A Case Study Of Forced Migration

A Case Study Of Forced Migration The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) defines Forced migration (or displacement of people, another term that will be used in this paper), a global issue estimating one of every thirty-five persons in the world to be a migrant. At the end of 2008, there were some estimates putting 42 million forcibly displaced people worldwide. Only half of those individuals were receiving assistance and protection from the UNHCR. The number of people displaced within their country as a result of armed conflict is estimated at 26 million, and again half of them were protected or assisted by the UNHCR. Some 12 million stateless persons were identified worldwide, children represent 44 per cent of refugees and asylum seekers and women and girls representing 47 per cent.   [ 1 ]   According to Willis, the number of international migrants increased double with 190.6 million, Europe standing for the largest share of international migrants where people in the other European countriesâ€℠¢ movement within the European Union members States between 1970 and 2005   [ 2 ]   . 1.6 million Chinese immigrants in the United States made them the country’s fourth-largest immigrant group in 2008   [ 3 ]   . It says that 2000 Philippines leaves for overseas each day for the lack of employment according to a Philippine organisation   [ 4 ]   . There are also people forced to move as a result of policies and projects to enhance development, example being infrastructure projects such dams, parks, roads   [ 5 ]   . These above figures show the displacement is a direct result of war, conflict, natural disasters, poverty, and economic, political or social issues, compelling these individuals in response to flee for a better protected life somewhere else. To bear in mind, many of these people are not as successful and find themselves trapped in these circumstances for a long time if not ever. Under article 13 and 14 of Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR ) declare the rights of seeking and enjoying asylum. This is one of the earliest human rights instrument to develop establishing universal standards for the protection of persons. Following the UDHR and among other existing treaties and conventions within the international human rights system   [ 6 ]   , the 1951 Refugee Convention was adopted and together with its 1967 Protocol, the Convention was placed to recognise the entitlement, benefits and rights of refugees and asylum seekers in States. Other treaties and relevant conventions   [ 7 ]   , such the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) provides in article 2 that â€Å"Each State Party to the present Covenant undertakes to ensure to all individuals within its territory and subject to its jurisdiction the rights recognized in the present Covenant without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth o r other status†. It is to say that the host countries, which have ratified the Convention, have duty to not only comply with the implementation of the respective provisions but also to take positive measures to ensure the protection of the refugees and asylum seekers. To comprehend what forced migration is, it is significant that one must first identify and understand the concept of migration, then recognise and examine who is a migrant and which group falls under which category of the term. According to the National Geographic, migration (human) is the movement of people from one place to another for the reason of taking up semi or permanent residence usually across a political border. People can either migrate voluntarily or involuntary be forced to migrate because of dissimilar reasons. A well acknowledged type of migration is the rural to urban movement, people on the move from rural area to the metropolis. However migration also takes place within countries, continents an d region. There are many different types of migration including internal and external migration, step and chain migration, return and seasonal migration. But the focus in this paper is dominantly on population transfer or forced migration, namely refugees and migrants. Forced migrants are usually people forced to leave their homes to seek better living standards, such employment and population transfer is another term used to define forced migration where a government drive a massive group of people out of the country based on ethnicity, religion or other political factors and causes   [ 8 ]   .