Protection Of Internally Displaced Persons
Inter-Agency
Standing Committee Policy Paper
New York, December 1999
The
Inter-Agency Standing Committee, chaired by the Emergency Relief
Coordinator (ERC), ensures inter-agency decision making in response to complex
and major emergencies. The IASC is formed by the Executive Heads of the
following agencies providing a good representation of today’s composite
humanitarian world.
Inter-Agency
Standing Committee
Food
and Agriculture Organization
Office
for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
United
Nations Children’s Fund
United
Nations Development Programme
United
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
World
Food Programme
World
Health Organization
Standing
Invitees
International
Committee of the Red Cross
International
Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
International
Organization for Migration
Interaction
International
Council on Voluntary Agencies
Office
of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
Representative
of the Secretary-General on Internally Displaced Persons
Steering
Committee for Humanitarian Response
World
Bank
Protection of
Internally Displaced Persons
Inter-Agency Standing Committee
Policy Paper[4]
Executive Summary
The
international response to crises of internal displacement has often tended to
focus on material assistance. Agencies now recognise the importance of an
agreed, comprehensive strategy for linking protection of, and assistance to
internally displaced persons. However,
the situation of the internally displaced varies from country to country.
Strategies for response must be designed to take account of the
willingness and capacity of national authorities to fulfil their
responsibilities towards the internally displaced, and of the capacities
and experience of agencies on the ground.
The Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Policy acknowledges that both International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights Law contain provisions for protection against forced displacement and against abuses during displacement. The Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement of 1998 spell out these provisions in detail.
The IASC emphasises that the protection of internally displaced persons must be of concern to all humanitarian/development agencies. The policy paper identifies fourteen strategic areas to focus on in order to build a protective environment and to integrate protection features into operational response and remedial action. The Policy addresses the need for advocacy, prevention and preparedness, including the promotion of the Guiding Principles. It calls for the strengthening of national and local capacities, and for integrated training activities. It emphasises the need for systematic efforts to support community-based protection and to develop protection strategies for women, children and other vulnerable groups. It underlines that, in ensuring the protection of the internally displaced, the search for durable solutions is a central concern. Finally, it recalls the importance of coordinated programming, monitoring and reporting.
The IASC reiterates that protection and assistance to internally displaced persons is, first and foremost, the duty of national authorities. It calls on agencies to maintain a collaborative approach adapted to the specific context of each crisis, in consultation with national and local authorities. The UN Humanitarian/Resident Coordinator (or where a humanitarian Lead Agency has been designated, the Representative or Country Director of this agency) is responsible for establishing arrangements on behalf of the war-affected population including the internally displaced. Under his/her lead, the Country Team develops a joint plan for responding to the needs of internally displaced persons.
At headquarters’ level, the Emergency Relief Coordinator (ERC) is the responsible inter-agency focal point on internally displaced persons. Under his/her leadership, the IASC and the IASC Working Group keep under constant review the in-country arrangements in crises of internal displacement in order ensure adequate support to a coordinated response.
Introduction
Protection
problems are endemic to the plight of internally displaced persons[5].
They arise not only as a cause of flight, but also during displacement and in
the search for durable solutions. In the past, international response has tended
to focus on providing assistance, with less attention given to protection
concerns. In
recent years, there has been a growing awareness within the international
community of the connections between protection and assistance. As a result, a
number of important initiatives have been taken in this direction. Nevertheless,
the meaning of protection at a general level, and for internally displaced
persons in particular, is yet to be fully conceptualised.
The
Emergency Relief Coordinator (ERC), the Representative of the Secretary-General
on internally displaced persons (RSG on IDPs) and the High Commissioner for
Human Rights (HCHR), looking to enhance their collaborative efforts relating to
the protection of internally displaced persons, agreed that it would be useful
to prepare a joint policy paper on this subject.
