The rights of women seeking asylum: a charter

A message from Refugee Women's Resource Project at Asylum Aid

• Posted on Jul 4, 2008

Women come to the UK to seek protection from a range of human rights abuses abroad. Whilst some of their experiences, such as being detained for their political activities, are the same as men's, some of their experiences are gender specific. Many have suffered, or are at risk of, gender persecution, including rape or sexual violence, honour crimes, forced marriage, domestic violence or female genital mutilation in countries where the state fails to protect them.

In leaving behind everything that is familiar these women show remarkable courage. They deserve to be treated in a way that recognizes their particular needs as women and how their asylum claims are affected by their gender.

All asylum seekers have the right to be treated consistently, with fairness, dignity and respect in accordance with the UK's obligations under the international refugee and human rights conventions.

For women, this means:
1) women seeking asylum have the right to have their protection claims determined by an asylum system in the UK that is informed, in all aspects of its policy and operations, by a thorough understanding of the particular forms of persecution and human rights abuses that women experience because of their gender and of their particular needs as women;
2) women seeking asylum have the right to an asylum determination process that recognizes and takes into account their experiences of persecution and human rights abuses;
3) women seeking asylum have the right to accommodation, support and healthcare appropriate to their particular needs as women;
4) women seeking asylum have the right to be treated with dignity in a way that is appropriate to their needs as women and that ensures their safety if in detention or during removal.

The Charter is a framework of principles aimed at persuading the UK Border Agency to take both a strategic approach to the needs of women seeking asylum and to put in place the operational procedures and safeguards that will remove the discriminatory barriers they face. A multi-level approach to promoting the Charter, encompassing strategy, operational policy and service delivery, will be adopted in relation to the UK Border Agency.

The charter can be found on the Justice and peace resource page http://www.justiceandpeacescotland.org.uk/resources.shtml

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