Prestigious assignment for Terje Einarsen
Professor Terje Einarsen is the editor of the newly published commentary on the UN Refugee Convention.
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"The book is valuable for anyone working on refugee law issues and the refugee convention. It will be used by judges, lawyers, and politicians worldwide", says Professor Terje Einarsen of the Faculty of Law at UiB.
The 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol. A Commentary, Second Edition, provides a comprehensive analysis of the refugee convention from A to Z. Einarsen serves as the editor of the book published by Oxford University Press, alongside Professor Andreas Zimmermann of the University of Potsdam.
"The purpose of the commentary is to provide an objective presentation of how various articles and paragraphs of the refugee convention are to be understood. Additionally, the book demonstrates how the convention is practiced in various contexts", explains Einarsen.
Development Requires Updating
The first commentary on the UN Refugee Convention was published in 2011. Although the convention itself remains unchanged, there is constant evolution within international law. International and national courts interpret the rules slightly differently over the years, new conventions emerge, and new trends in national legislation or the development of new rules at the regional level all lead to continuous changes in practice and thinking.
"A lot has happened since 2011. This necessitated a follow-up now," says Einarsen.
High Level of Recognition
Einarsen has worked in the field of international refugee law for decades. He contributed two chapters to the first commentary on the refugee convention. In 2018, he delivered an interdisciplinary lecture in Berlin on the development of refugee law over 100 years, where co-editor Andreas Zimmermann played a central role in an extensive German research project on the evolution of international law.
This is likely part of the reason why Einarsen was asked to be a co-editor in the further endeavor of Oxford University Press. The publisher had a positive experience with the first edition, it received very good book reviews and sold well, and thus wanted a second edition.
"I personally consider it a high level of recognition to be asked to be an editor for one of the prestigious projects of this outstanding publisher," says Terje Einarsen.