EC/50/SC/CRP.17 page 5 (iii) Interception and irregular movement 26. Many intercepted asylum-seekers and refugees have moved from a country other than that of their origin. The phenomenon of refugees who move in an irregular manner from countries in which they had already found protection, in order to seek asylum or resettlement elsewhere, is a growing concern. The return of such refugees to countries of first asylum can be envisaged whenever the refugees will be protected there against refoulement; will be permitted to remain there and treated in accordance with 7 recognized basic human standards until a durable solution has been found. 27. However, in the absence of specific agreements to allow refugees who moved in an irregular manner to re-enter the country in which they had already found protection, efforts to return irregular movers have not always been successful. In addition, refugees who initially found protection in the country of first asylum, sometimes feel compelled to depart spontaneously, for instance due to a deterioration of protection standards in the country of first asylum. This may require concerted international efforts to address such problems, and to assist States in building their capacity to establish effective protection mechanisms, not least in an effort to promote international solidarity. B. The emerging legal framework for combating criminal and organized smuggling and trafficking of persons 28. In its resolution 53/111 of 9 December 1998, the General Assembly decided to establish an intergovernmental Ad Hoc Committee for the purpose of elaborating a comprehensive international convention against organized crime, including the drafting of international instruments addressing the trafficking in persons, especially women and children, and the smuggling in and transport of migrants. 29. UNHCR, along with other international organizations, has actively participated in the discussions 8 of the Ad Hoc Committee in Vienna. The Office shares the concerns raised by many States that the criminal and organized smuggling of migrants, on a large scale, may lead to the misuse or abuse of established national procedures for both regular immigrants and asylum-seekers. 9 30. The current draft Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Air and Sea, prepared by the Ad Hoc Committee, includes a draft provision which would authorize States Parties to intercept vessels on the high seas, provided that there are reasonable grounds to suspect that the vessel is 10 engaged in the smuggling of migrants by sea. 31. It is encouraging that efforts in this context are directed to elaborating international instruments which not only serve the purpose of punishing criminal smugglers and traffickers, but which also provide proper protection to smuggled and trafficked persons, in particular asylum-seeking women and children. It is important that the current draft Protocols maintain explicit references to the 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol and, as regards the draft Protocol against Smuggling of Migrants, to the principle of nonrefoulement. UNHCR also appreciates that delegations in Vienna repeatedly stated that these instruments do not aim at punishing or criminalizing persons who are being smuggled or trafficked. 32. The safeguards contained in the current draft Protocols should be maintained and, where appropriate, further strengthened, through appropriate references to international refugee law and human rights law. In UNHCR’s view, the elaboration of these two Protocols represents a unique opportunity to design an international framework which could provide a solid legal basis for reconciling measures to 7 Conclusion No. 58 (XL) of 1989 (A/AC.96/737, para. 25). Note by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, International Organization for Migration, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and the United Nations Children’s Fund on the Protocol concerning migrant smuggling and trafficking in persons (A/AC.254/27) of 8 February 2000, and Corrigendum (A/AC.354/27/Corr.1) of 22 February 2000. 9 A/AC.254/4/Add.1.Rev.5. 10 See draft Article 7 bis. 8