Refugees, Regionalism and Responsibility

The ongoing refugee and migrant crisis in Europe has accelerated the need to find answers for refugee movements. Refugees, Regionalism and Responsibility examines regional cooperation as a potential solution. Through a thorough assessment of past and present regional arrangements concerning refugees, this book considers whether regionalism has resulted in protection and durable solutions for both refugees and participating states. Penelope Mathew and Tristan Harley critically examine the merits of regional approaches to refugee protection through a detailed examination of five major regions of the world and five regional arrangements. As well as drawing attention to the strengths and weaknesses of regional arrangements on a practical level, this book explores the normative debates regarding refugee protection as a moral imperative, deliberating on why and how responsibility for refugee protection should be shared. It concludes by advocating changes at both regional and global levels to ensure better refugee protection and equitable responsibility-sharing among countries. This comprehensive and contemporary work will interest both academics and students specializing in law, human rights or the political sciences as well as those studying philosophy who specialize in the study of forced migration. Its eminently practical approach also makes this book prime readership for human rights defenders and advocates as well as policy makers and legislators in the fields of refugee protection and forced migration.