Regional engagement and effective protection: the Australian way
Professor Susan Kneebone (Monash University)
Public Seminar Series
Wednesday, 30 October 2013, 5pm to 6.30pm
Seminar Room 1, Oxford Department of International Development, University of Oxford, 3 Mansfield Road, Oxford OX1 3TB
A podcast of this seminar is now available.
In this talk, Professor Susan Kneebone will explain the coincidence between the Australian government’s ambivalent acceptance of its obligations under the Refugee Convention and its securitised approach to regional solutions for refugees under the Bali Process (that is, the Conference on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons and Related Transnational Crime).
Australia is situated in the Asia and Pacific region which is host to some 10.6 million people ‘of concern’ to UNHCR, representing almost 30 per cent of the global refugee population. Yet few countries in the region are signatories to the Refugee Convention, and there is no effective regional engagement leading to durable solutions for refugees. Professor Kneebone will explain how the highly politicised discourse in Australia on refugees reflects a long-standing culture of border control and the ability to use the legal system with impunity.
Refreshments will be provided after the event.
About the speaker
Professor Susan Kneebone, of Monash University, is a leading international scholar on refugee law, forced migration and human trafficking.
Contact
If you require special access or for any enquiries about this event, please contact:
Email: rsc@qeh.ox.ac.uk
Tel: +44 (0) 1865 281707