The Socio-economic Rights of Asylum Seekers

The Refugee Convention of 1951 did not categorically provide for the socio-economic rights of asylum seekers. While the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Executive Committee has subsequently attempted to address these shortcomings, they have not categorically stated whether those seeking asylum still enjoy socio-economic rights recognised under human rights treaties provisions.

This book explores the tensions between seemingly universal socio-economic rights and the justification or legitimisation of differences in meeting these rights between citizens and those claiming asylum. The book provides an examination of the normative content of a number of core socio-economic rights for asylum seekers, in particular the right to food, water and shelter, right to health and the right to a decent standard of living. The book analyses the socio-economic rights of asylum seekers under internationalised legal mechanisms including the UN system of human rights protection, the European Union, and the Council of Europe. It questions the legitimacy of differentiation towards the socio-economic of asylum seekers that has been adopted by many states, and presents a persuasive argument as to the inclusivity of socio-economic rights for asylum seekers, while recognising the limits of human rights in this regard.

Liam Thornton is a Lecturer in Law at University College Dublin, Ireland.