Individual Asylum and Refugee Status

This Act may be cited as the Refugee Act, 1993.

WHEREAS, the Republic of Liberia is party to the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, done at Geneva on the 28th of July, 1951; the Protocol thereto of the 31st of January 1967; and the Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa, done at Addis Ababa on the 10th of September, 1969; and

(a) to receive and consider applications referred to the Asylum Committee in terms of section seven and the decisions of the Asylum Committee on the applications shall be as though the decisions of the Commission.

(a) owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, he is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country; or

(b) not having a nationality and being outside the country of his former habitual residence, he is unable or, owing to well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is unwilling to return to it; or

(c) owing to external aggression, occupation, foreign domination or events seriously disturbing public order in either part or the whole of his country of origin or nationality, he is compelled to leave his place of habitual residence in order to seek refugee in another place outside his country of origin or nationality; or

1. Any person who is within Liberia, whether he has entered Liberia lawfully or otherwise and who wishes to remain within Liberia as a refugee in terms of this Act shall apply for recognition of his status as a refugee.

Such application shall be submitted through the Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to the Executive Director or any person performing the functions of the Executive Director in terms of subsection (5) and (6) of section six.

3. Unless it is impossible or inexpedient to do so, the Asylum Committee shall consider every application referred to it in terms of subsection (2) of this section within thirty days of the application being so referred, and may, either within such period of thirty days or thereafter, make such inquiry or investigation as the Asylum Committee thinks necessary into any such application.

5. Any person who is aggrieved by a refusal by the Asylum Committee to recognize him as a refugee may, within fourteen (14) days of being notified of such refusal, appeal in writing to the Appeal Committee of the Commission

7. Any person who is aggrieved by the decision of the Appeal Committee in terms of subsection (6) of this section not to recognize him as a refugee may within twenty-one (21) days file an appeal in the Court. The Court of Competence shall be the Supreme Court. The decision of the Court shall be final.

1. Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law, any person who has applied in terms of section seven for recognition of his status as a refugee and every member of his family, shall have the right to remain within Liberia- (a) until such person has been recognized as a refugee in terms of that section; or

(b) in the event of the application of such person being unsuccessful, until such person has had an opportunity to exhaust his right of appeal in terms of subsection (5) and (6) of that section; or

1. There shall be a Commission, to be known as the Liberia Refugee, Repatriation and Resettlement Commission, which shall consist of: -

2. There shall also be an Asylum Committee of the Commission.

(b) immediately notify the Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees of the presence of the applicant in the country and forward notice of the application, together with any documents or other information which the applicant is able to provide in support thereof, to the Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, who shall without delay refer it to the Executive Director in terms of subsection (1) of this section for the consideration of the Asylum Committee.