Abstract

The paper discusses the applicable international, regional, and domestic legal and policy frameworks for refugee protection in Uganda. It analyses human and specific refugee rights instruments from the aspects of the normative content, assesses the drivers of such policy frameworks, and evaluates their implementation and impact on the rights of refugees in selected host communities in Uganda. Drawing on the travaux préparatoires of the international legal framework and the Hansards for the domestic framework, the paper interrogates the spirit and forces behind establishing legal and policy frameworks on refugee protection in Uganda. The paper argues that the debates around Uganda’s refugee protection policy frameworks are often blind to the political context in which these policies are pursued. It concludes that the political terrain of Uganda and its historical trajectories have led to the complex implementation or, at times, lack of implementation of legal and policy frameworks on refugee protection. The paper recommends community-focused refugee policies that are cognisant of Uganda's political and historical contexts.

Key words: Refugees, human rights, policy framework, legal framework, host communities.