Trouble in Truffle Land Can truffle gatherers in Périgord continue their traditional way of life? Patrick Bruel Goes Retro... A fun musical flashback to the 1930s A Dog's Life... In a search for cleaner sidewalks an expat looks at pampered Parisian pooches Disappearing Concierges... Is the typical Parisian concierge becoming an endganered species? Paris Street Music... The sounds of the Paris street are the sounds of the world France's Legion of Honor... A look at France's Legion of Honor from a personal perspective In a Green Haze of Absinthe Absinthe inspired a generation of artists before it was banned in 1915. Will it make a comeback? A Search for the Ideal Cafe A ramble through Paris via the corner cafes SPECIAL REPORT ARCHIVE   what's happening and what we think about it   cool stuff to do music, art, food, etc.   Want to know more about Paris Tempo? Read this message from the Paris Tempo Team		Will Prostitution be criminalized? Understanding the debate... What the girls on the street think... How the traffickers moved in... What are the police doing... How customers see it... Were French soldiers serving in Bosnia and Kosovo made ill by radioactive ammunition? Is there a "Balkan Syndrome"... What are "depleted uranium" munitions... Understanding the health risks... Plus: The Danone Boycott... Mad Cow Scare and French reaction.. Political asylum and refugees' status... Dossier: Political Refugees in France Who is entitled to political refugee status in France? And what are the implications? One refugee's encounter with justice ... French policy on political asylum... Who is a refugee... Understanding the law... Debating the Definition of a Political Refugee The definition contained in the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees says that in order to qualify as a refugee, a person must: be outside his own country; have "a well-founded fear of being persecuted" for one of a given set of reasons; be "unable or, owing to such fear... unwilling to avail himself of the protection" of his country of origin. Now you can listen to ParisTempo's new musical selections online right here... Many of those who have survived agonizing horrors in their countries, and escaped to seek asylum abroad are sure their experiences qualify them as "political refugees." They seem to meet the criteria: expressing very reasonable fears for their personal safety if they remain in a home country where the system of "national protection" has clearly broken down. However, if you are being persecuted by a faction rather than by official state authorities such as the army or secret police, you may become a "victim" of a highly contentious interpretation of the refugee definition contained in the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. People with a genuine fear of being specifically targeted by "non-state agents" -- in other words, by groups that are not controlled by their country's government, or in countries that do not have a functioning government -- are not being "persecuted," according to the restrictive interpretation of Article 1A of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. In this view, persecution can only be carried out by a government or other "state-like" authority. An Iranian or a Libyan facing prison for printing political pamphlets critical of the government would probably be recognized as a refugee by every European country. However, in certain countries, including France and the USA, someone like the young woman from Sierra Leone who feared the violence of the rebel faction that killed her family does not normally qualify for refugee status and risks being sent back to a situation of extreme danger. While the definition in the Convention says nothing about the source of persecution, it seems that the "non-state agent" provision became embedded in the jurisprudence in some countries towards the end of the 1980s. During the Cold War, those demanding political asylum in western europe or the united states normally claimed persecution emanating from a state authority. How France Compares [Source: Amnesty International Report, 1999] USA: Undocumented asylum-seekers are generally detained until final resolution of their case; a process which can take months or even years. Many are detained with criminal prisoners, in the same conditions. Australia: Asylum-seekers who arrive without documentation are detained in almost complete isolation from the outside world, and are not told how to claim asylum or obtain legal advice. Detention is mandatory, and Australian courts have no jurisdiction to release detained asylum-seekers. UK: Asylum-seekers and are not told how to claim asylum or obtain legal advice. There is no effective judicial oversight of detention in asylum cases. It was only after the collapse of the Iron Curtain that the profile of asylum-seekers changed dramatically. As more and more asylum-seekers were fleeing civil wars, and fewer matched the classic profile, the welcome rapidly wore thin. Some observers say that the restrictive interpretation, which excluded all those persecuted by a non-state agent, was a way of cutting down the numbers. discuss this story Understanding the Issue: The Girl Facing the Judge Debating the Definition of a Political Refugee Political Asylum: Understanding the Law in France
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