Asylum

Tobino, Basaglia e la legge 180: storia di una polemica

by Primo De Vecchis

Published in M. TOBINO, "Gli ultimi giorni di Magliano", Introduzione di M. Zappella, Cronologia e bibliografia di P. Italia, a cura di P. De Vecchis e M. Marchi, Milano, Mondadori, 2009, pp. LI-LXXV.

U.S. Asylum Law as a Path to Religious Persecution

by Jack Dolance

(working title)

U.S. asylum law protects against persecution “on account of . . . religion.” But must the law protect a non-believer... more U.S. asylum law protects against persecution “on account of . . . religion.” But must the law protect a non-believer seeking religious asylum in the United States? Many may instinctively answer “no,” for a non-believer is by most definitions not “religious.”

Such a response misses the mark, however—at least in the context of U.S. asylum law, which is subject to the First Amendment. The protection of religious liberty enshrined in the First Amendment embodies freedom from persecution on account of one’s “religion”—in whatever form that religion may take. In the asylum context, then, “religion” must be defined broadly. Protection from persecution on account of one’s “religion” must include protection of one’s religious freedom not to believe in deities of any kind. To hold otherwise would be to inhibit the very religious liberty asylum law is intended to protect.

Yet under current U.S. law, a non-believer’s claim for asylum may well be denied on the ground that non-belief is not enough for religious asylum. This may serve to dissuade a would-be asylee from even attempting to apply for religious asylum as a non-believer—even where she would undoubtedly be subject to religious persecution if forced to return to her native country. She may thus feel the need to feign conversion to a traditional, mainstream religion. Such a result is unacceptable in a nation founded upon religious liberty.

This brief Article argues that if a non-believer is denied religious asylum in the United States, she can succeed on a claim that the law as applied to her violates both the Free Exercise and the Establishment clauses of the First Amendment.

Tobino medico di manicomio attraverso il Diario

by Primo De Vecchis

Draft only

Violence Against Women and Asylum Seeking: Global Problems and Local Practices Applied to Guatemalan Women Immigrating for Safety

by Karen Rotabi

Author order:  Costantino, R., Rotabi, K. S., & Rodman, D. H. (in press) appearing in Advances in Social Work (free access).

This paper presents critical information on the historical context of the extreme violence against women and femicide... more This paper presents critical information on the historical context of the extreme violence against women and femicide plaguing Central American societies.  Suggestions for culturally appropriate approaches for the treatment of and support for women seeking asylum in the U.S. are presented. Guatemala is used as a case example and the history of violence against women, both societal and domestic violence, is detailed. Case examples from that nation are presented, including legal precedence for violence against women as grounds for asylum seeking. 

The Contemporary International Law Status of the Right to Receive Asylum

by William Worster

Clearly a state has a right to expel aliens generally, and a state has a right to grant asylum to aliens, but the... more Clearly a state has a right to expel aliens generally, and a state has a right to grant asylum to aliens, but the question is whether an individual has a right to asylum opposable to the state’s right to expel. In the literature, it is commonly understood that no such right exists. Treaty obligations discussing a “right to asylum” are understood in various ways, generally not to provide for a right to receive asylum but apply for it. However, the past few decades have shown a growth in conventions addressing asylum, especially, but not limited to, the European context. With refugee flows being an inherently international concern with a need for durable solutions, increasingly refugees are being assimilated to refugee-seekers. States are reacting or anticipating these issues by adopting domestic rights to asylum, at least for individuals qualifying as refugees. These trends suggest an evolving international consensus on opinio juris and state practice that refugees must receive asylum. Thus, it appears that the right to asylum for refugees exists under
customary international law.

The paper will proceed broadly in two sections viewing the issue from different perspectives. In the first section, the paper will begin by examining the “right to asylum” from the perspective of
the states, the authors of the Refugee Convention and similar agreements. The paper will conclude that the “right to asylum” in those agreements is directed at states, not individuals. In essence, states have a right vis-à-vis other states to grant asylum to aliens and not have that act be viewed as hostile.

However, this right of the state does not necessarily exclude a right of individuals to receive asylum if convention or customary international law also demand it. Accordingly, the second section examines the right of the individual to receive asylum. In the first sub-section, the author looks at conventional law and in the following sub-sections he looks at customary international
law, specifically state practice and opinio juris. In the conclusion, the author argues that, although there is a state right to grant asylum, there is also an individual right to receive it in certain circumstances. This conclusion is based on widespread and consistent practice granting asylum as an obligatory consequence of refuge.

