Covid-19, Border Closures, and International Law
Covid-19, Border Closures, and International Law

Author(s): Bríd Ní Ghráinne
Subject(s): International Law, Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, Government/Political systems, Security and defense, Health and medicine and law, Asylum, Refugees, Migration as Policy-fields
Published by: Ústav mezinárodních vztahů
Keywords: Covid-19; International law; pandemic; border issues; refugees;
Summary/Abstract: Covid-19 pays no heed to borders. Globalisation has carried the virus from a market in Wuhan, China, to almost every country in the world. In response to the virus, some governments have closed their borders to refugees and/or have pushed back refugees from their territories, even though they are well-aware of the dire circumstances that have caused these people to flee their homes. This reflection sets out the compatibility of such practices with international refugee and human rights law. It argues that while states may put in place measures to restrict the spread of the virus (such as health screening, testing, and/or quarantine) vis a vis refugees, such measures may not result in refoulement or in denying them an effective opportunity to seek asylum.

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