top of page
Search
Human Rights Research Center
Aug 75 min read

The Plight of Asylum Seekers: Humanity vs Legality

August 7, 2024



In today’s conflict-ridden world, many countries are experiencing a growing influx of refugees and migrants. These refugees and migrants flee from horrific conditions that have a significant impact on their physical health, social behavior, and emotional well-being, with numerous reports of trauma and other mental health issues. However, instead of being given haven, they are often treated as invaders, denied basic human rights, and legally restricted from restarting their lives in another country.


The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported a record displacement of 114 million people, the highest single-year increase due to deadly conflicts worldwide[1]. As stated in our publication on the Cyprus refugee crisis, migrant influxes don’t exist in a vacuum, but are part of a domino effect triggered by political unrest, conflicts in neighboring states, or their inability to accept refugees.[2] This was further exacerbated by the pandemic and the closure of borders, forcing refugees to travel via dangerous routes to countries with fewer restrictions. For instance, post-pandemic, South Korea saw a sharp decline in the number of North Korean refugees due to travel restrictions in China, where most refugees cross the border before traveling to South Korea. South Korea grants North Korean defectors immediate citizenship and asylum, but heightened tensions and border surveillance force many refugees to stay in third countries where they face discrimination, unemployment, and language barriers.


This situation has created a human rights crisis as China forcibly repatriates refugees back to North Korea.[3] This move came after both countries began talks to strengthen their bilateral relations after China’s earlier support for UN sanctions against North Korea strained their relationship. Human Rights Watch confirmed that more than 670 North Koreans have been forcibly returned since Pyongyang closed its northern border in 2020 at the height of the pandemic.[4] These post-pandemic movements and trade restrictions have worsened the humanitarian crisis in the country, with a shoot-on-sight order given to guards in North Korea, leaving potential refugees in danger of adopting extremely dangerous methods to travel to a safer haven. As North Korea considers leaving the country as a serious crime, these refugees are at serious risk of facing torture, detention, and even death if caught.


Recently, at the U.N. Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva, North Koreans begged China to stop repatriating captured refugees.[5] This plea also highlighted the dark reality for the female refugees captured in China and sold by human traffickers for marriage, where a gender imbalance has led to a need for brides.[6] These women spend years in servitude and those who manage to escape are forced to leave behind the children they were compelled to bear. Other women are forced into prostitution or made to work in brothels. China considers North Korean refugees as illegal economic migrants and refuses to provide asylum, leaving these women without legal status or protection. With the constant threat of repatriation, many women resign themselves to exploitation by human traffickers. Some researchers report that refugee women married to Chinese men are being provided with residence permits, allowing them to work and use public transport, but not access medical care. Meanwhile, these permits are often used as surveillance tools.[7]


A similar building migrant and refugee crisis is being witnessed in the United States. An unprecedented number of migrants crossing the US-Mexico border has prompted the current administration to amend its asylum laws. The U.S. provided asylum seekers protection from persecution in their home countries without fear of deportation. However, with upcoming elections, the migrant crisis has become more of a political issue than a humanitarian one. The U.S. witnessed a historic high of 3.2 million migrants in 2023[8], with many traveling from various countries and displaced due to political unrest and economic crises in their home countries exacerbated by the pandemic. The unpreparedness of the U.S. immigration system for such an influx of migrants has led to overcrowded detention centers and overwhelmed city shelters, which has created a negative impression on the local population.


Recently, an executive order was issued to close the border to asylum seekers whenever crossings exceed a certain limit.[9] Furthermore, a “digital metering” system was introduced, requiring asylum seekers to use a mobile application to apply for asylum, effectively limiting the number of applications, forcing others to return to Mexico.[10] City shelters are already overwhelmed with the number of migrants. Meanwhile, local communities oppose them for using taxpayer money for outsiders’ care. Chicago city officials are imposing a 60-day limit on shelter stays, which has led to evictions and increased homelessness, following the transportation of countless migrants to the city from Texas, an action seen as an attempt to hamper the Democratic re-election.[11] The strain on government funds and public resources has soured the perception of asylum and refuge among Americans.


The commonality here is the forced return of asylum seekers to their countries, where they continue to face atrocities. China and the U.S. are parties to the 1967 Protocol Relating to Status of Refugees 12, enacted to supplement the 1951 Refugee Convention[12]. Both the 1967 Protocol and the 1951 Convention are based on the cornerstone principle of non-refoulement, which asserts that refugees should not be returned to a country where they face serious threats to their life or freedom. Yet, the international community has repeatedly violated this basic principle, as evidenced by our call for Cyprus to uphold refugee and human rights law.[13] With ongoing wars and the world still reeling from the economic, social, and health effects of the pandemic, the response to this crisis has been to avert rather than resolve it. Instead of providing protections and building infrastructure to address the plight of migrants and refugees, governments are enacting laws to prevent further influx. In addition to the social and mental impacts of forced displacement, asylum seekers now face persecution and violent crimes in the countries where they seek refuge. These laws restricting asylum or returning refugees are illegal under international humanitarian and refugee law, and if not addressed, threaten the very essence of humanity.


 

Glossary


Asylum Seeker: A person who has left their country and is seeking protection from persecution and serious human rights violations in another country, but who hasn’t yet been legally recognized as a refugee and is waiting to receive a decision on their asylum claim. (Amnesty International)

Atrocity: A very cruel or terrible act or action. (Britannica)

Bilateral Relations: An interaction involving two countries pertaining to political, economics, security, culture, and people to people links. (IGI Global)

Human Trafficking: The recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of people through force, fraud or deception, with the aim of exploiting them for profit. (UNODC)

Migrant: An umbrella term, not defined under international law, reflecting the common lay understanding of a person who moves away from his or her place of usual residence, whether within a country or across an international border, temporarily or permanently, and for a variety of reasons. (International Organization for Migration)

Non-refoulement: Under international human rights law, the principle of non-refoulement guarantees that no one should be returned to a country where they would face torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and other irreparable harm. This principle applies to all migrants at all times, irrespective of migration status. (UN OHCHR)

Refugee: A person who has fled their own country because they are at risk of serious human rights violations and persecution there. (Amnesty International)

Reparation: Something that is done or given as a way of correcting a mistake that you have made or a bad situation that you have caused. (Britannica


 

Footnotes/Sources


[4] Id.

[7] Id.

Comments

bottom of page