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Switzerland calls for protection of UN Refugee Convention

Switzerland calls for the protection of the Refugee Convention
Switzerland calls for the protection of the Refugee Convention Keystone-SDA

Switzerland has called on the United Nations in Geneva to uphold the 1951 Refugee Convention, which marked its 75th anniversary on Tuesday.

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“We must all feel a sense of duty to uphold the right to asylum and protect this convention,” said Vincenzo Mascioli, State Secretary for Migration, in a speech at the UN in Geneva, the very place where the convention was originally adopted. Although the agreement was hard-won after the Second World War, “we must continually embed it in our societies”.

+ UN Refugee Convention turns 75 amid rising political pressures

In the State Secretary’s view, there needs to be an even greater focus on those in need of protection and efforts to reduce the number of unfounded asylum applications. In a message, UN Secretary-General António Guterres paid tribute to the Convention, which has saved millions of lives.

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Translated from German, reviewed by an English Department journalist. 

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