A first draft of this paper was presented to the Inter-Agency Standing
Committee Working Group (IASC-WG) at its 29 January 1999 meeting. It was
suggested that this paper be further developed within the IASC-WG. A one-day
inter-agency workshop was organised to review the paper and all IASC members
were encouraged to contribute to the paper in order to ensure that it would
reflect the views of the IASC as a whole.
The
objective of the paper is to outline the IASC policy on the protection of
internally displaced persons. Section I of the paper examines the nature and
content of protection for internally displaced persons.
Section II sets out a number of strategic areas of activity for ensuring
that these protection responsibilities are discharged effectively.
Section III contains a short analysis of the responsibilities for action.
Finally, Section IV aims at developing basic principles
for allocating responsibilities in specific country situations in the hope of
increasing the predictability of response and facilitating the work of the
Humanitarian Coordinators and/or Resident Coordinators (HC/RCs[6])
in addressing gaps. For reference, an outline of the
different approaches of agencies in addressing these needs is presented in Annex
A. The Supplementary Guidance[7]
to HC/RC on their responsibilities in relation to
internally displaced persons is also attached in Annex B.
Flexible strategies for responding to situations of internal displacement will need to vary depending upon the competencies and comparative strengths of the international actors and agencies, as well as upon the different contexts in which internal displacement occurs. In particular, strategies for addressing the protection needs of internally displaced persons will differ depending upon how national authorities respond in fulfilling their responsibilities towards the displaced. A number of scenarios are possible. National authorities may be willing to respond to the needs of internally displaced persons and possess the necessary resources, or they may be willing to respond but lack the required resources. In other cases, national authorities may be either passively unwilling to respond to the needs of the displaced, or even be obstructive of international efforts to address those needs.
This paper seeks to broadly outline some major elements which together constitute the field of protection in internal displacement situations. It makes no attempt to provide definitive answers to all the complex questions posed by those situations. The paper is part of a growing effort on the part of the international organisations to address more proactively the needs of internally displaced persons, to assess and analyse those needs, and to act when the rights of internally displaced persons are being violated.
I- Nature of Protection for Internally Displaced Persons
The
concept of protection encompasses all activities aimed at obtaining full respect
for the rights of the individual in accordance with the letter and the spirit of
the relevant bodies of law (i.e. HR law, IHL, refugee law).[8]
For
the purpose of this paper we have adopted the above definition used in 1999
Workshop of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) on Protection.
This definition is particularly comprehensive in scope, both in terms of
the legal framework for protection, (“full respect”), and in
terms of the strategies and methods by which protection may be achieved (“all
activities”).
Unlike
refugees, internally displaced persons have not crossed an international border. As such, no single international legal instrument is
exclusively devoted to their specific protection needs.
Internally displaced persons are covered by the laws of their own
country, and the State is responsible for assisting and protecting them. Under
human rights law, which remains relevant in most cases of internal displacement[9],
they
are entitled to enjoy, in full equality, the same rights and freedoms under
domestic and international law as the rest of a country’s citizens.
Whenever internally displaced persons find themselves in a situation of armed conflict, they are also protected by international humanitarian law (IHL). In international armed conflicts this includes in particular the Fourth Geneva Convention and Protocol I Additional to the Geneva Conventions, and in non-international armed conflicts Article 3 common to the Geneva Conventions and Protocol II thereto. IHL provides important protection for those who have already been uprooted, and, most importantly, against arbitrary displacement.
This is done in several ways. First, the rules governing the conduct of hostilities prohibit attacks against civilians and destruction of objects indispensable to their survival, such as crops, livestock and drinking water installations. Second, humanitarian law provides that civilians be treated in a humane manner and protects them from abuses committed by the party under whose power they find themselves. Together, these rules seek to preserve a minimum of safety and a basis for subsistence, both of which are essential to allow persons to remain in their homes, and as guarantees for those who have already been displaced. In addition, humanitarian law contains express prohibitions against arbitrary displacement, and regulates the conditions under which evacuations can be carried out.
Accordingly, the implementation of IHL constitutes an important form of protection. Efforts to promote such respect include drawing the attention of the parties to existing humanitarian problems, reminding them of their legal obligations and facilitating contacts between them for the purpose of enhancing the protection of civilians.
