On March 4, 2022, the Temporary Protection Directive (TPD) was activated as a response to a mass influx of Ukrainian refugees. The Directive was ratified by the EU member states already in 2001, following the events of the refugee crisis caused by the Kosovo conflict. Still, it remained unemployed until 2022, when Europe faced yet-another intra-regional conflict. The implementation of TPD has generated a heated academic debate regarding the Directive’s essence and the motivations behind its implementation. Varying from geopolitics to racism, many reasons have been provided when reasoning the Directive’s current implementation and previous non-implementation. This thesis studied the implementation through a critical migration theory lens, with the aim of locating economic motivations impacting the decision to activate the Directive. Therefore, by utilizing the question ‘How can the motivations for implementing the Temporary Protection Directive be understood in light of the Directive’s economic aspects?’ for this particular purpose, the thesis found that the economic aspects of the Directive come to the fore both in commodification as well as selectivity of migration policy. First, the TPD beneficiaries’ unique migration category is generated through its differentiation of legal rights in – and access to – the host country when compared to the refugee status and subsidiary protection. And second, the TPD has the ability to select and therefore target specific groups through its limited scope of protection to cover either a specific country or geographical area. In this way, the thesis contributed to the discussion regarding the logic behind the implementation of TPD.

The aim of the presented diploma thesis called "Temporary protection of aliens in international and european law" is to introduce the concept of temporary refuge and temporary protection and tackle the various legal questions related to these concepts, both on the level and from the perspective of international law and the law of the European union. The first part of the thesis presents some (mainly doctrinal and UNHCR) defintions of temporary protection and temporary refuge as well as the definition of the concept of temporary protection enshrined in the EU's Temporary Protection Directive as the latter one represents the only case of regional and binding harmonisation of the temporary protection. The following part of the thesis deals with the minimum content requirements of temporary protection in international law, i. e. such requirements that should in every case be an inherent part of every legal instrument resembling temporary protection. This part focuses mainly on the issue of personal and temporal scope of temporary protection, the concept of mass influx is analysed in this part of the thesis as well as temporary protection as a legal instrument is usually intended to serve as a response to the situation of mass influx. Presented thesis also deals with the questions related to the extent...

The purpose of my thesis Position of war refugees in international law is to analyze particular types of protection of war refugees, to construe unclear legal provisions and to evaluate suitability of possible solutions. The thesis focuses on specifics of the position of war refugees and on options of their protection. The research question relates to the determination who a war refugee is and how his situation is solved in international law. The reason for this research is my great interest in refugee law and the current instability of the position of war refugees. The methodology used during writing the thesis was the analysis, comparison and description. The thesis is composed of three chapters, each of them dealing with different aspects of the position and the protection of war refugees. Chapter One defines characteristics of war refugees and addresses the issue of armed conflicts. Chapter Two concerns individual options of protection of war refugees in international law. This part concentrates primarily on issues related to the broader refugee definition, asylum and subsidiary protection. Within this chapter subsidiary protection is examined from a general point of view, as well as in relation to provisions of particular legal instruments. Furthermore, it pays close attention to the law of...

The purpose of this essay is to explain the reasoning behind the European unions activation of the mass protection directive in 2022, how well these motivations apply to the migration crisis in 2015, and whether the theories poststructuralism, Marxist critical theory, and postcolonialism believe the differences legitimize the decision not to activate the directive in 2015. The method used is a discourse analysis based on operationalisation of the activation of the directive and the main ideas of each theory. The result indicates that the situation during 2015 did lack a few of the aspects taken into account in 2022. However, all three theories argue that these aspects could be evaluated and seen from different perspectives, and therefore did not necessarily legitimize the inaction of the EU in 2015.

