Abstract
The “Safe Third Country” principle in international refugee law refers to a State’s ability to reject a person’s asylum application if they have already been granted protection by another country in compliance with the 1951 Refugee Convention. However, asylum seekers face higher risks of human trafficking because of their transient and vulnerable circumstances, and some of the most frequently implicated Safe Third Countries are consistently ranked in Tier 2 or below in the US State Department’s annual Trafficking in Persons Report; this ranking indicates that they are not in full compliance with the minimum standards provided in the Trafficking Victims Protection Act. This Comment argues that asylum seekers who have experienced human trafficking throughout their migration journey should be exempted from Safe Third Country agreements with States that rank in Tier 2 or below. It will survey Greece, Turkey, and the Northern Triangle as examples of States often deemed to be Safe Third Countries, yet have recurring difficulties prosecuting human trafficking violations and protecting victims; this Comment will ultimately propose a solution as to how these exemptions can be implemented in practice.
Recommended Citation
Emma Hazeltine,
Multi-Faceted Risk: Exempting Trafficked Asylum Seekers from “Safe Third Country” Agreements in States Not in Compliance with TVPA Minimum Standards,
47 Fordham Int'l L.J. 55
(2024).
Available at: https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/ilj/vol47/iss1/2