Decolonise How? The Refugee Convention at 75 and the stories we tell about displacement

What are the narratives embedded in the Refugee Convention, who do they include or exclude, and how do they influence public understanding of refugees today?

The panel examined the Convention less as a legal instrument and more as a narrative one: a machine for producing categories – “refugee,” “asylum seeker,” “economic migrant” – that shape who is recognised as deserving of protection, and who is authorised to tell the story of displacement. The discussion also explored how alternative frameworks from Africa, Latin America and the Global South could influence international understandings of refugee protection.

This event was moderated by Patrick Gathara, The New Humanitarian’s Senior Editor for Inclusive Storytelling, who was joined by; 

• Khalida Popal | Founder, Girl Power Organisation, human rights activist and award-winning Afghan football pioneer 
• Ewan Watson | Head of Global Communications, UNHCR
• Yafa El Masri | Lecturer in Geography and Global Development, University of East Anglia