The Evolving Definition of the Refugee in Contemporary International Law

by William Worster

Many scholars of international refugee law assert that there is no definition of refugee under international law... more Many scholars of international refugee law assert that there is no definition of refugee under international law except that given in the Refugee Convention. This assertion, however, overlooks the dynamic way that the Refugee Convention is interpreted and is usually made without a detailed analysis of customary international law. This article attempts to address this shortcoming in the literature by examining conventional and customary international law contributing to the contemporary definition of refugee. Furthermore, it will attempt to do this is an even-handed manner, concluding that the definition has expanded in favor of claimants in some aspects, but, actually, contracted against the favor of claimants in others.

First, the article will examine the definition of refugee under the Refugee Convention, especially the evolving technique for interpreting the Convention, to determine whether the definition has outgrown its conventional shell.

Second, the article will undertake a comprehensive analysis of state practice and opinio juris on this question, examining the most up-to-date sources. In particular, it will reflect on the role of specially interested or specially affected states in the formation of customary international law and the growth of “subsidiary” protection. Also the article will consider the contribution of the practice and opinio juris of international organizations in the frame of the contemporary international law’s understanding of the contribution international organizations can make.

Lastly, the article will look at the opposite side of the coin: the ways in which customary international law may have narrowed the definition beyond the terms of the Refugee Convention.
It will conclude by proposing the new definition of a refugee under conventional and customary international law based on the findings.

Broadcast News Coverage of Asylum April to October 2006: Caught Between Human Rights and Public Safety

by Kerry Moore

"What Has Become of Jimmy Thornton?": The Rhetoric(s) of Letter-Writing at The New York State Asylum for Idiots, 1855-1866

by Zosha Stuckey

This article looks to the genre of letter-writing and to epistolary rhetoric in order to recover perspectives... more This article looks to the genre of letter-writing and to epistolary rhetoric in order to recover perspectives seemingly lost amongst the medicalized discourse of asylum histories. These hard-to-find letters written in the nineteenth century by pupils, family members, and teachers open us up to new perspectives not available in other archival documents. I give a brief introduction to the history and theory of epistolary rhetoric, delimit a disability epistolary, and then consider a group of letters in terms of the rhetorical action they perform. I conclude by emphasizing the significance of this cross-disciplinary work for both rhetoric and disability studies.

Making and unmaking the asylum: leprosy and modernity in Singapore and Malaysia

by Kah Seng Loh

The Issue of ‘Trust’ or ‘Mistrust’ in Research with Refugees: Choices, Caveats and Considerations for Researchers

by Patricia Hynes

Hynes, T., (2003), The Issue of ‘Trust’ or ‘Mistrust’ in Research with Refugees: Choices, Caveats and Considerations for Researchers, Working Paper No.98, Evaluation and Policy Analysis Unit, United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), Geneva

Contemporary Compulsory Dispersal and the Absence of Space for the Restoration of Trust

by Patricia Hynes

Hynes, P., (2009), Contemporary Compulsory Dispersal and the Absence of Space for the Restoration of Trust, Journal of Refugee Studies, Vol.22, No.1, Oxford University Press, Oxford, p.97-121

This paper investigates the issue of trust, or mistrust, specifically in relation to single adult asylum seekers and... more This paper investigates the issue of trust, or mistrust, specifically in relation to single adult asylum seekers and asylum seeker families compulsorily dispersed across England. It draws upon doctoral research on the social exclusion of asylum seekers as a result of dispersal and their separation from mainstream welfare provision due to the creation of the National Asylum Support Service (NASS) following the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999. Trust is an ambiguous term and four forms of trust are delineated to assist conceptualizing the experience of forced migration: social, political, institutional and restorative trust. This paper provides an overview of the aims and each phase of the implementation of dispersal. It is argued that the dispersal system leaves little room for political or institutional trust to be restored and hinders the restoration of social trust. It is suggested that this lack of space for the restoration of trust has negative implications for the longer term resettlement process of asylum seekers who obtain refugee status. It is also suggested that trust is an essential component of UK government policies promoting social or community cohesion, community engagement and initiatives to combat trafficking, forced marriage and ‘honour’ based violence and that mistrust of asylum seekers as a group directly contradicts such policies and initiatives.

Asylum decision-making in the UK: disbelief or denial?

by James Souter

Published in openDemocracy, 4 April 2011

Having identified a culture of disbelief at the heart of the British Home Office, campaigners for refugee rights must... more Having identified a culture of disbelief at the heart of the British Home Office, campaigners for refugee rights must also address its culture of denial, says James Souter

“Sometimes I just Wish I Never Hear of this Term Bilingual Worker”; Interpreting, Emotional Labour and Identity

by Geraldine Lee-Treweek

Paper to be presented at the annual Research Institute for Health and Social Change Conference, Manchester Metropolitan University, July 2011.

