refusal of permanent or temporary asylum has led, in a number of cases, to serious consequences for the persons concerned.249 1.3. Effective Protection The term “effective protection” is not an established principle of refugee law. It refers, however, to the obligation embodied in the Refugee Convention that refugees and asylum seekers should have access to “effective protection” and that “effective protection” encompasses access to or at least the prospect of a durable solution. The question of whether an asylum seeker or refugee enjoys “effective protection” usually arises in the context of secondary movements of such persons (e.g., 1948 Palestinian refugees who flee from their first Arab country of refuge) and in relation to deliberations on whether they should be granted asylum or returned/removed to the “first country of asylum” or to a “safe” third country. This issue will be further explored in the Chapter Five, The Interpretation and Application of Article 1D: a critical approach. The Lisbon Roundtable organized by UNHCR and the Migration Policy Institute in 2002 (part of the Global Consultations) discussed the concept of “effective protection.” They concluded that certain elements were critical factors for the appreciation of “effective protection” in the context of return to third countries: • • • • • • • 48 249 The person has no well-founded fear of persecution in the third state on any of the 1951 Convention grounds; There will be respect for fundamental human rights in the third state in accordance with applicable international standards; There is no real risk that the person would be sent by the third state to another state in which he or she would not receive effective protection or would be at risk of being sent from there on to any other state where such protection would not be available; While respecting data protection principles during the notification process, the third state has explicitly agreed to readmit the person as an asylum seeker or, as the case may be, a refugee; While accession to international refugee instruments and basic human rights instruments is a critical indicator, the actual practice of States and their compliance with these instruments is key to the assessment of the effectiveness of protection; The third state grants the persons access to fair and efficient procedures for the determination of refugee status; The person has access to means of subsistence sufficient to maintain an adequate standard of living. Following recognition as a refugee, steps are undertaken by the third state to enable the progressive achievement of selfreliance, pending the realization of durable solutions; UNHCR, “Executive Committee Conclusion No. 5 (XXVIII) – Asylum,” October 12, 1977, http://www. unhcr.org/3ae68c4388.html. Handbook on Protection of Palestinian Refugees