Drawing
upon the relevant provisions of these standards of international law, and
refugee law by analogy, the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement,
published in 1998, represent the first comprehensive attempt to articulate what
protection should mean for the internally displaced.
The Guiding Principles identify the rights and guarantees relevant
to the protection of internally displaced persons in all phases of displacement.
They outline standards for protection against arbitrary displacement, protection
and assistance during displacement, and for safe return or resettlement and
reintegration. Protection
as elaborated in the Principles
covers not only needs for physical security and safety but also the broad range
of rights provided for in international law (including the right to food, to
education and to employment, for instance).
The
Principles, it should be noted, do not seek to create a privileged category of
persons or to establish a separate legal status for the internally displaced.
Rather, they are based on the assumption that internally displaced
persons have the same rights and obligations as other persons living in their
own state. At the same time,
however, they draw
attention to the importance of recognising the particular
situation and needs of internally
displaced persons. Although not a legally binding document as such, the
Principles reflect and are consistent with international human rights and
humanitarian law, and refugee law by analogy, which are binding.
Having
gained broad consensus, the Principles provide solid guidance on how
protection activities should be oriented in order to be effective. Notwithstanding
the importance of basing protection on principles of national and international
law, it nonetheless is true that the protection of displaced persons
“frequently will depend on non-legal skills and initiatives”[10].
In other words, action is required to translate protection principles into
effective protection on the ground. Action
should also be focused on the
search for durable solutions. For the essence of protection activities is the
search for solutions which might ensure or restore rights.
II-
Strategic Areas for Protection
While
there is growing recognition among humanitarian and development agencies of
their responsibilities in the area of protection, including to internally
displaced persons, there remains a need to give practical meaning to such
commitment. Traditionally,
humanitarian and development agencies lacking an explicit protection mandate
have tended to conceive of protection for internally displaced persons as
falling outside the scope of their work.
Their protection role
has been limited to the extent that the provision of assistance does in itself
constitute a form of protection. As such,
the traditional work of humanitarian and development agencies is, indeed,
inherently rights-based and the distinction between protection and assistance is
false. However, human rights protection cannot be done by halves, it involves the assurance of
the whole set of rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
As the High Commissioner for Human Rights has said, it means ensuring “all
human rights for all”.
The challenge of strategic programming in situations of internal displacement is
therefore to ensure that this
“all” includes the internally displaced and that “all” their rights are
respected.
The
ICRC 1999 Workshop on Protection identified three categories under which
different types of protection activities could be grouped: (i.) Environment Building, to include any activity aimed at creating
and/or consolidating a global environment conducive to full respect for the
rights of individuals; (ii.) Responsive
Action, to include any activity undertaken in the context of an emerging or
established pattern of abuse and aimed at prevention and/or alleviating its
immediate effects; and (iii.) Remedial
Action, to include any activity aimed at restoring dignified living
conditions through rehabilitation, restitution, and reparation.
This
typology helps explain the broadly defined meaning of protection. It is also
useful for a clearer identification of the roles and collaborative arrangements
in a comprehensive strategy for the protection of internally displaced persons. Following this outline, a number
of strategic areas relevant to protection work in situations of internal
displacement have been identified.
Environment
Building
Dissemination
and promotion
of the Guiding Principles: In
its decision of 26 March 1998,
the IASC IASC members are
encouraged member organisations to bring the Guiding Principles to the attention of their Executive
Boards and to share them with their staff, especially those in the field. Since
then, the Principles have been largely integrated into
institutional policies and programmes. OCHA has published them as a booklet in various languages
(English, French, Spanish, Portuguese). Translations also exist in Azerbaijani,
Georgian (undertaken by local NGOs with the support of UNHCR) and Greek
(undertaken by Amnesty International). In addition, a French translation of the Compilation and Analysis of
Legal Norms[11]
on which the Principles are based is planned.
