It is argued that, since the adoption of the 1951 Geneva Convention, the circumstances in which people are subjected to persecution that threatens their freedom, life or security, or in which people find themselves in other situations that force them to leave States of which they are nationals or where they are habitually resident in a stateless status, have changed significantly. In this regard, the definition of the concept of «refugee» contained in the said convention is not able to act as a reference point for the creation of a comprehensive protective concept that can actually ensure the rights and freedoms of these persons. Comparing the definition of the concept of «refugee», enshrined in art. 1 of the 1951 Refugee Convention, with the definition contained in paragraph 3 of section III of the Cartagena Declaration on Refugees of 1984, the author suggests the need to adopt a new international document fixing the process of actually expanding the scope of the concept of «refugee» in international law, and fixing a new definition of this concept. The definition recorded in the Cartagena Declaration on Refugees of 1984 could serve as a reference point for such a definition.
public international law, refugee, legal status of refugee, forced migration, international refugee law
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