ABSTRACT

It is nowadays widely acknowledged that international conventions and national asylum policies have tended to overlook the specific position of female asylum seekers and the gendered nature of refugee situations, thus failing to offer women adequate international protection. One of the obstacles for obtaining protection concerns the recognition of gender-based violence against women as grounds for claiming asylum. This chapter examines the contribution made by the Istanbul Convention to this question. It reviews first the main challenges to the recognition of gender-based violence as grounds for determining the status of refugee, according to the definition in the Refugee Convention of 1951. The contribution offered by Articles 60 and 61 of the Istanbul Convention to address those challenges is therefore critically examined, noting the aspects on which the claims of women victims of gender-violence are reinforced by these provisions as well as lingering issues and missed opportunities.