© 2001 by Oxford University Press
Practicable Ideals? A Proposal for Revitalizing the Rights of Forced Migrants in Islam
1 Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, USA
A perplexing picture emerges from portrayals of forced migration and refugee aid in the Muslim world. Some have observed that despite the volume of forced displacement occurring in these regions, most support for refugees appears to originate from external, non-Muslim sources. Alongside reports of refoulement, however, one can juxtapose examples of generous emergency aid from the Muslim world. In fact, Islamic principles of socio-economic justice and asylum and specific Islamic mechanisms for achieving social justice provide a framework for addressing refugee needs. What are the actual extent of and the underlying reasons for inconsistency between Islamic principles and contemporary Muslim practices towards forced migrants? Do the primacy of national interests and vast financial disparities between nation-states preclude the present application of tenets traditionally implemented at the local level?
Conceivably, Islamic humanitarian principles, or at least pressure to respect them, may substantially enhance both assistance and protection of refugees; policies of deterrence, exclusion, or expulsion may become too politically costly among Muslim countries. It therefore seems worthwhile to determine the prospects for Islamically-informed refugee care through investigation of pertinent doctrine and the current status of refugee assistance and protection in the Muslim world.
Received April 2000. Revised August 2001.