Yet,
the effectiveness of the Principles as a protection tool depends on the extent
to which they are respected by the various concerned actors, including the
international community. The IASC, in its above-cited decision, has encouraged
its members to apply the Principles in their activities. The Principles should
be used by the agencies as a benchmark against which to assess assistance and/or
protection activities in their areas of responsibility. An integrated country
team approach should be adopted when applying
the Principles at field level, the responsibility for which would fall to the HC/RC at
field level, in cooperation with the IASC-WG.
Advocacy
The
main aim of advocacy is to give victims a voice and ensure that humanitarian
issues and concerns are taken into account.
Active and assertive advocacy for the rights of internally displaced
persons can be an essential component of protection efforts.
Greater awareness of
the rights of internally displaced persons as well as of their condition and
needs, must be promoted with national leaders, international organisations, the
media, donors and parties to conflicts.
Where
violations of relevant international provisions, as spelled out in the Guiding
Principles, occur, field staff of UN agencies, NGOs and international
organisations should ensure that the information is communicated to officials and/or
institutions that are in a position to act upon it. These include the HC/RC, the OHCHR, the ICRC or UN Agencies
with a special expertise or responsibility in this field.
In turn, these mandated actors
should make representations directly to the competent authorities or other
parties with influence over the territory where violations are occurring,
including: UN Peacekeeping Forces, UN Police monitoring units, and bilateral or
regional military contingents assisting with peacekeeping.
When
undertaking advocacy efforts, the situation must be carefully examined to
determine what type of advocacy will be most effective and what are the possible
points of entry. The safety and security of field staff must also be kept in
mind. Common stands by human rights, humanitarian and development agencies can
be particularly effective. At the
same time they reduce the risks related to agencies acting separately or alone.
Effective
advocacy has to be done locally. Nevertheless, as a matter of course,At a minimum, information on internally displaced
persons should
be brought to the attention of the officials and/or institutions, at
headquarters level, who are specifically mandated to engage in advocacy for the protection of
internally displaced persons. In particular, the ERC’s function enables him to
effectively use mechanisms such as addressing the Security Council and contributing to the
Secretary-General’s reports to the ECOSOC and the General Assembly
to draw the attention of
the international community to such protection
problems. Furthermore,
the ERC and the HCHR, in their function as members of the Secretary-General’s
Executive Committees, are in a strong position to promote an active and
concerted response from within the UN system to such problems as they evolve.
The regular reports of the RSG on IDPs to the Commission on Human Rights, as
well as his contacts during official country visits, provide additional
platforms for high-level advocacy.
Engaging non-state actors:
With internal armed conflict constituting one of the main cause of
internal displacement, strategies for engaging not only Government authorities
but also other parties to the conflict in the protection of the internally
displaced need to be developed. It is important that efforts at engaging
non-state actors be linked to the dissemination, training and advocacy
activities outlined in this paper. Such efforts should be integrated in the
overall coordination efforts under the leadership of the HC/RC and should take
fully into account on-going activities of other international organisation to
avoid ineffective duplications. Dialogue
with non-state actors should retain a strictly humanitarian character.
Prevention of displacement, early warning and awareness
“Today’s
human rights abuses are tomorrow’s refugees and internally displaced”[12].
Sustained attention should be given to prevention activities, so-called preventive
protection, to diminish the risk of displacement. In particular, activities
to address root causes of conflict, and the mitigation of violations and abuses
are required.
A
protection perspective and a displacement risk assessment should be integrated
into all aspects of early warning analysis of countries and communities in
crisis. Supporting early warning
initiatives within the humanitarian sphere can strengthen the capacity and
ability to anticipate and mitigate situations causing internal displacement.
Therefore, field staff of UN agencies, NGOs and international organisations as
well as local authorities should be encouraged to provide information on
impending situations of internal displacement and communicate it to the HC/RC
and other Agencies with a special expertise or responsibility at field level. In
turn, these mandated actors, would be responsible for informing the IASC-WG, the
ERC and the RSG on IDPs.
