Families

“The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State.”
Article 16.3, Universal Declaration of Human Rights

United Nations Division for Social Policy and Development is devoting this 10th anniversary year of the International Day of Families to a reaffirmation of commitments made and the identification of further actions, including encouraging the incorporation of effective family policies and programmes into national development strategies; and encouraging regional institutes to promote and undertake research and development of policies related to family issues. This will culminate in a plenary session of the UN general Assembly on the topic of families. For more information, see the official website.

Forced Migration and the Family

Families often become dispersed when fleeing conflict, disasters, or persecution.  In these situations, separated children or unaccompanied minors can be particularly vulnerable.  While no explicit right to family unity exists in international law, it is recognized that the family is entitled to “respect, protection, assistance, and support.”  In the forced migration context, examples of this support include attempts by humanitarian agencies to (a) reconnect individual members through tracing activities, (b) reunify families through resettlement efforts, and (c) keep family units intact during asylum and immigration application processes.  For more information, see:
Jastram, Kate, “Family Unity: The New Geography of Family Life” (2003)

For more information on issues relating to family reunification and family unity, browse key resources and selected background documents in FMO under each of the following categories:

Research Guide

• Hart, Jason, "FMO Research Guide: Children and adolescents" (October 2002) (see esp. section 6.1 on “Family”).

Documents

Selected full-text documents (for more, search in the Digital Library)

• Alternative Information Center, Guidelines for Palestinians who wish to reside in the West Bank, Gaza Strip or Jerusalem: everything you wanted to know but haven't yet been told about problems of residency and family reunification (1993)
• Atkinson, Winnie and Mads Terman Olsen, Working with children and adolescents of refugee families in Denmark (1997)
• Donnelly, Nancy D., Family issues arising after resettlement (1989)
• International Institute of Humanitarian Law, Conclusions on family reunification.  Report of a meeting of experts 4-6 December 1986, Florence (includes 1980 San Remo Body of Principles for the Procedures on the reunification of families) (1986)
• Refugee Policy Group et al, Enhancing the self-sufficiency of refugee families. A manual for service providers in the Northeast (1989)
• Reichelt, Sissel and Nora Sveaass, Meaningful conversations with refugee families and the systems surrounding them (1991)

Web resources

Selected web-based information sources (for more, search the FMO website)

Relevant international instruments

• Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNICEF)
• EXCOM Conclusions (UNHCR) - see esp. numbers 88, 85, 84, 24 and 9
• International Humanitarian Law (ICRC)
• International Human Rights Instruments (OHCHR)

Country of origin information

• Global IDP Database (Global IDP Project) - individual country reports often include a sub-section on family unity in displacement situations

Operational materials

• Guidelines on Family Reunification for National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (PERCO)
• Restoring contact between families separated by war (ICRC)
• UNHCR Guidelines on Reunification of Refugee Families (UNHCR)
• Working with Separated Children (Save the Children)

The European Commission and the right to family reunification

For information on the recent debate in the European Commission regarding a right to family reunification, see:

• EU Developments (European Council on Refugees and Exiles)
• Immigration Policy in the EU: Towards a Common European Union Immigration Policy (European Commission)

Relevant Organizations

Contact details for organizations involved in family-related issues (for more, search in the Organizations Directory)

• Community and Family Services International (CFSI)
• European Coordination for Foreigners' Right to Family Life / Coordination Européenne pour le Droit des Étrangers à vivre en Famille
• The Family Federation of Finland, The Population Research Institute
• Family Health International (FHI)
• Family Violence Prevention Fund
• International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
• International Federation of Red Cross & Red Crescent Societies (IFRC)
• Separated Children in Europe Programme (SCEP)
• United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Resettlement Section (UNHCR)