Article 33 of the convention prohibits "refoulement" of refugees – ie removal to places or countries where their lives or freedom would be at risk on account of their race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion.
HRW argues that this dynamic is technically a breach of international law, since the 1951 refugee convention forbids the return or "refoulement" of refugees to countries where they may be at risk.
"It reaffirms the 1951 refugee convention, it reaffirms the institution of asylum, it reaffirms the principle of non-refoulement, of non-return [of refugees to dangerous environments] – and these are important legal principles that a number of politicians have in the past questioned".
In October, the Syria Needs Analysis Project, a group that tracks the humanitarian plight of Syrians, found "the number of refoulements of Syrian refugees has increased in September, particularly of those with invalid documentation or who have gone to Syrian and returned back to Jordan".
This crisis is an opportunity for Europe to uphold its commitments to the principles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the 1951 Convention on Refugees and its Protocol; to respect basic human dignity and the principle of 'non refoulement'; to uphold the foundation values of the European Union and the core principles of its Human Rights legislation.
The human rights group said about 80 Syrian refugees who were previously held at a detention centre in the Turkish city of Erzurum had been expelled in violation of the non-refoulement principle of international law, which bans countries from returning refugees to conflict zones where their lives are in danger.
"It was at the time of the refoulement to Oujda, when they [Moroccan soldiers] set us free, we were looking for a way to come back to the city.
It demanded Hong Kong return me outside of the framework of its laws, in direct violation of the principle of non-refoulement – the Law of Nations.
According to Balazs expelling refugees to Serbia — a country Hungary considers to be "safe" after amending its asylum laws back in August — breaches Article Three of the European Convention On Human Rights, which forbids refoulement: the expulsion of people who have the right to be recognized as refugees back to their home country or any other country where they may be subject to persecution.
Cochtel said the agency had "some concerns about the return of Afghans to Turkey" because they faced the risk of refoulement, being returned to a warzone.
Groups such as Amnesty International have warned that such expulsions violated the "non-refoulement" principle of international law, which bans countries from returning refugees to conflict zones where their lives may be in danger.