Making
populations at risk aware of their rights can serve as a preventive measure.
Through human rights training, awareness campaigns, and advocacy with local
leaders, communities can be empowered to protect themselves and reclaim their
rights. In particular, local organisations and the internally displaced persons
themselves should play an active role in providing information on imminent
situations of internal displacement.
Establishing
an international humanitarian presence among internally displaced persons is
often an important step towards ensuring their
protection. Experience in this field suggests that in certain circumstances, the
presence of expatriates “watching and listening”
has, at times, been found to deter, or at least mitigate, human rights
violations.
Preparedness
To
be effective, early warning capacity needs to be linked to timely and decisive
response mechanisms on both the national and international level. Periodic
review by the IASC-WG of situations identified as possibly leading to mass
displacement could make an important contribution to ensuring appropriate
contingency planning including technical cooperation with the authorities.
Furthermore, the Country Team should be responsible for ensuring that the
emergency pipelines are capable of meeting anticipated needs. Activities such as
the pre-positioning of staff, transport, shelter, material and food and medical
supplies should be ensured in impending situations of internal displacement.
Strengthening local and national protection capacity
It
is essential to assist the authorities in discharging their responsibility to
internally displaced persons and to strengthen the national capacity, not only
for emergency response but also for human rights protection. Such
assistance is especially effective where the State experiencing displacement is
willing but not able to discharge its protection responsibilities. The
assistance may take the form of technical cooperation
and advisory services programmes as well as programmes for good governance.
Training
An
integrated training programme on the protection, assistance and reintegration of
internally displaced persons is essential for international staff, national
authorities and non-State actors, local organisations and all other relevant
actors.
In
line with its terms of reference, the IASC-WG has set out to develop a set of
distinct yet complementary training modules on internal displacement. The
primary target audience of the training modules will be middle‑level
management and field programme staff of UN agencies, NGOs and other
international organisations. These modules, which will consist of adaptable
teaching kits, can be adjusted to fit wider audiences. It is envisaged that a
number of critical principles on the HC/RC’s role vis-à-vis internally
displaced persons will be distilled from the modules and fed into the HC/RC
training program at the UN Staff College.
Complementing the training package are other publications providing guidance on programming field activities and implementing the Guiding Principles. These include: the Manual on Field Practice in Internal Displacement, prepared by an IASC reference group under the direction of UNICEF; and a Field Handbook on the Guiding Principles, prepared by the Brookings Institution Project on Internal Displacement.
These tools will enhance the ability of actors in the field to respond to crises
of internal displacement in a systematic and comprehensive manner.
The IASC-WG will also need to bring the training material to the
attention of UN peacekeepers and civilian police who increasingly are
undertaking activities of direct relevance to internally displaced persons.
Operational
Response and Remedial Action
Vulnerability assessment
An
assessment of vulnerabilities and needs should always include protection.
Surveys and assessment tools should analyse the protection requirements of
internally displaced persons in a specific and systematic manner.
The
Guiding Principles are a valuable reference point for identifying the rights of
the internally displaced, and for assessing the extent to which
their protection needs are being addressed. Where these needs are particularly
acute, the undertaking of specific needs assessment should be considered.
Coordinated programming of assistance
Country
teams, in formulating their Consolidated Appeals should ensure that the
protection needs of internally displaced persons are addressed in the joint
programming process. Further to its Terms of Reference, the IASC-WG is to ensure
that the needs of the internally displaced are systematically taken into account
in resource mobilisation processes. The IASC has recommended that the activities
of agencies having a more specific protection mandate, such as the UNHCR, OHCHR
and UNICEF, should be highlighted in the Appeals.
To this end, the IASC-WG decided that the Sub-working group on the Consolidated Appeals Process should prepare improved guidelines aimed at helping Country Teams in drafting effective appeals. The IASC-WG should ensure that the improved guidelines include directions on how programming can systematically address the protection needs resulting from internal displacements. In addition Appeals should also embody programmes to address the need for durable solutions. On the basis of needs assessments, and where appropriate, resource mobilisation efforts should earmark funds specifically for addressing these needs.
