1993. The author discusses the rationale behind the adoption of the guidelines, namely the recognition that many women are persecuted solely on the basis of their sex. The author explains how the IRB implemented the guidelines and how the Canadian courts have interpreted and endorsed the guidelines, such that gender is now considered as a basis of "particular social group" for the purposes of the 1951 Refugee Convention. To illustrate the development of the "particular social group" category, the author examines the Ward decision which defines persecution, sets forth the three-pronged test for determination of membership in a particular social group and clearly states that gender may constitute the basis of particular social group within the meaning of the 1951 Convention definition of refugee. [Descriptors: Migration - Refugees and Immigration, Canada]

This article examines the prevalence of gender-related persecution and the challenges for women in securing refugee status under the social group ground of the Refugee Convention. The author begins with an overview of the Refugee Convention and notes how the specific drafting of the Convention excludes women. The article proceeds to examine developments in case law at both the international and domestic level including cases from the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada. The author concludes with the necessity to focus on improvements to the application of the existing refugee law framework in order to account for gender-related persecution in refugee claims. [Descriptors: Migration - Refugees and Immigration, International]

This article focuses on the extent to which gender constitutes a key determinant in generating refugee flows and providing humanitarian assistance. The author begins by noting that although women constitute the majority of the refugee population, they are a comparatively small number of refugee claimants in receiving states. The article proceeds to review the international legal regime and its slow incorporation of the specific issues facing women within refugee law. The article then proceeds to review two initiatives in Canada which attempt to account for the gender discrimination faced by women in advancing their refugee claims: the Guidelines on Gender-Related Persecution and the Women-at-Risk program. The author concludes by noting that although both of these programs have brought some benefits for women, women refugee claimants remain vulnerable to violations of their rights. [Descriptors: Migration - Refugees and Immigration, International, Canada]

This article examines the mail order bride industry in the US through the lens of international human rights law. It notes that mail order bride companies are often front organizations for trafficking women into involuntary sex work or domestic service; given the violations against women's human rights, the author argues that the international community is obligated to regulate or eradicate it. Brocato first looks at the industry and evaluates it within the international human rights framework. She then discusses recent US legislation relating to the industry and ends with a series of strategies to address this phenomenon. [Descriptors: Migration - Trafficking, International]

This online article assesses Canada's Live-in Caregiver Program and the impact on the human rights of women migrants who participate in the program. It outlines the structure and requirements of the program, and examines the position of supporters and critics. The author acknowledges that the program may be beneficial for some women immigrants, but questions "whether it is acceptable for Canada to lower the standard of human rights for immigrant workers simply because they are being provided with an opportunity that is potentially beneficial to them". In the end, she recommends a re-evaluation of the program in order to ensure that the human rights of immigrant women workers are better protected. [Descriptors: Migration - Labour Migration, Canada]

This article seeks to frame the precarity of migrant labour in a broader historical and geographical perspective that goes beyond a mere economistic and gender-neutral approach. Syrian refugee women are often violently exploited for their lack of socio-legal status and lack of freedom of movement, but their lives remain predominantly invisible. Low quality of work-life and precarious working conditions receive little media attention but are the reality for many Syrian migrants who are subject to oppressive labour practices. Forced labour has largely permeated the labour markets in the Middle East, while regulated labour has become the exception. The author highlights the importance of recognizing specific gendered risks in post-conflict environment analysis and that forced labour is not a static or singular notion but is experienced in diverse ways. Without such recognition, experiences are undocumented and are subsequently left out of the academic discourse.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) defines who is a Palestinian refugee and which refugees are entitled to UN assistance. UNRWA utilizes a patrilineal model which leaves refugee women who marry non-refugee men ineligible for many benefits and disenfranchises their children. This study takes a critical look at the effects of this model and compares it to the legal norms on gender discrimination set out in conventions and other international instruments, including those established by the UN itself. [Descriptors: Migration - Refugees and Immigration, International]

This article asserts that the narrow portrayal of trafficking denies the complexity of the problem by focusing mainly on women and children recruited for the purpose of prostitution. The author provides an overview of the experiences of women who are trafficked or forced into labor/slavery-like practices. She then surveys international anti-trafficking law and proposed changes and ends by analyzing the interaction between international anti-trafficking law, domestic immigration policies and anti-prostitution laws. The analysis demonstrates that the capacity of international law to combat trafficking and forced labor/slavery-like practices turns on its ability to respond to the complexities of the range of circumstances that characterize experiences faced by victims. [Descriptors: Migration - Trafficking, International]

The author looks at current international approaches to female trafficking and posits its reconceptualization as a crime against humanity. She begins by providing an overview of the debate underlying the definition of trafficking women and discusses the nature of female trafficking. After an examination of current international law against female trafficking, she posits that individual state strategies remain uncoordinated and ineffective due to the broad discretion given to states under international law to implement domestic policy on prostitution and immigration. She argues that reconceptualizing female trafficking as a crime against humanity, as the International Criminal Court statute provides, creates a uniform basis from which female trafficking can be more effectively combated. [Descriptors: Migration - Trafficking, International]

This article deals with parents who arrive in the U.S. claiming refugee status on the basis of fears of female genital mutilation (FGM) of their daughters. While a woman who fears FGM herself may likely qualify for asylum, the legal status of the parents seeking asylum on this basis has not been treated consistently by the courts. At the root of this inconsistency is the reliance by some U.S. courts on the fact derivative status is only offered to spouses and children of asylees, not the parents. Observers have called for an amendment in the case of parents who fear FGM for their daughters. The article points out that if decisions were made in accordance with the 1951 United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, parents would be granted asylum. It calls for the U.S. to consistently decide these cases correctly, as is done in other Commonwealth countries, like Canada, the UK and Australia. Melanie A Conroy, Refugees Themselves: The Asylum Case for Parents of Children at Risk of Female Genital Mutilation (2008) 22:1 Harv Hum Rts J 109.

