General Lecture with UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugee)

General Lecture with UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugee)

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

International Relations Department of Paramadina University was in cooperation with UNHCR held a General Lecture. The General Lecture was presented by Ms. Ayu Fitrisiana an Indonesian UNHCR staff. The topic was about International Refugee Law and UNHCR’s Mandate. For centuries, people have been fleeing their place of origin as the result of prosecution, conflicts, or generalized violence that threatens their lives, safety or freedom. They flee to find asylum and to find safe place to go. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugee was established in 14 December 1950 which its mandate is to run a UN refugee Agency to lead and coordinate international actions to protect refugees. As written in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Article 14 about the right to seek and enjoy asylum from persecution that has been repeatedly re-affirmed through resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly.

Asylum serves the dual purpose of providing a predictable and structured framework for the international protection of persons whose safety is at considerably at risk, while ensuring, at the same time, that appropriated and lasting solutions can be implemented.

The General lecture is designed to enhance the knowledge of the students about the right of refugees to seek asylum from International Refugee Law perspective and UNHCR’s mandate. UNHCR expected to be able to raise awareness from the students on the asylum issue in Indonesia and also to ensure that UNHCR and its expertise is deemed relevant and useful to the Indonesian citizens. The activity that UNHCR held was in line with the intentions of Indonesian Government to accede the 1951 Convention and its Protocol 1967 relating to the status of Refugees.