Migration

Are the boats back? Once again a reliable fear of “uncontrolled” immigration has been invoked in an Australian federal election. This time current Prime Minister Scott Morrison has framed “border control” as a question of “congestion-busting” in major cities – and instead of the usual

Picture this. At 68.5 million people, it’s the 23rd largest population on earth. There is no healthcare system. Going to school is often illegal. There is no social welfare. Its people have no democratic representation. Many are malnourished, poorly housed and have little access to basic

On Tuesday evening, the House of Representatives passed a bill supporting the transfer of asylum seekers on Manus Island and Nauru to Australia for urgent medical care. The bill, initially put forward by independent MP Kerryn Phelps in late 2018, provides expanded capacities that allow two doctors

The dramatic bid for asylum by Saudi Arabian teenager Rahaf al-Qanun became the focus of international attention this month when she barricaded herself into a hotel room in Bangkok airport after officials had told her that she would be deported to Kuwait. Al-Qanun took to social media, tweeting that

Imagine living on a low–lying atoll island in the Pacific and having just survived a severe cyclone. Your island is in ruins and you have lost everything. Humanitarian help is insufficient, your children need urgent medical care, but hospitals are not functioning, and your only hope is to join

This article is based on episodes 2 and 3 of the Good Will Hunters podcast, with Professor Paul James, former Director of UN Cities, and Beth Eggleston, Co-Founder and Director of the Humanitarian Advisory Group.  On 9 June, the first TEDx event to be held in a refugee camp took place in

The rescue of a four-year-old child dangling from a balcony in Paris by a young migrant from Mali, Mamoudou Gassama, made global headlines. Gassama’s subsequent meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, who promised him the documentation needed to live legally in France, has sparked

At the Council on Foreign Relations, Claire Felter and Amanda Shendruk explain “What is Temporary Protected Status?” In the past few months, US President Donald Trump has ended temporary protection status designations for Sudan, Nicaragua, Haiti, El Salvador, Nepal, and

A new study reveals that many of the world’s low-lying atolls, found mostly in the Pacific and Indian oceans, could be uninhabitable within decades. At The Guardian, Matthew Taylor looks at the implications of this for displacement and climate change–driven migration. The Economist has

Conflicts in the Middle East and Africa are causing dramatic increases in internally displaced people and refugees across the world. According to estimates from UNHCR for 2016, 10.3 million people were newly displaced by conflict or persecution; 2 million new claims for asylum were lodged; and

The Council of Foreign Relations has created an excellent backgrounder to the immigration debate in the US, covering everything from how Americans feel about immigration to the prospects for immigration reform. Despite the Department of Home Affairs arguing against the decision, the Federal

In The New Yorker, Bernard Avishai claims that “the absence in Israeli law of an inclusively democratic conception of citizenship, let alone democratic criteria for immigration” underpins the current refugee situation in Israel, where the government will begin en masse deportations in April.&

This year marks the seventh anniversary of the Syrian conflict, and the new edition of Forced Migration Review focuses on displaced Syrians. This article from the issue, by Margarite Helena Zoetewij-Turhan, examines changes to Turkey’s asylum laws that are leaving the country

Foreign aid fails to prevent emigration from developing countries, according to a new study from the Center for Global Development. The report finds that the capacity of aid to address the “root causes” of migration is “small at best”. Last Sunday, 22 asylum seekers from Nauru

In The New York Times, a new report and photoessay offers a glimpse of life for asylum seekers in Indonesia awaiting resettlement. UNHCR has started to inform nearly 14,000 refugees and asylum seekers that finding a new home is highly unlikely, and that they should consider

News Deeply has published a list of the top refugee issues to watch in 2018. The article names the refugee and migration compacts, the migration control policies of wealthy countries, the testing of alternative approaches, and questions over migrant returns as major discussion points for 2018

As a PNG police operation at the Manus Island detention centre continues, the UNHCR Regional Representative in Canberra has urged the Australian government's to take ongoing responsibility for refugees and asylum seekers on the island. Linda Bartolomei and Eileen Pittaway explain

The Guardian's Ben Doherty has published a special report from inside the former processing centre on Manus Island. The Council on Foreign Relations has published an interview with Human Rights Watch's Skye Wheeler focusing on sexual violence perpetrated against Rohingya women. The

As the situation on Manus Island deteriorates, the UNHCR Regional Representative in Canberra has reiterated its call for the Australian government to work with PNG leadership to end the humanitarian situation, take responsibility and find durable solutions for those detained.   Refugees in

The UNHCR Regional Representation in Canberra has called on Australia's government and parliamentarians to take responsibility for the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Papua New Guinea (PNG). Drawing on UNHCR visits to PNG in May and September this year, the statement flags the lack of services and

Reflecting on the failures of offshore processing, UNHCR’s Regional Representative, Thomas Albrecht, urges the Australian government to step up, share responsibility and do its bit to create durable solutions for refugees and asylum seekers. The ‘likelihood of successful assimilation and

With nearly 400,000 Rohingya crossing the border into Bangladesh, Secretary General of the UN, António Guterres, has called on Myanmar’s authorities to cease acts of violence, uphold the rule of law and allow aid into the country. Domestically, the Rohingya community has urged the Australian

Over 125,000 Rohingya refugees are estimated to be fleeing conflict and persecution in Myanmar to neighbouring Bangladesh. Meanwhile, reports indicate that the Indian government is preparing to deport the country’s undocumented Rohingya population. The European Court of Justice has dismissed