The Frontier of Asylum website is the repository for a collection of ongoing and completed research projects exploring the reality of refugee protection in the 21st century. Focusing predominantly on protection in jurisdictions on the frontiers of the international refugee regime these projects explore the ways in which civil society actors and refugees use legal frameworks and arguments to protect individuals fleeing human rights violations.
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, all of us are changing how we live and work. The threat of the pandemic looms largest for those with whom we work, the displaced and already marginalised.
We are compiling resources for legal service providers and civil society working with displaced persons in the Global South.
Our Research Projects
(Past and Present)
Law of Asylum
The Law of Asylum research project (funded by the ESRC; 2016 - 2019) seeks to turn upside down the traditional focus of refugee law on the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and national asylum law. Instead, it examined the use of legal argumentation based in local legal frameworks to protect refugees in a selection of jurisdictions either not party to the instruments of the international refugee regime or without a national asylum system (Egypt, Hong Kong SAR, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand).
Access to Justice in Displacement
The Access to Justice in Displacement (2019 - 2020; funded by the GCRF) seeks to examine the operational challenges facing legal advocates for the displaced in the Global South, with particular attention to practitioners in the Middle East and Asia. Drawing upon the experiences of established organisations and practitioners, the project seeks to develop a collective ‘manifesto’ (agenda for action) with the community of practice.
Temporary International Relocation Initiatives (TIRIs)
A growing number of activists seek protection not through the formal process of seeking asylum with a State or UNHCR but rather through programmes of temporary international relocation organised by civil society. This collection of research projects maps this practice and works with the community of practice to develop and share good practices, particularly in relation to the wellbeing of individuals seeking temporary refuge.
Verandah of Protection
In 2015, local Acehnese fisherman gained worldwide attention by rescuing thousands of Rohingya stranded in the Straights of Malacca. The research project (funded by the British Academy; 2019 - 2021) explores the experiences of the fishermen (and other local actors) and the Rohingya in light of their legal consciousness and personal and collective experiences of violence and displacement.
Defenders of People on the Move
In support of the UN Special Rapporteur for the situation of human rights defenders, we conducted research and supported the drafting of a report to the UN Human Rights Council on the situation of defenders of people on the move. The report documented the deteriorating situation faced by those who defend the rights of refugees and migrants, including the lawyers who pursue legal advocacy and people on the move who advocate for their own rights.