Promoting protection in the design of assistance programmes
While
the primary responsibility to provide protection rests with the competent
authorities, humanitarian agencies have responsibilities of their own to ensure
that protection features are integrated in their programmes and operations. A
number of agencies have devised specific guidelines in this regard (e.g.
prevention of sexual exploitation in camp situations, protection against child
recruitment through schooling, integrating mine-awareness in assistance
programmes, linking data collection for documentation and tracing with
registration for relief assistance, etc.).
Agencies should review their assistance programmes to avoid potential
negative effects on protection as well as strengthen programme features that
could positively effect protection. Agencies
providing assistance should consult with other expert or mandated agencies
operating in the country, to determine how their assistance programmes could be
strengthened to afford protection of basic rights.
In setting out a programme Agencies should also take into account on-going
activities of other international organizations to avoid all duplications.
Supporting community-based protection
Community
structures can
be an important source of protection in situations of displacement.
The needs of the internally displaced should be addressed within a
broader humanitarian strategy which takes into account the needs of all segments
of the population and in particular those of the host-community.
“Practical protection,” UNHCR has observed, “is provided first of all by and through the local community, through a
complex social network including family, clan, village or tribe.”[13]
Local coping mechanisms are particularly important in the absence of an
effective government.
Displaced
communities should be involved, as the Guiding Principles affirm, in decisions
taken on the design of programmes addressing their needs, and about their return
or resettlement. Activities that
encourage the maintenance or restoration of communal links or promote the
integration of the displaced into the surrounding community can contribute to
their security. In emergency
situations, high priority should be given to efforts aimed at reuniting
families, creating support structures for unaccompanied children, and enabling
displaced persons to remain with or rejoin members of their clan, tribe or
village.
Over
the longer term, activities that strengthen civil society and facilitate
conflict resolution and reconciliation among different cultural, ethnic and
religious groups can contribute to the protection of displaced persons. They can
also lead to the identification of durable solutions, in particular through the
creation of conditions for the eventual safe return and reintegration, or
resettlement and integration of internally displaced persons
Protection strategies for women, children and other vulnerable groups
Humanitarian
agencies must ensure that gender and child-related aspects of displacement are
considered in the planning and programming of operations.
Displacement tends to alter the structure of families and households and
to change gender roles. Women play a central role in reducing the vulnerability
of entire communities to the effects of displacement.
Their participation in the design of protection strategies is essential. The continued study of gender relations and how these have
been affected by displacement must be encouraged.
This could be achieved by the routine compiling of gender-specific
information in assessments. With regard to the specific protection needs of
children and in particular of unaccompanied minors and child soldiers, the
Convention on the Rights of the Child, which outlines the non-derogable rights
applicable to children should be examined as a basis for advocacy and
programming on behalf of internally displaced children. More attention should
also be paid to the specific needs of other vulnerable groups such as the
elderly and the handicapped.
Promoting protection in the design of return/reintegration or resettlement/integration programmes
Protection
activities must work towards durable solutions. For the displaced this entails a
voluntary and secure return or resettlement. Internally displaced persons are
particularly vulnerable to involuntary return/resettlement and to a lack of
safety in the areas of return/resettlement. Additional problems often relate to
the restitution of land and property rights.
Humanitarian and development agencies need to work together to ensure
that their programmes are designed to specifically tackle these challenges.
Operational monitoring and reporting
On-going
monitoring of the protection requirements of internally displaced persons, and
how these needs are being addressed is essential.
Field monitoring serves an important protection function by establishing
a presence among or near at-risk populations.
This allows regular needs assessment and the identification of groups
that are particularly at risk. If
necessary the HC/RC and the Country Team will relay such information to the ERC,
RSG on IDPs, OHCHR, and the IASC-WG as a whole, in order to ensure a timely and
effective response.
