Other Refugee Rights Links and networks

Refworld

www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/refworld/rwmain

Refworld is the leading source of information necessary for taking quality decisions on refugee status. Refworld contains a vast collection of reports relating to situations in countries of origin, policy documents and positions, and documents relating to international and national legal frameworks. The information has been carefully selected and compiled from UNHCR's global network of field offices, Governments, international, regional and non-governmental organizations, academic institutions and judicial bodies.

HuriSearch

www.hurisearch.org

HURIDOCS have launched a new, Open Source version of HuriSearch, its specialised search engine for human rights information. HuriSearch is a very useful resource for human rights researchers and advocates, academic staff and students, journalists, diplomats and staff of international organisations. HuriSearch searches the content of over 5000 human rights websites, with a total of almost 7 million pages. This content is always fresh, because HuriSearch indexes the content of these websites very frequently. Search results are based upon relevance of contents rather than website popularity - which makes the pages from smaller organisations more visible than on other search engines.

Refugee Status Determination (RSD) Watch

http://rsdwatch.wordpress.com/

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RSDWatch is a project of Asylum Access. It was launched originally in February 2005, as part of a widening effort by grassroots refugee rights organizations to promote reform of the way UNHCR conducts refugee status determination. The aim of RSDWatch is to collect and present credible information on the way the UN High Commissioner for Refugees conducts refugee status determination (RSD), to promote fairness, transparency and accountability in refugee status determination, and to provide a forum in which to discuss the protection challenges that UNHCR-RSD poses.

Vera Institute of Justice

www.vera.org/content/about-us

Each year, thousands of children fleeing war and poverty enter the US unaccompanied by an adult or separated from their parents or legal guardians. Although many of them meet conditions that would allow them to remain in the US legally, going through immigration proceedings without legal help is daunting. The Homeland Security Act requires the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) to ensure that qualified independent counsel is appointed for each  unaccompanied child in its custody in a timely manner. To meet this requirement, ORR contracted with the Vera Institute in 2005 to manage the Unaccompanied Children Pro Bono Project (UCPBP), which is developing and testing ways to meet the legal needs of unaccompanied children.

International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission

www.iglhrc.org/

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The mission of the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission is advancing human rights for everyone, everywhere to end discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. The website includes country of origin information for countries on every continent.

Centre for Refugee Studies’ Refugee Research Network, York University, Toronto

www.refugeeresearch.net

The Refugee Research Network (RRN) aims to contribute to the improvement of the well-being of refugees and forced migrants around the world by: 1) expanding our awareness of the global knowledge regime concerning refugee issues and forced migration; 2) improving communication concerning this knowledge within and between academic, policy-making and practice sectors in the Global South and North; and 3) alliance-building and active policy involvement in the development of national and international policy frameworks and humanitarian practices affecting refugees and forced migrants.

Refugees United

www.refunite.org/

Refugees United is an online forum that helps empower refugees to directly reconnect with missing loved ones. Refugees United administer the database themselves without involvement from any third parties. Both registration and use allow for full anonymity of users. A recent pilot launched to enable refugees to access the Refugees United website via mobile phone is proving successful, as an article on IRIN News suggests.

Representing Foreign Nationals

http://representingforeignnationals.blogspot.com/

A blog on cultural issues in criminal defence from the law office of Linda Friedman Ramirez, Tampa Bay, Florida.

Migration-Related Detention

www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/POL33/005/2007

A research guide on human rights standards relevant to the detention of migrants, asylum-seekers and refugees.

Human Rights Watch Report on the Netherlands

The Netherlands: Discrimination in the Name of Integration - Migrants’ Rights under the Integration Abroad Act

http://www.hrw.org/legacy/backgrounder/2008/netherlands
0508/

Important List-Servs

• Southern Refugee Legal Aid Network list-serv

To join the SRLAN list-serv, visit http://lists.fahamu.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/srlan-list and enter your details. Alternatively, email your name to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

• LGBT Asylum list-serv

To join the LGBT Asylum list-serv, email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

• Forced Migration list-serv