The refugee and humanity : a theoretical study of the enjoyment of human rights in the case of Hirsi Jamaa and others v. Italy

Abstract: This essay explores the refugee’s access to human rights in regard to the case of Hirsi Jamaa and others v. Italy. The status of refugee, official or not, entails certain rights and state obligation, but the correlation between refugee rights and human rights is problematic. The analysis of the case parties’ arguments for and against violation of relevant articles of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, shows how the parties define concepts crucial to the concept of refugee. The comparison of the summarized results with theories relating to the refugee conception and humanhood, conjures an image of the refugee as less than human, lacking a political voice, and in extension unable to enjoy human rights to the full.