2 Who is a refugee

The 1951 Convention defines a refugee as a person who, owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion, is outside his country of nationality and is unable or unwilling to avail himself of its protection. Each element is a test: fear must be well-founded (assessed objectively as well as subjectively); persecution must be serious harm; the reason must be one of the five grounds; and the person must be outside the country.