In
this regard, following a request from the office of the Secretary-General, a
note was issued by the UNDP Administrator providing initial practical guidance
on communicating issues relating to human rights.
More detailed and extensive guidance as well as training opportunities
should be provided to field staff.
III
- RESPONSIBILITIES FOR ACTION
It
is, first and foremost, the responsibility of national authorities to both
ensure protection for and provide assistance to the displaced and those at risk
of displacement.
The
protection role of other actors, including international agencies and NGOs,
involves reinforcing national responsibility and supporting, not substituting
for, the protection responsibilities of competent authorities.
In this connection, the UN Secretary-General’s Programme for Reform of
1997 has underscored that human rights protection is a concern that cuts across
the entire UN System, entailing commensurate responsibilities for its various
organs and agencies. Thus, although
some UN agencies have expressly designated mandates and possess specialised
technical expertise in human rights protection, it remains incumbent upon all
agencies to incorporate human rights concerns into their work. All agencies
providing humanitarian assistance to internally displaced persons have a
responsibility to consider how the design and implementation of their assistance
activities might best contribute to promoting protection of the internally
displaced. Effective fulfilment of
this responsibility stands to improve the protection of the internally
displaced.
The
scale and the multi-faceted nature of displacement crises have led the IASC to
recognise that an effective and comprehensive response to the protection and
assistance needs of displaced persons necessitates a collaborative approach.
Thus, the management model for assistance and protection in situations of
internal displacement, rather than a single agency approach, is one that
involves government officials, UN agencies, international organisations, and
international and local NGOs.
Such
a collaborative approach implies a significant coordination role for the ERC and
the IASC-WG. It requires the HC/RC to undertake an important assessment and task
coordination role within the country setting; and further means the involvement
of UN agencies and other international and national organisations, based on
their areas of comparative advantage.
The
principles which should underlie all interventions on behalf of internally
displaced persons are: (a) a clear understanding of the respective roles of the
ERC, the IASC-WG and the HC/RC, (b) an in-depth analysis of the specific country
situation, and, (c) a multi-organisation coordination model based on the
comparative advantages of the humanitarian organisations.
IV
– PROCESS FOR IMPLEMENTING THE COLLABORATIVE APPROACH
The
IASC Recommendations related to the Review of the Capacity of the UN System for
Humanitarian Assistance set out a number of coordination arrangements:
At
headquarters level, the ERC, as chairman of the IASC, is the focal point for the
inter-agency coordination of humanitarian assistance to internally displaced
persons. The IASC-WG has been designated as the inter‑agency forum for
dealing with problems of internal displacement.
An informal network of agency focal points on internal displacement has
been established to promote inter-agency discussion and cooperation.
At
the field level, the HC/RC is, in full consultation with the inter-agency
Country Team, responsible for the strategic coordination of assistance to and
protection of internally displaced persons.
This mandate includes ensuring that humanitarian needs are met before,
during and after an emergency. It also requires the HC/RC to serve as an
advocate for assistance and protection, and recommend to the ERC a division of
tasks and responsibilities among agencies[14].
This process serves to create areas of predictability as well as systematically promote mechanisms of complementarity and cooperation among the agencies to address the needs resulting from internal displacement. A number of coordination mechanisms need to be distinguished in order to maintain flexibility with regard to the specific requirements in situations of internal displacement.
Coordination mechanisms at the outset of an IDP crisis
Activation: The primary responsibility for activating the coordination process at the outset of a crisis of internal displacement lies with the field. The HC/RC will alert the ERC to an evolving situation of internal displacement. This then should set off parallel processes in the country and at headquarters level.
Strategy building: The HC/RC will initiate consultations with the UN Country Team and other international organisation and establish in-country task forces on internally displaced persons. This should encourage agencies to share information, initiate additional common monitoring activities, and develop a joint plan for responding to the assistance and protection needs of the displaced. The HC/RC will ensure that the monitoring and planning process maintains a strategic focus on protection issues such as those suggested in Section II. As a matter of course, strategies to address situations of internal displacement should include the search for durable solutions, even while the crises are evolving. The HC/RC will also promote consultations with national and local authorities to assess the willingness and capacity of the government to respond to the crisis and to fulfil its obligations with regard to protection in situations of internal displacement.
