The Geneva Refugee Convention was created in response to the Holocaust. In 1951 his undersigned swore that the world community should not leave the people alone again as Jews in Germany during National Socialism. With the extension of the Geneva Convention, opponents of Soviet rule found refuge in the West and displaced individuals from Vietnam or Syria began a new life in Europe.

The Geneva Refugee Conference is one of the great civilizational achievements of the post-war period. But just before her 70th birthday in July, she faces an end. Fewer and fewer states feel bound by their rules.

Under President Donald Trump, the United States has largely retreated from the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) programs. Australia keeps refugees stranded on islands off their coast. The European Union made a humanitarian effort in 2015 when it took over one million refugees, mostly from the Middle East. However, EU states have closed their borders. With the help of the European Border Protection Agency Frontex, Greece releases migrants into the sea, Italy sends boat refugees back to Libya, where they are tortured and killed by militias.