STATE OBLIGATIONS TO PROTECT THE RIGHT TO LIFE OF ENVIRONMENTALLY DISPLACED MIGRANTS BEYOND THE 1951 REFUGEE CONVENTION
Keywords:
Cross-border migration, Environmental disasters, Non-refoulement, Right to life, State obligations.Abstract
Cross-border displacement caused by environmental disasters raises protection concerns when individuals fall outside the 1951 Refugee Convention but face serious threats upon return. This article examines the legal basis of state obligations to protect the right to life, the risk threshold governing removal, and protection measures beyond refugee status determination. Normative legal research employs statutory, conceptual, and case approaches, examining instruments and developments through 2025. The analysis finds that the absence of refugee status does not eliminate obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Teitiota v. New Zealand and the International Court of Justice’s 2025 advisory opinion confirm the relevance of environmental risks to non-refoulement obligations. However, protection requires an assessment of real, reasonably foreseeable risks and does not automatically confer refugee status or permanent residence. The article proposes individualized assessment, suspension of removal where necessary for effective risk review, access to life-preserving assistance, and periodic evaluation of return conditions. It concludes that protection requires substantive right-to-life obligations to be connected with procedures capable of preventing irreparable harm.
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References
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