Law News
UNHCR
expands promotional activities on Refugee Law
Udatta
Bikash
The
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
(UNHCR) in Bangladesh plans to expand its promotional
and advocacy activities on Refugee Law and refugees' rights.
With this view, the UN refugee agency has been expanding
its relations and collaborations with different UN, government
and non-government agencies, academic and research institutes.
It
is learnt that UNHCR also intends to have a new partnership
with the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs
(MOLJPA). This may facilitate expansion of training and
promotional activities on Refugee Law in the judiciary.
The
Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, Barrister
Moudud Ahmed in a consultation on "The Need for National
Law on Refugees" in Dhaka in December 2004 said that
his ministry will take initiative to review the possibility
of accession of the country to the 1951 Convention Relating
to the Status of the Refugees and its 1967 Protocol and
adoption of national legislation on refugees.
The
consultation was organized jointly by Dhaka University-
based research and advocacy group, Refugee and Migratory
Movements Research Unit (RMMRU) and human rights organization,
Odhikar with support from the UNHCR.
According
to sources, the UNHCR Representative in Bangladesh, Mr.
Beng Cha Lee has been following up the matter with the
ministry.
There
is already a consensus among the jurists, experts, academicians,
and right activists that Bangladesh should adopt a national
legislation on asylum and refugee issues and pro-actively
consider the accession to the Convention and Protocol.
According
to concerned official, in the mean time, few law schools
and departments expressed their keen interest to introduce
Refugee Law as an independent course and seek assistance
from UNHCR. Among them, the Department of Law at the Southeast
University in Dhaka is mentionable.
From
last year, Refugee Law has been introduced in the Human
Rights Summer School organized by the Dhaka-based NGO
Empowerment through Law of the Common People (ELCOP).
Bangladesh
Bar Council (BBC) has also been an implementing partner
of UNHCR since 1997. Every year, they organize two training
workshops (one in Dhaka and another outside) on Refugee
Law mainly for young lawyers and one national seminar
to mark the World Refugee Day (20 June). So far, about
600 lawyers have been trained up by the BBC.
Being
commissioned by UNHCR, renowned scholar Dr. Borhan Uddin
Khan conducted a study on the theme 'Refugee Law and Practice
in Bangladesh.' It is now at the final stage, as sources
informed. The Bengali translated version the book entitled
"Refugee Protection: A Guide to International Refugee
Law" has been published by the Refugee and Migratory
Movements Research Unit (RMMRU) with UNHCR's support.
This is the first ever publication in Bengali.
The
writer is a human rights researcher and advocate.
