UNHCR Inter-Office Memorandum No. 33/2002

UNHCR Field Office Memorandum No. 31/2002

To / à:	All Representatives, Chiefs of Mission, Heads of Liaison Officers, Heads of Protection Units, Regional Legal Advisers, and All Substantive Officers at Headquarters
From / de:	Erika Feller, Director, Department of International Protection
Ref. / réf.:	ADM-01-01, PRL-00-01
Date / date:	7 May 2002
Subject / objet:	New Guidelines on International Protection: Gender-Related Persecution and Membership of a Particular Social Group

This memorandum attaches, for your information and use, the first two guidelines in a new series of UNHCR Guidelines on International Protection to complement and update the understandings in UNHCR’s Handbook on Procedures and Criteria for Determining Refugee Status under the 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees (Reedited, Geneva, January 1992).

1. The Second Track of the Global Consultations on International Protection was designed to clarify various interpretative issues in provisions of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol. It did so through a series of expert roundtables. As a direct outcome of this process, the Protection Policy and Legal Advice Section of the Department of International Protection is currently revising position papers on topics which formed part of the Second Track process, as well as on various other aspects of refugee law. Each new guidelines shall be issued a consecutive number and shall replace previously existing guidelines or position papers relating to the same subject matter. Eventually the new interpretative guidelines will be brought together in a UNHCR publication, to be read in conjunction with the UNHCR Handbook.

2. As the first two in the new guidelines series, I am pleased to share with you the attached: (1) Guidelines on Gender-Related Persecution within the context of Article 1A(2) of the 1951 Convention and/or its 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees (HCR/GIP/02/01, 7 May 2001); and (2) Guidelines on “Membership of a particular social group” within the context of Article 1A(2) of the 1951 Convention and/or its 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees (HCR/GIP/02/02, 7 May 2002). Issues in relation to both were discussed at the Global Consultations Expert Roundtable held in San Remo, Italy, from 6-8 September 2001. Since this year’s theme of World Refugee Day is refugee women, we intend to launch the guidelines on gender-related persecution officially on 20 June and will let you know any plans in this regard.

3. The attached guidelines are public domain documents. They are intended for governments, legal practitioners, decision-makers and the judiciary, as well as UNHCR staff conducting refugee status determination in the field.[1]

4. All offices should bring the release of these guidelines to the attention of their government counterparts, as well as any other interested parties (e.g. the judiciary, NGOs, etc.). If you have any questions relating to a specific aspect of these documents, please do not hesitate to contact the Protection Policy and Legal Advice Section, DIP.

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[1] The Guidelines on Gender-Related Persecution should be included in the Protection Manual under volume I, B.2.8, replacing the Position Paper on Gender-Related Persecution (January 2000). The Guidelines on Membership of a Particular Social Group supersede IOM/132/1989 – FOM/110/1989 Membership of a Particular Social Group (UNHCR, Geneva, 12 December 1989), and should be included in the Protection Manual under B.2.1.