Australia and the 1951 Refugee Convention

Argues that the implementation of the 1951 Refugee Convention is failing the interests of both states and refugees. Summary Australia’s signature on 22 January 1954 brought into force the 1951 UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. It is now time for Australia again to take the lead, by pressing for a review of the 1951 Convention and the international protection system of which it is a cornerstone. While the Convention itself has, by and large, stood the test of time, its implementation is failing: failing Australian national interests; the interests of the wider international community; and the interests of refugees themselves. Indeed, one of the primary beneficiaries of these failures is people smugglers. Australia has already demonstrated its impatience with the status quo and its appetite for a new paradigm. Offshore processing as currently enacted by the Australian Government may have served its national interests better than the current international protection system; but is still in violation of the Convention to which Australia is a signatory. The Migration and Maritime Powers Legislation Amendment Bill 2014 deliberately removes most references to the 1951 Convention from the Migration Act 1958. And yet, in other ways, Australia continues to adhere to the Convention, directly through its refugee resettlement program, and indirectly through its ongoing support for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The Australian Government’s current approach may be working in the short term, but it is unlikely to diminish Australia’s asylum crisis in the long term, and it is damaging Australia’s international reputation. The Government needs to look beyond its current policies and lead an international debate on reforming the protection system. This Analysis lays out the case for reform: why it is preferable and more effective than the current Australian approach; how Australia is uniquely placed to lead an international debate on reform; and what the focus of that debate should be. First, it clarifies that what is required is not a revision of the 1951 Convention itself, but an overhaul of the way it is implemented through the international protection system

Environmental change and migration: implications for Australia

This paper argues that Australia needs a national policy framework on environmental migration, as climate change and natural disasters could displace potentially  thousands of people in coming years. In the Pacific Islands region, climate change and natural disasters could displace potentially  thousands of people in coming years.  A significant number of these people could end up as environmental migrants to Australia.  This paper argues that Australia needs a national policy framework on environmental migration to manage the new flow of migrants in ways that maximise the benefits, but also minimise the costs to the country, including any increase in irregular migration. Key points: It is likely that an increased number of migrants will arrive in Australia during the next decade as a result of the effects of environmental change in Pacific Island countries. Even if the scale of any environmental migration to Australia can be reduced by supporting adaptation to environmental change in the affected countries, some migration to Australia from the Pacific Island is still likely to occur. Australia needs a national policy framework on environmental migration that includes continuing support for multilateral initiatives on environmental migration, capacity-building in origin and transit countries, and national legislation that leverages existing labour migration programs and targets a limited number of countries

Asylum Migration and Implications for Countries of Origin

forced migration, remittances, post-conflict reconstruction, development

Ultra-Early Blood Pressure Control in Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

Background: The incidence of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) occurs in approximately 10 - 15 per 100,000 (Labovitz et al., 2006 & Shea et al., 2007). Within twenty-four hours twenty-five percent of these patients die (AHA, 2012). Additionally two thirds have some neurological deficit and decreased quality of life (AHA, 2012). Re-bleeding is a serious complication prior to repair. The highest risk of re-bleeding occurs in the first twelve hours, most occurring in the first three hours with mortality rates as high as seventy percent (American Stroke Association [ASA], 2012). According to the ASA (2012), ultra-early blood pressure management is one of the most important interventions to prevent re-bleeding. These guidelines were updated May 2012 with recommendations to keep systolic blood pressure less than 160 mmHg. Purpose: The objective of this quality improvement project was to determine if the publication of the updated 2012 AHA/ASA aSAH Guidelines affected adherence, by Cleveland Clinic Critical Care Transport Team members, to those evidence based practice guidelines for blood pressure control for patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage. Methods: Descriptive statistics were used looking at secondary data from a retrospective chart review to examine blood pressure management during transport. The sample includes 137 patients transported by Cleveland Clinic Critical Care Transport with a diagnosis of aSAH in 2012. Data collected included length of transport in minutes and systolic blood pressures during transport. Data was analyzed and compared for the periods of January through June 2012 and July through December 2012. A chi-square test was used to see if there was a statistically significant change. Results: The data indicated there was not a statistically significant difference between the two groups. Adequate blood pressure management was achieved in eighty six percent of the patients in both groups. Conclusion: After a statistical review of the data was completed it was determined that there was not a statistically significant difference in adequate systolic blood pressure management (SBP > 159 mmHg) following the July 2012 publication of the AHA/ASA guidelines.A three-year embargo was granted for this item

No ciudadanos atrapados en situaciones de conflicto, violencia y desastres

Cuando los no ciudadanos quedan atrapados en crisis humanitarias, pueden ser tan vulnerables a los desplazamientos y sufrir sus consecuencias tan agudamente como los ciudadanos. Sin embargo, faltan marcos y capacidades para su asistencia y protección

Transición y desplazamiento

Afganistán experimentará en 2014 una combinación de “transiciones” políticas, económicas y de seguridad, cuyas respuestas serán fundamentales en la determinación de la magnitud de posteriores desplazamientos de afganos en los próximos años