Brussels, 17/06/2010 (Agence Europe) - As the European Commission announces a review of Directive 2004/83/EC, the qualification directive, on the conditions to be met by third country nationals or stateless persons to be able to claim refugee status or international protection (see related article), the Court of Justice of the EU, with its ruling of 17 June in case C-31/09, has interpreted certain specific provisions of this directive which transposes into European Law the obligations that drive from the 1951 Geneva Convention on the status of refugees.
Responding to questions submitted by the Fõvárosi Bíróság (Budapest Municipal Court, Hungary), the Court, meeting in Grand Chamber, said in essence that under the terms of Article 12(1)a of the above-mentioned directive, a person can enjoy the protection or the assistance of a United Nations institution other than the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) only if the person has availed himself/herself of that protection or assistance. The fact that the person is entitled to the protection or assistance is not sufficient to guarantee them.
In the present case, Ms Nawras Bolbol, a stateless person of Palestinian origin from the Gaza Strip, sought asylum in Hungary, not wishing to return to Gaza in view of the unsafe situation there. In Gaza, Bolbol did not avail herself of the protection or assistance of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), but, after being granted temporary right of residence in Hungary, under the terms of the Geneva Convention, she claimed to be entitled to unconditional refugee status as a resident of Palestine now living outside UNRWA's area of operations. She appealed against the Hungarian authorities when they refused her request and the Municipal Court asked the Court of Justice whether a person receives protection and assistance from UNRWA merely by virtue of the fact that that person is entitled to that protection or assistance, or must that person have availed himself of that protection or assistance.
In Bolbol's case, the Court responded that the specific Geneva Convention rules applicable to displaced Palestinians concern only those persons who are receiving protection or assistance from UNRWA. Accordingly, only those persons who have actually availed themselves of the assistance provided by UNRWA come within those specific rules. On the other hand, persons who are, or were, merely eligible to receive protection and assistance from that agency are still covered by the general provisions of the Convention. Thus, their applications for refugee status must be examined on a case-by-case basis and can be accepted only where there is persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, or because of political persecution. (F.G./transl.rt)