The refugee crisis: A failure in international law and morality

Worldwide displacement is at an all-time high. The UN has estimatedthat more than 60 million people have now been forcibly displaced, the highest figure ever recorded. As each day passes, the numbers grow higher and the stories more tragic. The refugee crisis is not strictly a European problem, nor is it a political dilemma for the UN. It is a collective test for humanity.

The first test is to maintain compassion and humanity during a time in which the lives of millions of people from “over there” are relegated to a footnote, a talking point, or a policy dilemma. We must pay attention to the painful scenes which take place day in and day out, without becoming desensitized or cynical.

{mosads}The challenge is to constantly remind ourselves that the scenes of women and children behind barbed wire, huddled in boats, or confined in prison are not from historical archives but are taking place right now, before our very eyes.

This includes Turkish police opening fire on women and children at the border, and prison guards in the United States sexually assaulting a 19 year old mother held in detention with her infant son.In hindsight the internment and abuse of women in children is always decried as inhumane, yet it continues to take place, in a systematic and brutal manner throughout the so called “free world”.

The problems we face are not isolated to a region, nor are they limited to a class of people or religion.

The death 500 men women and children in the graveyard that is the Mediterranean Sea, the self immolation of an Iranian refugee denied medical care in an Australian prison, or the thousands of unaccompanied minors seeking refuge in the United States, are all evidence of a global issue. Yet international bodies and laws have failed to protect those most vulnerable, and hold state actors accountable for their illegal actions.

We cannot simply pay off other countries to sweep the problem under the rug, nor can we ignore international law and safeguards put in place to protect the rights of refugees. This includes implementing country specific acceptance with regard to the entry of individuals seeking asylum, a blatant violation of international law and due process. Other instances are not as severe but may have the same detrimental effect. For example if you are applying for asylum and fall under the jurisdiction of the Los Angeles Asylum Office, you may have to wait more than four years for an interview.

The lack of legal representation continues to be a serious challenge for asylum seekers, particularly unaccompanied children. Even more concerning is when authorities, or in some cases Immigration Judges, believe that a three year old can represent themselves in an immigration proceeding.  Or that an unaccompanied minor who lacks counsel and misses a court date should be subjected to deportation.

The second collective test we face is to think clearly and rationally about the rules we have in place, and how to balance humanity with fairness and efficiency. Initial solutions to these problems can be found by implementing safeguards ensuring accountability and protection for vulnerable populations. This includes guaranteeing access to counsel for unaccompanied children, ending the incarceration of refugees, and establishing oversight committees with regard to the protection of due process.

As global inequality worsens and climate change threatens the lives of millions the issue of migration, displacement, and asylum must be dealt with in a progressive and compassionate manner.

It is time that we get serious not only about solutions to these problems, but holding those who violate these safeguards accountable in order to prevent future breaches of international law. Today we are lucky enough to be the ones applying the law. Tomorrow we may the ones protected by it.

Hamid Yazdan Panah is an Iranian-American human rights activist and attorney focused on immigration and asylum in the San Francisco Bay Area.