40th Anniversary of the Geneva Convention on Refugees
Article 14-1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states: “In the face of persecution, everyone has the right to seek asylum and to benefit from asylum in other countries.”
The United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees – known for short as the Geneva Convention – was adopted on July 28, 1951 by a conference of plenipotentiaries on the status of refugees and stateless persons convened by the United Nations, pursuant to General Assembly resolution 429 (V) of December 14, 1950.
To ensure the application of the convention which, to date, has been signed by more than 140 States, a specialized agency was created to protect refugees and find a lasting solution to their problems. This is the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) whose origins date back to the creation of the Intergovernmental Committee for Refugees (CIR) during the Evian Conference of 1938.
The United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees – known for short as the Geneva Convention – was adopted on July 28, 1951 by a conference of plenipotentiaries on the status of refugees and stateless persons convened by the United Nations, pursuant to General Assembly resolution 429 (V) of December 14, 1950.
To ensure the application of the convention which, to date, has been signed by more than 140 States, a specialized agency was created to protect refugees and find a lasting solution to their problems. This is the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) whose origins date back to the creation of the Intergovernmental Committee for Refugees (CIR) during the Evian Conference of 1938.