What if refugees weren’t just subjects of policy but its architects?
This question continues to drive our efforts to build an integrated global legal community that champions the rights, skills, and leadership of refugees, stateless individuals, and forcibly displaced people. By fostering legal ecosystems that center refugee voices, these initiatives ensure that legal and policy frameworks are not just designed for displaced communities—but with and by them.
As part of this commitment, our Project Officer for Forced Displacement, Yusra Herzi actively engaged in two key events this past January that underscore the importance of refugee participation in decision-making.
At the 20th International Association for the Study of Forced Migration (IASFM20) on January 21 in Indonesia, we contributed to a roundtable discussion on refugee participation in policymaking. The session introduced a groundbreaking independent declaration (draft) advocating for the formal recognition of refugees’ right to influence policies that shape their lives. Developed by an international Working Group of refugee leaders, academics, humanitarian practitioners, and legal experts, this declaration aims to fill a crucial gap in international law. By engaging in this process, we are helping to translate legal principles into actionable policies, ensuring that meaningful refugee participation is embedded in legal frameworks at both global and national levels.
Additionally, she also participated in another important panel at IASFM20: Urban Refugees’ Experiences of Work. This session explored the deep injustices that forced migrants in urban areas face in accessing paid work, despite global efforts to promote self-reliance. Drawing on original research from Southeast Asia, Africa, Western Asia, and Latin America, panelists examined the causes and consequences of current policies and offered recommendations to improve work conditions for displaced people. Other speakers included Emily Arnold-Fernández, Martha Guerrero Ble, and Shaddin Almasri, with moderation by Emily Arnold-Fernández and Martin Jones.
These engagements align with our broader strategy of strengthening locally-led coordination efforts in key focus countries to uphold the rights and dignity of refugees. By bringing together legal professionals, civil society organizations (CSOs), and refugee-led organizations (RLOs), we are working to create sustainable mechanisms for collaboration. Our participation in these events is not just about advocacy—it is about building legal structures that recognize and elevate refugee voices, ensuring they are not just consulted but positioned as decision-makers.
As the global community rethinks its approach to forced displacement, together with our partners, we remain steadfast in our mission: to shift refugees from being passive subjects of policy to active architects of legal and policy change.
For more information on PILnet’s work and the Pledge, visit https://www.pilnet.org/our-work/forced-displacement/grf-pledge/.
