The Refugee Convention 1951

This work provides the first authoritative commentary on articles 2-37 of the 1951 UN Convention on Refugees and is essential reading for practitioners, academics and researchers in the field of refugee protection. The Convention, which provides the basic definition and enshrines the rights of the refugee, remains the cornerstone of protection throughout the world. The commentary graphically illustrates the issues raised by the refugee problem for the International Community of the time and provides a valuable point of reference through the similarities it reveals to the issues arising out of many refugee questions today. It is a unique research resource containing comments and debates of representatives of those states who cooperated with the drafting of the Convention. The author's direct participation in the process which led to the adoption of the Convention by the UN has enabled him to provide an invaluable guide to the understanding of the text.