Many oppressed people wish to seek permanent refuge within the borders of affluent Western liberal democratic states such as Canada and Australia. Since the conclusion of the Second World War, the International refugee regime has established a global legal migration framework for contracting states such as Canada and Australia to grant admission to asylum seekers into each respective political community while retaining effective border control measures to maintain public safety. This thesis argues that the international refugee regime has suffered a gradual decline during the last two decades, especially during the post-9/11 era, primarily due to the dominance of the notions of national sovereignty and security in Canada and Australia. The author recognizes the importance of realpolitik and pays tribute to the concept of national sovereignty. However, he contends that the predominance and prevalence of the securitization phenomenon in recent years in both Canada and Australia, has given rise to a culture of suspicion which primarily perceives and publicly portrays asylum seekers as entities with ulterior motives. Such views have subsequently culminated in the normalization of national refugee determination policies which inherently favor the implementation of human containment measures such as arbitrary and indefinite detention and Temporary Protection Visas (TPVs); restrictive measures which inherently violate some of the core legal principles of the international refugee regime. The author recommends a return by both Ottawa and Canberra to a more balanced refugee determination system which is aligned with the 1951 Refugee Convention and 1967 Protocol and further explores several alternative solutions that may be employed by Canada and Australia to effectively manage asylum seeker populations in each country. / Graduate / gheshmat@uvic.ca

Immigration policies such as temporary protected status and deferred enforced departure can serve as suitable humanitarian solutions to help displaced individuals. Notwithstanding, when implemented in the course of many years, the uncertainty and stress of living in limbo can pose significant challenges to beneficiaries and create a multifarious scenario for government leaders. This qualitative study examined the experience of Liberians, a group designated with temporary immigration protection in the United States since 1991, who have consequently formed lives in the United States while in temporary status. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the effects of temporary immigration policy, implemented as a long-term solution on the security of Liberians and their successful integration in the United States. The study was designed with a case study approach, which yielded a breadth of data collected through semistructured interviews of 9 members of the Liberian community. The research question aimed to understand the perceived effects of long-term implementation of temporary immigration policy on Liberians and their ability to feel secure and integrate into U.S. society. The data were analyzed using content analysis and revealed that irrespective of the challenges and angst of living in limbo, and evidence of some degree of marginalization, Liberians have progressed in many ways and are contributing members of U.S. society. The social change implications of this research include providing a voice to Liberians and others in similar circumstances and the potential for policymakers to consider how temporary immigration policies are implemented in the future.

Humanitarian action faces challenges in engaging with LGBTQI+ people. Research has shown that humanitarian response to LGBTQI+ people are solely studied on the issues around resettlement, migration and legal protection of LGBTQI+ people. This study aims to provide a critical analysis to engagement practices of humanitarian actors with LGBTQI+ people in Hatay, Turkey. In order to explore this engagement, this study asks the role of humanitarian actors in identifying the LGBTQI+ community, the strategies used by the humanitarian actors to support the LGBTQI+ community, the consequences of humanitarian professions’ actions in Hatay, Turkey. This research is based on empirical findings of six semi-structured interviews conducted with LGBTQI+ people and humanitarian professionals. The most significant finding of this study is that humanitarian organizations refrain particularly from engaging with LGBTQI+ people because of the existing primary frameworks between LGBTQI+ people and Syrian community, and also between the Government of Turkey and humanitarian organizations. This leads to increased invisibilities, re-stigmatization and dissociation of LGBTQI+ people from the society.

Since Russia's military invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the European Union (EU) has acted in a different and innovative manner. The cooperation has been united and expressed itself in new ways, such as activating the temporary protection directive, as well as making a historic decision to send lethal equipment to Ukraine. However, in previous refugee crises, the EU has acted upon the status quo and suffered from uneven distribution of responsibility between the member states. The absence of cooperation and the pursuit for a unified identity have challenged the European Union's motto of "United in diversity," thus prompting research to be conducted. This case study seeks to examine how the social constructivist perspective, with a collective approach, can contribute to an understanding of the EU, as a global actor. The aim is to shed light on motives and factors that may have influenced the decision-making of the European union. To achieve this, the study employs a methodological discourse analysis of public documents from diverse institutions, thus the primary source. The results reveal that the social constructivist perspective can visualise patterns in how the European union discusses the collective, depending on different occasions and who is granted legitimacy to do so. Additionally, the study advocates for further research from a social constructivist perspective and suggests the inclusion of rational choice institutionalism in future studies.

