RefMig research by Ioffe & Costello informs recent Report by UN Special Rapporteur on Trafficking in Persons on Non-Penalization

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially women and children, Professor Siobhán Mullally has cited RefMig research by Dr Yulia Ioffe and Professor Cathryn Costello in her report to the 47th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council. The report refers to both the chapter on non-penalization and non-criminalization recently published in the Oxford Handbook of International Refugee Law, as well as a previous study conducted for UNHCR. The report endorses the argument developed in the Handbook chapter (pp. 929–39) that the non-punishment principle is a general principle of law in the sense of article 38(1)(c) of the Statute of the International Court of Justice (para 20). Specifically, the report develops the argument advanced in the Handbook chapter that the origin of the principle of non-punishment can be found in international legal system, including in article 31 of the Convention relating to the Statues of Refugees. Recognising the principle of non-penalisation as a general principle of law reinforces legal protections to be afforded to individuals who cross borders in search of refuge, including victims or potential victims of trafficking. The report also refers to the study conducted for UNHCR in order to determine the scope of the general principle of non-punishment, particularly the range of forms of punishment covered by the principle (para 41)