15. Memorandum from The Office of
the Representative for the United Kingdom, United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
UNHCR'S MANDATE
AND INTEREST
IN THIS
CONSULTATION
1. The United Nations Office of the High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a non-political humanitarian
organisation charged with leading international efforts to protect
and assist refugees. It seeks durable solutions for refugees,
including voluntary repatriation, local integration in their country
of asylum, and resettlement to third countries. Some 17 million
people worldwide are currently of concern to UNHCR, including
refugees, asylum seekers, recent returnees and other persons of
concern.
2. UNHCR welcomes the opportunity to review
steps taken by the UK government in response to the concluding
observations of the Committee for the United Nations Convention
on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD).
UNHCR's interest in this inquiry relates to those positive aspects,
concerns and recommendations raised by the CERD committee, which
impact upon asylum seekers and refugees. In particular UNHCR notes
the connections between racial discrimination and social cohesion
and the consequences for this vulnerable group.
COMMENT ON
"POSITIVE ASPECTS"
IDENTIFIED BY
THE CERD COMMITTEE
3. UNHCR notes the CERD Committee's commendations
of various positive aspects of UK practice. In addition, since
the Committee made its concluding observations in August 2003,
the UN refugee agency has welcomed other positive developments
of relevance to the issue of racial discrimination, including
consultations on a proposed Commission for Equality and Human
Rights, a government-wide Community Cohesion strategy and a National
Refugee Integration Strategy.
4. With reference to the establishment of
the National Asylum Support Service (noted by the CERD Committee
as a positive development), the UN refugee agency believes that
there are certain criteria which must be fulfilled for a humane
and effective dispersal system to work. These can be summarised
as follows: Communities which are to receive relocated asylum
seekers must be well briefed in advance; asylum seekers must be
fully informed of conditions at their destination before they
are dispersed and; local structures, both governmental and non-government,
must be in place to receive asylum seekers and meet their needs,
particularly with regards to access to legal advice. Since the
establishment of NASS in 2000, UNHCR is aware of both problems
encountered with the implementation of dispersal policy under
the Immigration and Asylum Act (1999) and examples of good practice
of benefit to both the asylum seeking and local population. UNHCR
welcomes the UK Government's recognition of the issues and steps
taken to understand and address them and would welcome further
measures to ensure that dispersal meets the criteria above.
COMMENTS ON
"CONCERNS AND
RECOMMENDATIONS" OF
THE CERD COMMITTEE
MEDIA COVERAGE
[CERD Report para 13. The Committee
is concerned about the increasing racial prejudice against ethnic
minorities, asylum-seekers and immigrants reflected in the media
and the reported lack of effectiveness of the Press Complaints
Commission in dealing with this issue.]
5. UNHCR continues to voice concerns over
irresponsible reporting that promotes negative stereotypes and
unwarranted associations. Such coverage encourages xenophobic
attitudes, creates tension within communities and increases the
likelihood of racially motivated attacks. [172]
6. Research recently commissioned by the
Lord Mayor of London[173]
has pointed to links between negative media reporting, increased
community tensions, and hostility and violence aimed at asylum
seekers.
7. UNHCR is aware that one of the major
factors that contributes to indifference or hostility toward refugees
and asylum-seekers is public confusion about who refugees are
and why they are forced to flee their homelands. It is absolutely
crucial that media outlets provide the public with information
that objectively presents the situations of human rights abuse
and war that have forced refugees and asylum seekers to seek refuge
here so as to better foster understanding and tolerance towards
these groups.
[CERD Report para 13. (cont) The Committee
recommends that the State party consider further how the Press
Complaints Commission can be made more effective and can be further
empowered to consider complaints received from the Commission
for Racial Equality as well as other groups or organizations working
in the field of race relations.]
