Refugee conventions in the shadow of COVID-19 pandemic — Humanitarian or political tools?
Centre for Fundamental Rights and Migration Research Institute
joint conference
Date: Wednesday, September 23rd 2020, 15:00—16:30
Venue: Online Zoom meeting after registration
Registration link: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwufuiurz0jGdBla4Qy1-Hal3h7JbRthawm
Registration deadline: September 23rd 2020, 12:00
Language: English
Purpose of the event: The most important element of the international asylum regulation, the 1951 Geneva Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees was born in an era in which conditions were significantly different from those in the current globalized world. As a result, the Convention is less and less suited to addressing the problems caused by mass irregular migration today. The contradictions arising from this are increasingly being exploited by some stakeholders who therefore abuse the regulations of the Convention. That is why there is an extensive debate on the revision of the regulation, but from sharply different perspectives: some want to narrow it while others want to broaden its scope (for example, by including the concept of climate refugees in the Convention). In addition, the recent COVID-19 pandemic gave new impetus and perspectives to the debate. The purpose of our event is to analyse the topic in a roundtable discussion and to present possible ways of the revising of the Convention.
Program:
15:00—15:05
Welcome speech: Szabolcs Janik (Deputy Director, Migration Research Institute)
15:05—16:00
Round Table Discussion — Moderator: Szabolcs Janik
- José-Luis BAZÁN (international jurist)
- Norbert TÓTH (international jurist, senior analyst, Migration Research Institute)
- István KOVÁCS (strategic director, Center for Fundamental Rights)
16:00—16:30
Questions
16:30
Closing remarks
