Refugee and Displaced Women: 60 Years of Progress and Setbacks

2011 marks the anniversary of two important events in refugee protection. In 1951, the United Nations adopted the UN Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. Forty years later, in 1991, the Executive Committee of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) adopted Guidelines on the Protection of Refugee Women. Since 1991, there has been both progress and setbacks in providing equal and effective protection to both male and female refugees. The article concludes that the gap between rhetoric and reality for women and girls is still very large. Following a brief discussion of the demographic profile of refugees, the article discusses issues related to legal protection, physical security, and social and economic rights for refugee and displaced women. The article calls for renewed efforts to implement fully the various legal instruments and guidelines that set out norms and standards of protection for refugees generally and women and girls specifically and to ensure that refugee and displaced women are able to participate actively in decisions that affect them and their families.

Conclusion

Policies should ensure access for women who have been forced to migrate to primary and reproductive health care services, including programmes to address sexual and gender-based violence, trauma resulting from flight and conflict, and sexually transmitted diseases and HIV/AIDS. Education programmes should be implemented that inform migrant women of their rights and responsibilities under international and national laws. These programmes should use an array of media techniques to reach the women in a culturally and linguistically appropriate manner. In order to ensure that these reforms are made, improvements are needed in the collection of data on refugees and internally displaced persons, with particular attention to collecting sex and age disaggregated statistics. A specific focus on urban refugees and displaced persons as well as collection of data on those who spontaneously settle, including those with irregular status, would help ensure that all refugee and displaced persons find adequate legal and physical, social and economic protection.