8. UNHCR welcomes the publication (October
2003) by the Press Complaints Commission (henceforth "PCC")
of guidance on the reporting of asylum and refugee issues, which
was the result of consultation with concerned agencies, including
UNHCR. In addition, UNHCR, in conjunction with the National Union
of Journalists and the Mediawise Trust, has published guidance
for journalists on best practice in reporting of asylum and refugee
issues. Despite these positive measures, UNHCR regrets the continued
inaccuracy and misrepresentation in published stories, commentaries
and political cartoons.
9. UNHCR reiterates the Committee's concerns
over the limited effectiveness of the PCC. Our organization would
welcome a re-affirmation by news editors of their commitment to
the PCC's Code of Conduct's preamble, which states that "it
is essential that an agreed code be honoured not only to the letter
but in the full spirit".
ASYLUM SEEKERS
AND POLITICAL
EXTREMISM
[CERD Report para 14. The Committee
remains concerned at reports of attacks on asylum-seekers. In
this regard, the Committee notes with concern that antagonism
towards asylum-seekers has helped to sustain support for extremist
political opinions.]
10. UNHCR urges the Government not only
to address the role that the media can play in nurturing extremist
attitudes but to encourage an open and unprejudiced debate on
asylum and refugee issues. Successful community cohesion requires
the creation and promotion of a social and public order in which
the rights of asylum seekers and refugees can be realised. This
entails a duty of Government to refrain from policies and public
statements that may encourage hostile media coverage of asylum
seekers and refugees. Further UNHCR notes the connection between
racism against new arrivals and the possible repercussions for
existing ethnic minority communities.
11. The focus on preventing illegal immigration
can have problematic consequences for asylum-seekers and refugees.
Clause 2 of the 2004 Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants,
etc.) Bill makes it a criminal offence to enter the country without
documents—at times undocumented travel may be due to wilful
misuse of the system at others it may result from the constraints
of fleeing a hostile regime or environment. The current pejorative
conceptualization of refugees and asylum-seekers apparent in some
recent legislation would suggest that the balanced image required
to avoid discrimination and to foster community cohesion is not
being embraced by those senior decision makers who should themselves
be helping the public to better understand the plight of asylum
seekers and refugees.
[The Committee recommends that the State
party adopt further measures and intensify its efforts to counter
racial tensions generated through asylum issues, inter alia by
developing public education programmes and promoting positive
images of ethnic minorities, asylum-seekers and immigrants, as
well as measures making the asylum procedures more equitable,
efficient and unbiased]
12. In the context of asylum procedures,
UNHCR is pleased to be co-operating with the Government in its
efforts to improve the accuracy in the refugee determination process
through the "Quality Initiative", this innovative and
transparent arrangement allows UNHCR to provide independent feedback
after an audit of the crucial process that defines whether an
applicant is a refugee or not. Our initial report will be ready
for direct discussion with the Home Office early next year.
However, UNHCR continues to have concerns over
the treatment within the system of asylum seekers from certain
countries. The Government frequently asserts that its asylum policy
purports to protect genuine asylum-seekers through "fair
and efficient" processes while swiftly rejecting those who
abuse the system and remove them from the UK. UNHCR has noticed
some remarkable disparities between the refugee recognition rates
of the UK on asylum-seekers coming from certain countries, both
as compared with other host countries, and with UNHCR where the
Office recognizes refugees under its Mandate:
1st Instance refugee recognition rates (%)—2003
| Origin |
UK | Canada
| US | France
| Germany | UNHCR
|
| |
| | |
| |
| Afghanistan | 1 |
90 | | 19
| 1 | 65 |
(India) |
| China | 1 | 73
| 36 | 1 |
2 | |
|
| Iran | 4 | 67
| 48 | 17 |
11 | 84 | (Turkey)
|
| Sudan | 21 | 87
| 51 | 19 |
2 | 91 | (Kenya)
|
| Turkey | 3 | 66
| | 5 |
12 | |
|
| Iraq | 0 | 80
| 50 | —
| 1 | |
|
| |
| | |
| |
|
Such significant differences in the application of the 1951
Convention raise concerns not only regarding the need for a harmonised
approach to refugee determination procedures and standards among
contracting States but also because it is a strong indicator that
the UK has developed an unduly restrictive application of the
1951 Convention for genuine applicants. This has worrying implications
when considering the stated aim of eliminating all forms of racial
discrimination.
