Refugees in Limbo and Canada’s International Obligations

The refugee and immigrant series was launched by the Caledon Institute of Social Policy in partnership with the Maytree Foundation”s Refugee and Immigrant Program. The purpose of the series is to highlight the problems and policy issues that affect refugees and immigrants to Canada and to propose practical solutions to these problems. This paper is an adaptation of a legal opinion written by Professor Goodwin-Gill, commissioned by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Office in Canada, entitled “The 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and the Obligations of States under Articles 25, 27 and 28, with particular reference to refugees without identity or travel documents.” The paper shows how legislative provisions, together with administrative practice, can lead to results which are incompatible with international obligations. The authors put forward several proposals for bringing Canadian practice into conformity with its obligations under the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees.

ISBN – 1-894598-28-8