As transmigration to the UK has increased, so has the need for people who can carry out interpretation work and who... more As transmigration to the UK has increased, so has the need for people who can carry out interpretation work and who can provide support to these new communities. Whereas the traditional labour of interpretation and translation has been formal, based in prescribed and official settings, more recently the application of these skills have moved to be predominately situated within ‘user’ communities and, arguably, more challenging settings. This paper examines the emotional labour components of the bilingual worker role - a new occupational group - that carries out interpretation work within communities of migrants that speak the worker’s language. In the UK such workers are employed within a host of public services and third sector organisations. Bilingual work involves the worker deploying their (usually) home language skills within the workplace. Quite often they are also expected to act as experts in their own culture and of diversity/transmigration within their employing organisations. This paper reports on a exploratory qualitative study of the emotional labour of bilingual workers, who are also recent migrants to the UK. It demonstrates that the emotional costs of such work are high.

This paper argues there is a need to address emotional risks, work identity strains and stress issues for people who do this work. Whilst it is quite normal for other groups who work closely with vulnerable groups or in stressful 'people work' settings to have the risks of their work assessed, bilingual workers often have to contend with similar issues without such considerations. It would appear that there are underlying ethnocentric assumptions that working with “one’s own community” is less stressful or emotionally challenging than other forms of labour; this paper would suggest otherwise.

Key Words: bilingual work, communities, interpretation, emotional labour, identity

Affective Border Regimes: Fear, Compassion and Truth in Asylum Adjudication in Ireland

by Anwen Tormey

In the Irish asylum context, the ubiquitous specter of the ‘bogus’ asylum-seeker has led to the emergence of new... more In the Irish asylum context, the ubiquitous specter of the ‘bogus’ asylum-seeker has led to the emergence of new configurations of exclusion and illegalization.  These configurations are evidenced by a surge in asylum refusal rates as states retreat from an ethos of protection towards one that emphasizes increasingly securitized borders.  This essay tries to excavate these processes by considering how contradictory affect such as fear, doubt, and compassion may impact the evaluation of asylum evidence and, consequently, notions of asylee credibility.  I focus on two moments related to adjudication processes: (1) the asylum interview wherein asylees and Irish adjudicators must negotiate their own affective promptings (fear, skepticism, compassion, etc.) alongside juridical praxes which privilege the objective unfolding of truth; and (2) an emerging tendency for human rights activists to call upon the state to remove individual cases from asylum courts and to use compassionate institutional discretion to grant certain asylees the right to remain in Ireland.  I argue that the under-scrutinised effect of affect at such moments mystifies the procedural hazards of Ireland’s border regime and depoliticizes the issue of whether contradictions within contemporary liberal approaches to asylum undermine the legal rights that were designed to protect asylum seekers in the first place.

Positioned in/by the State: Incorporation, Exclusion, and Appropriation of Women’s Gender-Based Claims to Political Asylum in the United States.

by Sara McKinnon

Enter the myopticon: Uncertain surveillance in the Danish asylum system

by Zachary Whyte

Asylum seekers in Europe face increasingly restrictive policy regimes across the continent. In Denmark, they are held... more Asylum seekers in Europe face increasingly restrictive policy regimes across the continent. In Denmark, they are held at designated asylum centres while their cases are processed and are subject to limitations on their movement, education and employment, as well as to a degree of surveillance from both the state and the Danish Red Cross, which operates the majority of the asylum centres. While these structures are in some ways reminiscent of Foucault's panopticon, I want to suggest a counterpoint to the panopticon, which I call the ‘myopticon’ to indicate the near-sightedness of the central surveying eye. The myopticon is a near-sighted system of surveillance practices, knowledges and sanctions, deployed as though it were panoptic. I want to suggest that the uncertainty that has soaked through the Danish asylum system and profoundly affected the asylum seekers in it is not a byproduct of bureaucratic processing, but intrinsic to the operation of the myopticon. By drawing out points of distinction with Foucault's panopticon, I sketch the outlines of a new technology of power that has powerful consequences for the daily lives of asylum seekers in Denmark.

On Her Majesty’s Deceitful Service: The Woolas Case and the Ignoble Lies of the British State

by Simon Parker

Stop imprisoning children now

by Simon Parker

Can Labour 'out-nasty' the Tories on asylum?

by Simon Parker

Don't replace child detention with enforced separation

by Simon Parker