A House with Two Rooms - The Advocates for Human Rights

that interdicting Hatain refugees beyond the
borders of the U.S. so that they might not enter
U.S. territory and claim asylum did not violate
the 1951 Convention’s Article 33 non-refoulement
obligation.
20 African [Banjul] Charter on Human and Peoples’
Rights art. 12(5), June 27, 1981, OAU Doc. CAB/
LEG/67/3 rev. 5, 21 I.L.M. 58 (1982), entered into
force Oct. 21, 1986 [hereinafter African Charter].
See also Addis Ababa Document on Refugees and
Forced Population Displacements in Africa, adopted
at a 1994 OAU/UNHCR Symposium on Refugees
and Forced Population Displacements in Africa
(recommending that Member States “safeguard
refugees against refoulement or expulsion”).
21 8 U.S.C. § 1231(b)(3) prohibits “restriction” on
removal. Prior to the Illegal Immigration and
Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, Pub. L. 104-
208, 110 Stat. 2009 (1996), this provision was known
as “withholding of deportation” and continues to be
referred to as “withholding” despite the change in
the statutory language.
22 8 U.S.C. § 1231(b)(3)(A) (2008).
23 8 CFR § 208.16 (2009).
24 G.A. Res. 57/187, 10, U.N. Doc. A/RES/57/187
(Feb. 6, 2003) (“Strongly reaffirms the fundamental
importance and the purely humanitarian and nonpolitical
character of the function of the Office of
the High Commissioner of providing international
protection to refugees and seeking permanent
solutions to refugee problems, recalls that these
solutions include voluntary repatriation and,
where appropriate and feasible, local integration
and resettlement in a third country, reaffirming
that voluntary repatriation remains the preferred
solution, supported by necessary rehabilitation and
development assistance to facilitate sustainable
reintegration”). See also G.A. Res. 62(I), Refugees and
Displaced Persons A/RES/62(I) (Dec. 15, 1946).
25 OAU Refugee Convention, supra note 9, art. 5(1).
26 But see id. § d. Asylum from Persecution infra (noting
that while there is no customary or conventional
international legal obligation to offer permanent
asylum, the OAU Refugee Convention and the
African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights do
impose certain obligations upon member states to
offer asylum).
27 David A. Martin, A New Era for U.S. Refugee
Resettlement, 36 Colum. Hum. rts. l. rev. 299, 304-
561
Appendix C
11 (2005).
28 Id. at 307.
29 guy s. goodwin-gill, tHe refugee in
internAtionAl lAw 219 (1983); Martin, supra note
27, at 309.
30 goodwin-gill, supra note 29, at 119.
31 goodwin-gill, supra note 29, at 107 (noting that the
1951 Refugee Convention imposes no conventional
obligation upon States Parties to provide asylum
and observing that while states do grant asylum in
individual cases, this is not done out of a sense of
legal obligation and therefore fails to rise to the level
of customary international law).
32 But see 1951 Refugee Convention, supra note 6, art.
34 (encouraging states to facilitate the assimilation
and naturalization of refugees within their territory
and to reduce as far as possible the costs of such
processes).
33 OAU Refugee Convention, supra note 9, art. 2(1).
34 African Union, List of Countries that have Signed,
Ratified/Acceded to the African Charter on Human
and Peoples’ Rights 2 (Jan. 28, 2009), http://www.
africa-union.org/root/au/Documents/Treaties/
List/African%20Charter%20on%20Human%20
and%20Peoples%20Rights.pdf (last visited April 20,
2008).
35 8 U.S.C. § 1158(a)(1) (2008).
36 See, e.g. 8 U.S.C. § 1158(a)(2)(2008) (providing
exceptions to asylum eligibility for those who pass
through a safe third country, fail to file for asylum
within one year of arrival in the U.S., or who have
previously applied for asylum); 8 U.S.C. § 1158(b)
(2)(A)(2008) (providing that aliens who have
participated in persecution of others, have been
convicted of a particularly serious crime, are a
danger to the security of the U.S., are inadmissible
due to terrorist activities, and are firmly resettled in
another country may not apply for asylum).
37 1951 Refugee Convention, supra note 6, art.16.
38 Id. art. 22(1).
39 Id. art. 23
40 Id. art. 24.
41 Id. art. 20.
42 Id. art. 13.
43 Id. art. 15.
44 Id. art. 17.
45 Id. art. 18.
46 Id. art. 21.
47 Id. art. 22(2).