Assessment of gender-based asylum claims under the international protection regime: The case of Afghanistan

The main aim of the thesis is to deliberate in which conditions gender-based violence can be evaluated as persecution and analyze legal documents concerning international protection regimes within the gender lens by considering gender-based potential asylum seekings from Taliban-governed "new" Afghanistan. The study also explores precedents about gender-based violence and gender-based asylum claims from international judicial and quasi-judicial organs and consists of a guide for their assessment of administrative courts, PMMs, and PDMMs regarding the particular social group. Parties of the international protection regime must protect against violation of women's and LGBTIQ+'s rights in Afghanistan because of the positive obligations in gendered violence, including Turkey. Within this context, the 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol generally cover the conditions for recognizing and ceasing refugee status and the rights enshrined in that status. In addition, the Istanbul Convention and CEDAW protect gender-based asylum claims, and these conventions are related directly to the study subject. Although after the withdrawal decision from the Istanbul Convention, this Convention is no longer applicable in Turkish law, it is also examined because of its noteworthiness and some arguments about the unlawfulness of withdrawal. Keywords: Gender-based asylum claims, membership of a particular social group, refugee status determination, refugees from Afghanistan.