On 28 July 1951, states gathered in Geneva to sign a Convention that would become the cornerstone of the international refugee protection regime. Seventy-five years later, the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees — with its 149 state parties and its foundational principle of non-refoulement — remains the indispensable legal instrument for the protection of persons fleeing persecution. Yet the seventy-fifth anniversary arrives at a moment of acute challenge. Forced displacement has reached historic levels, while the political and operational environment in which the Convention must function has grown increasingly complex and difficult.
To mark this defining anniversary, the Global Migration Centre of the Graduate Institute convenes a roundtable bringing together expert voices from UNHCR, civil society, and academia to examine the state of refugee protection seventy-five years after the adoption of the 1951 Convention. Participants will assess the Convention's foundational achievements, the pressures it faces in the current political environment and the directions in which renewed multilateral commitment is most urgently required.
Agenda
Moderator: Vincent Chetail, Professor of International Law, Director of the Global Migration Centre
Introduction: H.E. Mr. Thomas Gürber, Ambassador — Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the United Nations and Other International Organisations in Geneva
Panelists:
- Elizabeth Tan, Director, Division of International Protection and Solutions — Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Geneva
- Davina Saïd, Head of Forced Displacement — International Council of Voluntary Agencies (ICVA), Geneva
- Alicia Giraudel, Legal Adviser and Refugee Coordinator — Amnesty International Switzerland, Geneva
Discussion
