What do we owe refugees: jus ad bellum, duties to refugees from armed conflict zones and the right to asylum. Issue 3 (1st September 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Davidovic, Jovana
• Is Part Of: Journal of global ethics. Volume 12:Issue 3(2016)
• Page Start: 347
• Page End: 364
• Publication Date: 2016-09-01
• Subjects: Duty to remedy past harms -- just war theory -- displacement -- refugees -- proportionality in just war theory; International relations -- Moral and ethical aspects -- Periodicals; Social ethics -- Periodicals; 170
• DOI: 10.1080/17449626.2016.1245677
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1744-9626

Abstract

ABSTRACT: In this paper I focus on duties we owe refugees from conflict zones. I argue that it is important to distinguish between two types of duties one might have with respect to refugees from conflict zones. Belligerents from wars that resulted in excess numbers of refugees, I argue, have a stringent duty to remedy past harms and provide for resulting refugees. Other states have a duty to aid which is context-dependent and can be in some cases as stringent as the duty to remedy past harms. I argue that making a distinction between the grounds and types of duties different actors have with respect to refugees from conflict zones has significant consequences both for just war theory (and in particular proportionality calculations ad bellum and in bello ), but also for practical questions about how best to discharge our duties to refugees from conflict zones.