| CODE | CVL1032 | ||||||
| TITLE | Refugee Law and Society | ||||||
| UM LEVEL | 01 - Year 1 in Modular Undergraduate Course | ||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 5 | ||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 5 | ||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Civil Law | ||||||
| DESCRIPTION | This study-unit will provide the basic understanding of: who qualifies for refugee status and other forms of international protection; the refugee-status determination procedure; the legal rights, entitlement and duties of asylum seekers, refugees and other beneficiaries of international protection, as well as the practical obstacles which these migrants face in trying to find a long-term solution. It will have the following objectives: - To create awareness of the causes of forced migration in the world today; - To give an outline of the legal framework within which refugee law operates; - To provide a clear understanding of Maltese legislation for the protection of refugees; - To give at least a basic idea of core laws and conventions which can be used to provide protection to migrants who need it; - To highlight the main rights and obligations of asylum seekers and other beneficiaries and the three main durable solutions; - To make the study-unit as participative as possible, to encourage students to think about issues of forced migration and to give them the opportunity to apply the refugee definition in practice, primarily through the use of case studies; - To encourage critical analysis of state practice with regard to the reception and protection of asylum seekers and the law and practice regarding assessment of asylum applications. Study-Unit Aims: It aims to provide students with a general understanding of refugee law, as well as reviewing some of the key issues that arise in protecting and assisting asylum-seekers and other beneficiaries. It also provides an outline of the general obstacles these migrants face when integrating in society, as well as their legal rights and duties. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Comprehend the refugee definition, the concept of subsidiary protection and the protection to which beneficiaries are entitled; - Navigate the procedure for the determination of application for refugee status operates in Malta; - Comprehend the broader human rights framework within which refugee law operates. 2. Skills By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Identify some of the legal and policy challenges posed by the reception of large numbers of asylum seekers and the debates surrounding them; - Apply the provisions of local and E.U. legislation to given situations; - Demonstrate appropriate use of the applicable laws before a competent court or tribunal. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: Legislation - Refugees Act (Chapter 420 of the Laws of Malta) and related subsidiary legislation. - Immigration Act (Chapter 217 of the Laws of Malta) and related subsidiary legislation. - 1951 Geneva Convention on the Status of Refugees. - Council Directive 2004/83/EC of 29 April 2004 on minimum standards for the qualification and status of third country nationals and stateless persons as refugees or as persons who otherwise need international protection and content of the protection granted. - Directive 2011/95/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 2011 on standards for the qualification of third-country nationals or stateless persons as beneficiaries of international protection, for a uniform status for refugees or for persons eligible for subsidiary protection, and for the content of the protection granted (recast). - Council Directive 2005/85/EC of 1 December 2005 on minimum standards on procedures in Member States for granting and withdrawing refugee status. - Directive 2013/32/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 on common procedures for granting and withdrawing international protection (recast). - Council Directive 2003/9/EC of 27 January 2003 laying down minimum standards for the reception of asylum seekers. - Directive 2013/33/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 laying down standards for the reception of applicants for international protection (recast). - Directive 2008/115/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on common standards and procedures in Member States for returning illegally staying third-country nationals. - Regulation (EU) No 604/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 establishing the criteria and mechanisms for determining the Member State responsible for examining an application for international protection lodged in one of the Member States by a third-country national or a stateless person (recast). Main Texts - Goodwin-Gill G and McAdam J, (2007) The Refugee in International Law, OUP. - Relevant sections of the first and the third publications, published by the Hungarian Helsinki Committee – Available on www.refugeelawreader.org. - Hathaway J and Foster M, (2014) The Law of Refugee Status, Cambridge University Press. - UNHCR, Handbook on Procedures and Criteria for Determining Refugee Status under the 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees Available online at http://www.unhcr.org/publ/PUBL/3d58e13b4.pdf |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture | ||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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| LECTURER/S | Martine Cassar Jeanise Dalli (Co-ord.) Roxanne Meilak Borg Mireille Mifsud Clinton John ONeill Annemarie Pisani Chris Soler David E. Zammit |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2024/5. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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