Opinion editor's note: Star Tribune Opinion publishes a mix of national and local commentaries online and in print each day. To contribute, click here . ••• June 20 is World Refugee Day, set aside to mark the anniversary of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.
The convention was drafted following the devastation of World War II. Governments defined the term refugee and agreed that refugees have a right not to be returned to persecution or torture, the right not to be discriminated against, and the right to enjoy minimum acceptable conditions of stay and standards of treatment. The 1951 Convention is more than a tool for deciding who does and does not qualify to be considered a refugee.
It provides a framework, direction and guidance to countries to ensure that security concerns and public safety interests are taken into account in the operation of their asylum systems. The convention specifies the rights of refugees who enter unlawfully, and also underlines refugees' right to freedom of religion, education, protection from discrimination and access to the judicial system. Minnesota is a top U.
S. destination for refugees and is home to the ninth-highest number of refugees per capita in the nation. It has integrated refugees for decades, especially from Southeast Asia and East Africa.
Those refugees have paid taxes, created businesses, expanded the state's cuisine, raised families and developed roots. As the convention makes clear, refugees and asylum-s.