Throughout the 20th century the international community steadily assembled a set of guidelines, laws and conventions aimed at protecting the basic human rights and treatment of a growing number of people forced to flee their homes because of the fear of various forms of persecution refugees. The process, begun under the League of Nations in 1921, culminated in the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its subsequent 1967 Protocol. As at 1 July 2001, 140 countries had acceded the 1951 Convention and/or its 1967 Protocol. When compared to the almost universal accession to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, with 191 States Parties, and the 1949 Geneva Conventions with 189 States Parties, additional efforts are needed to ensure wider accession to the refugee instruments. The year 2001 marks the 50th anniversary of the 1951 Convention. In commemoration, the first-ever meeting of States Parties will be held in Geneva on 12 and 13 December. In the run-up to the Ministerial Meeting, UNHCR is encouraging States to accede to the international refugee instruments and thereby reinforce the international framework for refugee protection.

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refugee immigration policy international agreement