The Right to Equality in International Human Rights Law and Refugee Protection in Asia

Abstract

<p>In recent years, UN human rights treaty monitoring bodies (treaty bodies) have increasingly considered the relevance of core UN human rights treaty norms for states’ responses to the arrival of refugees on their territories, including in jurisdictions not bound by the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees or its 1967 Protocol (Refugee Convention). At the same time, the treaty bodies have also recognized that the right to equality and non-discrimination in international human rights law imposes duties on states to redress discrimination against non-citizens (including refugees) and on related, intersectional grounds. This paper draws on a dataset of treaty body materials from 2013-2021 (e.g. concluding comments on state reports, general comments, and views on individual communications), to examine these developments and their implications for refugee policy. The findings of this study shed light on the extent to which human rights law prohibits – or allows for – the differential treatment of non-citizens, such as refugees, and overlaps, supplements, or goes further than the Refugee Convention’s requirements. As such, it contributes to debates about the ongoing significance of the Refugee Convention and the potential of other, subsequently adopted human rights treaties.</p>