ANTI-TERRORISM
[CERD Report para 17. The Committee is deeply concerned
about provisions of the Anti-Terrorism Crime and Security Act
which provide for the indefinite detention without charge or trial,
pending deportation, of non-nationals of the United Kingdom who
are suspected of terrorism-related activities. While acknowledging
the State party's national security concerns, the Committee recommends
that the State party seek to balance those concerns with the protection
of human rights and its international legal obligations. In this
regard, the Committee draws the State party's attention to its
statement of 8 March 2002 in which it underlines the obligation
of States to "ensure that measures taken in the struggle
against terrorism do not discriminate in purpose or effect on
grounds of race, colour, descent, or national or ethnic origin".]
13. UNHCR shares the Committee's concerns with regard
to indefinite detention of non-nationals without trial, especially
if they are asylum seekers or refugees. Whilst UNHCR fully supports
all efforts aimed at eradicating terrorism, the fight against
terrorism must ensure full respect for the fundamental rights
and freedoms of all law-abiding individuals. It is UNHCR's belief
that any discussion on security safeguards should start from the
assumption that refugees are themselves threatened. UNHCR has
further concerns regarding the recently passed Specification of
Particularly Serious Crimes Order (secondary legislation following
on from Section 72 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum
Act 2002). This applies specifically to refugees and asylum seekers
and constitutes a further tightening in the legislation allowing
exclusion and removal from the country denying these vulnerable
groups a number of due process guarantees. [174]
PROPOSED ESTABLISHMENT
OF CEHR
[While reiterating its satisfaction in connection with
the enactment of the Human Rights Act of 1998, the Committee notes
that no central body has been established to implement the Act.
The Committee considers that the absence of such a body may undermine
the effectiveness of the Act.
The Committee refers to the earlier commitment of the State
party to consider establishing a Human Rights Commission in order
to enforce the Act and the possibility of granting such a commission
comprehensive competence to review complaints of human rights
violations, and recommends an early decision in this regard.]
18. UNHCR welcomes the UK's commitment to equality and
human rights and noted with interest the proposal for a Commission
for Equality and Human Rights (CEHR). Governmental authorities
and bodies, such as the proposed CEHR, could have a significant
impact in achieving positive changes in attitude towards asylum
seekers and refugees, both among staff of public institutions,
as well as in the general public.
19. UNHCR would welcome if the CEHR could concern itself
with anti-discrimination policies which particularly influence
asylum seekers' and refugees' enjoyment of, and access to, equal
opportunities, equal rights and fundamental freedoms (including
the right to basic health care for non-deportable failed asylum
seekers). UNHCR further hopes that the work of existing Commissions,
including the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE), will be considered
by the CEHR, particularly as it relates to refugees and other
persons of concern to UNHCR.
FINAL COMMENTS
20. UNHCR welcomes this opportunity to comment on the
JCHR inquiry into the UK government's implementation of the Convention
on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and would
be happy to offer any further assistance as required.
November 2004
172
UNHCR London press release "UN Refugee Agency has grave
concerns over tabloid reporting of asylum", 23 October 2003;
UNHCR comments on White Paper: "Fairness for All: A New Commission
for Equality and Human Rights". Department for Trade and
Industry White Paper in association with Department for Constitutional
Affairs, Department for Education and Skills, Department for Work
and Pensions, Home Office. August 2004; UNHCR submission to Home
Affairs Committee Inquiry into Terrorism and Community Relations,
September 2004. Back
173
Information Centre about Asylum and Refugees in the UK (ICAR)
Media Image, Community Impact: Assessing the impact of media
and political images of refugees and asylum seekers on community
relations in London. Report of a pilot research study commissioned
by the Mayor of London. April 2004. Back
174
UNHCR Position on The Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act
2002 (Specification of Particularly Serious Crimes Order) 2004
available on request.
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