Mr. President. last year the United Nations Commission on Human Rights of the Economic and Social Council voted to authorize a study on the underlying causes behind the growing movement of refugees in the world todayto review the connection between the violation of human rights and fundamental freedoms and the mass movement of refugees. To undertake such an important task. the Council appointed Sadruddin Aga Khan. the former United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. whom I have known for many years. A few weeks ago. Sadri issued his report. and I believe it is an extraordinarily important document. In considerable detail. and after many years of dealing with the complex diplomatic and humanitarian issues involved in refugee movements. he has reviewed some of the forces behind the mass exodus of refugees and offers some suggestions on how the international community can better deal with the growing problems they pose. Not unexpectedly. he has come to the conclusion that the international community must update refugee. nationality. and labor laws. and give fresh consideration to existing asylum practices. He advocates the introduction of an earlywarning system. perhaps under the direction of a Special United Nations Representative for Humanitarian Questions. to gather information and report on potential mass exodus situationsto alert the U.N. Secretary General and international agencies on refugee problems before they get out of control. His report reminds me of the findings of a Library of Congress study I released in the last Congress as chairman of the Judiciary Committee. It. too. underscored the need for greater diplomatic action to deal with the root causes of many recent refugee problems. as well as the need for greater international action to cope with them. As in the past. the focal point in any such international effort must be the United Nations. especially the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). However. the UNHCR continues to labor under many limitations flowing from its mandate. which was basically fashioned in the immediate postwar years and in the 1968 protocol to the U.N. Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. Since then. there has been a phenomenal rise in the number and complexity of refugee problems around the world. Yet. the powers and authority of the UNHCR have remained unchanged. Mr. President. I am hopeful that the recent report by Sadruddin Aga Khan will stimulate a needed review of the UNHCR and other international agencies to strengthen our global effort in behalf of refugees. and to deal with some of the root causes behind mass refugee movements. I commend this report to the attention of the Senate. and ask that excerpts from it be printed at this point in the RECORD. The excerpts follow:
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Refugees refugee refugees