basically a problem of quite a number of government to take an
2 initial position. Let it just be said that as a matter of principle
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UNHCR does consider voluntary repatriation to the home country when- ever that is possible as what I would call the natural solution, yet everyone also knows and will understand that the necessary conditions have to be created so that people may and basically will elect freely to go back and that whenever they go back, condition under which they could start new lives would be guaranteed. This is not only true
9 here in the area, this is true for the main refugee caseload you find
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for instance in Africa. Think of the large number of people sitting, for instance, in Somalia or in Sudan. I spoke just before about this three million or so Afghan refugees sitting in Pakistan and for them, you know, most certainly that this specific problem of their return to Afghanistan is one of the main point negotiated presently within the overall settlement or attempt of settlement in Afghanistan. So that 16 certainly as a matter of principle, as I said, my office always
considers repatriation as one of the few solutions which have to be pursued and yet this solution or this very solution has to be implemented under strict conditions.
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QUESTION:
(by Robert MacPherson of Agence France
Presse) Do you think the time has come maybe to redefine the term "refugee" as it is known in the U.N. Charter, to perhaps expand it to include those people who leave on account of incredible economic 25 hardship?
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MR HOCKE:
Well, to redefine certainly not since I
feel that the initial definition is still in very many instances a very valid one. This definition, without going into the details, does
of individuals privilege if I may say so the criteria of persecution
for their belief on ideological ground or religious one, and this has 32 been defined as such in 1951. Since then we, I think, have to
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recognise that at least another important factor, or criteria, really is to be found as a root cause of people leaving their country and this is a criteria of violence. I think this is the very reason why the 0.A.U. for instance in 1969 came out with its own definition, adding to
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