This article examines the trafficking of women and girls in Central and Eastern European countries. Grounding his approach in women's human rights, the author analyzes some of the causal factors of trafficking in this region against the backdrop of dramatic political and economic change. He ends with a discussion of international legislation concerning trafficking, and suggests that the law should develop to proactively enable women and promote their rights rather than focus solely on protection. In order for such a development, he notes that what is needed is a gendered analysis of the new economic and social structures in CEE that addresses the underlying secondary position of women. [Descriptors: Migration - Trafficking, International - Europe]

The authors of this article argue for a human rights approach to refugee law in Canada in order to encourage consistent decisions on refugee claims. The article begins with a review of Canadian jurisprudence which focuses on definitions of particular social groups. The authors then move to consider different types of groups, particularly women, and how their claims of persecution have been assessed under Canadian law. The authors argue that a human rights approach to these cases would lead to better protection of women claimants, particularly in cases of domestic violence. [Descriptors: Migration - Refugees and Immigration, Canada]

In the case of Re Kasinga (1996) Fauziya Kasinga claimed the need for asylum to avoid the practice of female genital mutilation and was granted refugee status by the U.S. Board of Immigration Appeals. This article discusses the implications of this case for other gender-related asylum claims based on harmful traditional practices and/or violations of the right to bodily and sexual integrity. New definitions and future directions for political asylum and international human rights law are proposed. While Re Kasinga directly addressed political asylum, this remedy is available only to a small percentage of the women who are faced with sexual violence in their daily lives. This article moves from the focused examination of political asylum to broader conclusions on the international women's rights movement and recommends future directions for the treatment of such violence under international law. [Descriptors: Migration - Refugees and Immigration, International]

This article discusses the need for women's participation in peace processes in order to eliminate trafficking. It begins with an analysis of UN Security Council Resolution 1325. The authors discuss the disparate effect of armed conflict on women and children and the role that domestic and foreign militaries play in perpetuating trafficking in conflict situations. They also examine the maintenance of the trafficking industry in post-conflict times and the complicity of military and UN peacekeeping bodies. They argue that excluding women from peace processes sustains trafficking as peace accords and post-conflict laws grant immunity to those who traffick and sexually exploit women. They argue that it is therefore essential for women's participation in peace processes to address the gender crimes committed during war-time. They end by discussing how growing militarization of the world and the War on Terror have perpetuated trafficking beyond typical armed conflict situations. [Descriptors: Migration - Trafficking, International]

This article examines the international economic conditions that sustain sex trafficking. The author begins by conceptualizing the illegal sex industry as an international business that seeks to minimize costs and maximize profits. She looks at the development of the illegal sex industry and the international legal framework used to approach prostitution and trafficking as well as the strategies of individual states. Her focus is an analysis of how the economic market drives the illegal sex industry by allowing traffickers and international criminal organizations to take advantage of the discrepancies between international and domestic laws. In order to eliminate trafficking, she argues that there is a need for a consistent and uniform agreement at an international level to stop the economic profitability of and demand for illegal sex. [Descriptors: Migration - Trafficking, International]

This article focuses on the process by which guidelines on interpreting refugee law with regard to gender have developed. The focus is upon the means of communication between states, individuals, international groups and non-governmental organizations which have facilitated the development of guidelines recognizing gender-based persecution as a valid ground for claiming asylum. The second part of the article discusses how this process leads to culturally-biased norms and the general considerations of cultural relativism and women's rights. In conclusion the article emphasizes the importance of characterizing the persecution of female refugee in a way that reflects their own experiences. [Migration - Refugees and Immigration, International]

Using refugee camps in Guinea in 2002 as a case study, the author discusses how refugee women are frequently subject to sexual violence and sexual exploitation whiling lacking means to address these fundamental rights violations. It was found that the operation and structure of the Guinean refugee camps systematically disadvantaged women, made them dependent on men for assistance, and left them vulnerable to sexual violence. Although various governmental and non-governmental organizations worked together to fulfill state-like functions in the Guinean refugee camps, they did not provide an effective safeguard against violations of human rights. Barriers to effective rights-based refuge included lack of enforcement of laws and policies designed to protect women, limited access to justice, and ineffective accountability measures. The author argues that the protection of womens human rights must be a priority and advocates for the implementation of an accessible system of accountability for refugee women. Alice Farmer, Refugee Responses, State-Like Behavior, and Accountability for Human Rights Violations: A Case Study of Sexual Violence in Guinea's Refugee Camps (2006) 9 Yale Human Rts & Dev LJ 44.