Human rights
British minister questions UN refugee convention
Suella Braverman, Home Secretary of Great Britain, is taking a tough line against migrants. photo
© Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire/dpa
Suella Braverman takes a tough line on migration issues. Now the British Home Secretary is commenting on a decades-old legal document from the United Nations – the UNHCR reacts promptly.
Braverman said while visiting the American Enterprise Institute: “There are large parts of the world where it is extremely difficult to be gay or a woman.” Where individuals are being persecuted, it is right to give them protection. “But we will not be able to maintain an asylum system if it is enough for you to be gay or a woman and fear discrimination in your country of origin to be entitled to protection.”
UNHCR: “There is no need for reform”
The Geneva Refugee Convention of 1951 is a cornerstone of humanitarian international cooperation. It guarantees admission to people who are being persecuted in their country because of their religion or political beliefs. People must not be sent back to places where their lives or freedom are threatened.
The UNHCR opposed Braverman’s call, saying: “There is no need for reform or a more restrictive interpretation, but for a stronger and more consistent implementation of the Convention and its fundamental principle of responsibility sharing.” The refugee agency recognizes “the complex challenges posed by irregular movements of refugees,” which often take place together with migrants who are traveling for other reasons. But the Refugee Convention remains as relevant as it was when it was adopted, said a UNHCR statement.
Critics speak of abolishing the right to asylum
Braverman takes a tough line against migrants. A new British law, for example, makes it possible to immediately detain migrants who cross the English Channel to the British island in small boats. People should be deported to their home country or a third country without the opportunity to apply for asylum. Critics speak of an abolition of the right to asylum.
According to the government’s wishes, migrants should be able to be sent to Rwanda, among other places, regardless of their origin. However, an agreement that has already been concluded with the East African country is on hold due to a legal dispute.