Articles |
Refugees in Russia: the Law on Refugees and its Implementation
London School of Economics ahoura_afshar{at}hotmail.com
Since the adoption of a new Russian Law on Refugees in 1997, the number of recognized refugees has dropped drastically. The Law has a definition of the term ‘refugee’ almost identical to that of the 1951 Convention. But many provisions of the Law are contradictory to Russia's international obligations. After a short look at the background to the issue, the Law on Refugees is examined. Then the implementation of the Law is compared with the situation before its entry into force. The difficult life conditions of refugees and asylum seekers are considered to be partly a result of the legal provisions and their realization. The factors that contribute to the present situation are discussed. While certain provisions of the existing Law need to be amended, it has to be implemented in order to provide international protection to asylum seekers.
MS received March 2005; revised MS received June 2005
1. The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) was formed in 1991 and comprises Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, the Russian Federation, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan.