Legal Aspects Of Women As Particular Social Group

This article discusses the international response to the protection of women refugees and in particular considers the impact of feminist commentators and the women's human rights movement in forwarding this issue. The author considers the definition of refugee under the 1951 Convention, with particular emphasis on gender as constituting a social group. To illustrate, the author reviews leading Canadian, United States and Australian cases which have considered sex or gender alone, or with other characteristics, in defining social group. The author acknowledges that gender-specific claims are a recent phenomenon but argues that these claims are hindered by inconsistent interpretations of persecution under the Convention refugee definition. The author submits that broad international guidelines need to be developed for gendered claims, along the lines of the Supreme Court of Canada's decision in Ward. [Descriptors: Migration - Refugees and Immigration, International]