The aim of this chapter is to inquire how the principle of human dignity applies to the political question of the treatment of immigrants and refugees. Human dignity is often given two related meanings: first, the intrinsic and equal value of each human being; and, second, a dignified human life, i.e. a life lived under decent conditions. Decent conditions imply for example freedom and education, as well as the absence of repression, torture and starvation. Both meanings are related to human rights; owing to her intrinsic value each human being has rights to freedom, health etc. Human dignity in the second sense informs us about the requirements for a decent human life, i.e. the content of human rights (Collste 2002).

Refugees and immigrants are in a vulnerable position. They are forced to leave their homes and are potential victims of exploitation and extortion. This chapter deals primarily with the political and ethical conditions for respecting the human dignity of immigrants and refugees. How can a ‘global political practice’ (Heuser 2008: 71) of respecting their dignity be justified from a moral point of view? There is a link between arguments for human dignity, human rights and moral cosmopolitanism. According to moral cosmopolitanism, the individual human being is the ultimate unit of worth and entitled to equal consideration regardless of such contingencies as nationality and citizenship (Beitz 1999; Tan 2004).