08/12/2026
against in : More Than Twenty Years Without Travel Documents
The Egyptian government and the UNHCR have kept refugees in a situation that resembles a prison without walls for more than twenty years, without providing them with travel documents that would allow them to travel legally. This prolonged situation raises serious concerns regarding their fundamental rights, dignity, and freedom of movement.
At the same time, travel documents are reportedly issued to Palestinian refugees. This difference in treatment raises serious questions about possible discrimination against African refugees and calls for a clear, transparent, and justified explanation from the Egyptian authorities and the UNHCR.
Under the principles of the 1951 Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol, refugees are entitled to effective international protection and treatment consistent with their fundamental rights. Any differential treatment based on origin or nationality, when not objectively and reasonably justified, may raise serious concerns under the principles of non-discrimination and international refugee protection.
Keeping refugees without travel documents for more than two decades has profound humanitarian consequences and deserves urgent attention. The Egyptian government and the UNHCR should publicly clarify the criteria governing the issuance of travel documents and explain why some refugees have access to such documents while others, particularly African refugees, remain deprived of them for decades.
This situation must be addressed through the principles of equality, non-discrimination, human dignity, and international refugee protection.
By: African Refugees Rights Initiative
Amnesty International Human Rights Watch African Union Ligue de défense noire africaine
