This book explores the legitimacy of political asylum applications in the US and UK through an
examination of the varieties of evidence narratives and documentation with which they are
assessed. Credibility is the central issue in determining the legitimacy of political asylum
seekers but the line between truth and lies is often elusive partly because desperate people
often have to use deception to escape persecution. The vetting process has become infused with
a climate of suspicion that not only assesses the credibility of an applicant's story and
differentiates between the economic migrant and the person fleeing persecution but also
attempts to determine whether an applicant represents a future threat to the receiving country.
This innovative text approaches the problem of deception from several angles including
increased demand for evidence uses of new technologies to examine applicants' narratives
assessments of forged documents attempts to differentiate betweenvictims and persecutors and
ways that cultural misunderstandings can compromise the process. Essential reading for
researchers and students of Political Science International Studies Refugee and Migration
Studies Human Rights Anthropology Sociology Law Public Policy and Narrative Studies.