En caso de desplazamiento masivo, resulta imposible determinar inmediatamente de manera individual los temores de persecución de las personas que integran el grupo. Precisamente, ante la realidad desconsoladora de la promoción de una protección internacional exclusivamente aplicable a un tipo de refugiados casi inexistente, la cada vez menos frecuente determinación en grupo y prima facie de refugiados, la proliferación de estatutos subsidiarios, el aumento del desplazamiento interno y las restricciones que imponen los Estados por motivo de seguridad nacional u orden público, se consideró que un estudio sobre la protección de los flujos masivos podría facilitar la obtención de una visión general del estado actual de la protección temporal y de las obligaciones que se han desarrollado para hacer frente a tales contingencias. A partir del planteamiento inicial de los retos y obstáculos legales que este fenómeno ha planteado para los Estados receptores y para la evolución del Derecho internacional de los refugiados y de la inexistencia de un régimen jurídico internacional universal que regule la protección de los flujos masivos, se ha elaborado una construcción doctrinal y práctica sobre la protección de esta situación en el Derecho internacional, sistematizando los distintos elementos que se han ido incorporando a esta protección colectiva.Se ha analizado la protección de los flujos masivos con el ánimo de dotar de rasgos positivos a un concepto que ha sido considerado como un avance negativo en el ámbito de la protección internacional. Y es que la protección temporal no tiene por qué reducir estándares de protección ni tampoco sustituir a la protección internacional clásica, que es la de los refugiados. / In cases of mass displacement, it is not possible to determine immediately the individual fears of persecution of those persons belonging to the larger group. It is precisely in view of the promotion of an international legal framework of protection exclusively applicable to an almost inexistent category of refugees; of the progressively less frequent group determination and prima facie determination for refugees; of the proliferation of subsidiary statutes; and of the increase in internal displacement and the restrictions imposed by States due to national security and public order, that it was considered important to undertake a study about the protection of large groups who are displaced to provide a comprehensive view of the current approach to temporary protection and of States' obligations vis a vis this reality. Taking into account the challenges and legal obstacles that mass influx situations have caused to recipient countries, to the evolution of International Refugee Law, and to the non-existence of an international universal judicial regimen that regulates the protection of mass refugee groups, this thesis has developed a doctrinal and practical construction about this form of protection in International Law, systematizing all the different elements that have been included in this collective kind of protection.Mass influx protection has been analysed with the intention of highlighting positive aspects of a concept that has been considered a negative advance in the international protection framework. Temporary Protection need not reduce protection standards nor substitute the classic international protection given to refugees.

After the attack on Ukraine in 2022, the European Union member states have experienced a major migration wave. This gave the EU opportunity to activate the Temporary Protection Directive for the first time, a framework that was created due to the effects of the Yugoslavian civil war in 2001 and which gives refugees certain rights upon arrival in any EU member state. This is also valid in Sweden. However, Sweden has recently been subject to a change in government which pursues a more restrictive migration policy, and an increasingly harsh and discriminatory rhetoric against migrants. Despite this, Ukrainian migrants seem to be exempt from the negative rhetoric pursued by Swedish political parties. This study aims to review whether and how the Swedish parliament justifies this seemingly preferential treatment. The research adds to the discussion on refugees and migrants in Sweden, particularly to the debate on xenophobia and threat perceptions against migrants, by using the theory of “new racism” and the integrated threat theory. The study applies comparative critical discourse analysis on perceptions of refugees and migrants in general, and towards Ukrainian refugees in particular, as expressed in the Swedish parliament from 2015-2023. The data used were gathered from discussions, debates, and protocols on policy regarding migration and integration in the Swedish parliament. The findings showcase a difference in the discourse around Ukrainian refugees and other, where the discourse about Ukrainians is more positive. This has implications for other refugee and migrant groups in Sweden, and in other EU countries. The discourse conducted by the Swedish parliament can incite violent sentiments in the Swedish population and promote further segregation in society.