BADIL Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee

Protection
Palestinian refugees in Lebanon and Kuwait are not permitted to own immovable property, and in Lebanon, building in and
around Palestinian refugee camps is restricted. In Lebanon, Palestinians are prevented from buying real estate, registering
real estate, and passing property on to heirs. A 2001 decree states that “it is prohibited to any person who is not a national
of a recognized state, or anyone whose property is contrary to the provisions of the Constitution relating to ‘Tawteen’ [resettlement]
to acquire real-estate property of any kind” [unoffical translation]. In Kuwait, citizens of other Arab states may
own only a single piece of real estate, with government approval and subject to reciprocal treatment. The owner must have
resided in Kuwait for a minimum of ten years, possess sufficient income and hold a clean security record. The property
must not exceed 1,000 m 2 . Joint ownership with a Kuwaiti citizen is not required in such cases. 152
4.5 Protection in Countries Outside the Middle East 153
4.5.1 Instruments and Mechanisms
The large majority of states in Europe, the Americas and elsewhere are signatories to the 1951 Refugee Convention
and/or the 1967 Protocol. A noteworthy exception is the United States, which is a party to the 1967 Protocol, but
not to the 1951 Refugee Convention. A number of states have also ratified the 1954 Convention Relating to the Status
of Stateless Persons, 154 and some are party to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness. These conventions
have been incorporated in varying degrees into domestic legislation. Together with national asylum and immigration
law, they form the major instruments of refugee protection.
More than half a million Palestinian refugees reside outside the Middle East in Europe, the Americas, and elsewhere. Most
arrived there as a result of either voluntary migration or forced displacement from Arab states of first asylum. National
protection provided to them varies among host states, according to national asylum law and interpretation of the relevant
international conventions. National protection of Palestinian refugees has generally been ineffective as a result of nonapplication
or misinterpretation of Article 1D of the 1951 Refugee Convention by national authorities and courts.
Status of Palestinian Refugees under the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees 155
Palestinian refugees have a unique status under the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. The majority of
Palestinian refugees are prima facie refugees (i.e., refugees in the absence of evidence to the contrary). The factual “trigger”
for the inclusion of Palestinian refugees displaced in 1948 as “Convention refugees” differs from that applied to other refugees.
Generally, refugees are considered to be “Convention refugees”, if the criteria set forth in Article 1A(2) of the Convention apply.
Thus, a refugee is any individual who:
[…] owing to well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of
a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable, or owing
to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country; or who, not having a nationality and
being outside the country of his former habitual residence as a result of such events, is unable or, owing to
such fear, is unwilling to return to it.
Palestinian refugees displaced in 1948 and 1967, however, fall under the scope of the Refugee Convention based on to the
criteria set forth in Article 1D, which states:
This Convention shall not apply to persons who are at present receiving from organs or agencies of the
United Nations other than the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees [UNHCR] protection or
assistance.
When such protection or assistance has ceased for any reason, without the position of such persons being
definitively settled in accordance with the relevant resolutions adopted by the General Assembly of the United
Nations, these persons shall ipso facto be entitled to the benefits of this Convention.
Article 1D was inserted into the 1951 Refugee Convention to address: (1) the factual circumstances of Palestinian refugees
at the time of the drafting of the Convention; and (2) possible developments relative to the protection of this particular refugee
population in the future. The intent and purpose of Article 1D is to ensure comprehensive international protection and assistance
for Palestinian refugees until their situation is resolved according to the relevant UN General Assembly Resolutions.
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