Defining institutional arrangements: In consultation with the UN Country Team and other relevant organisations, the HC/RC will propose to the ERC an institutional arrangement among agencies to address the needs of the displaced populations in a coordinated manner. This proposal should reflect the role to be taken by national and local government agencies, as well as by international agencies and NGOs. Subject to inter-agency consultations and subsequent endorsement by the IASC-WG, the ERC may give a provisional response to the proposal. Following general consultations, in particular with agencies proposed for key roles, the ERC will propose a coordination arrangement to the IASC-WG for its endorsement. The HC/RC may also request the ERC to dispatch to the field an inter-agency mission or an individual adviser, as appropriate.
The
IASC-process: The IASC-WG
will undertake, in line with its terms of reference on internally displaced
persons, a review of the proposed country arrangements and suggest the most
appropriate division of labour for addressing them.
While
the above-outlined mechanisms will help address situations of internal
displacement at their outset, a number
of steps should be taken at field level as well as at headquarters level to
strengthen coordination processes in on-going
situations of internal displacement:
Coordination mechanisms in on-going crises
The HC/RC will encourage in-country task forces on internally displaced persons to develop the capacity and competence to maintain a strategic focus on protection issues while planning for the delivery of humanitarian assistance. These will include mechanisms for participation at sub-office level in designing and implementing strategies.
The HC/RC with the input from the UN Country Team and other international organisations, will report to the ERC on specific information on displaced populations, and call, if necessary, particular attention to gaps in existing assistance and protection measures, as well as constraints due to lack of access or resources.
The IASC-WG will support the HC/RC in promoting collaborative arrangements among agencies to address protection needs. In particular, the IASC-WG will assist the HC/RC in their coordination efforts by undertaking a systematic review of country arrangements with regard to internally displaced persons at headquarters level.
The IASC-WG, in selecting countries for its consideration, should give priority to situations where internal displacement is presenting particular protection and/or assistance challenges. In keeping with its TOR on internally displaced persons, the IASC-WG should systematically monitor the follow-up to visits by the ERC or inter-agency missions to the country(s) in question. When reviewing countries on which the RSG on IDPs has reported on, the IASC-WG should examine the extent to which his recommendations are taken into account by the Government, concerned parties and by the Country Team.
The
HC/RC may encourage the development of Memoranda
of Understanding or other institutional arrangements between key
partners in the humanitarian response to displacement situations, the
objective being for agencies to be able to rely on one another’s
comparative advantages and special expertise. In clarifying roles and
responsibilities, such agreements can also help to identify and correct
operational gaps and overlaps.
6
December, 1999
Inter-Agency
Standing Committee
Protection
of Internally Displaced Persons
Annex A
Outline Of The Capacities Of Different Organisations With Regard To The Protection Of Internally Displaced Persons[1][15]
The
Emergency Relief Coordinator
The
Secretary-General, in his report Renewing
the UN: A Programme for Reform, emphasised that the international response
to internal displacement needed to address both protection and assistance. The
report underlined the role of the Emergency Relief Coordinator (ERC) as
one of ensuring that the protection and assistance needs of internally displaced
persons (IDPs) are addressed[16].
Accordingly, the Secretary-General designated the ERC as the focal point at
headquarters level for the inter‑agency coordination of humanitarian
assistance to internally displaced persons.
This responsibility includes: (a) global advocacy on both assistance and
protection requirements; (b) resource mobilisation and the identification of
gaps in resources for internally displaced persons; (c) promotion of the
establishment of a database and global information on internally displaced
persons in consultation with external institutions, including monitoring and
issuance of periodic situation reports; and (d) support to the field on related
humanitarian issues, including negotiation of access to internally displaced
persons.
As
chair of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC), the ERC ensures that
appropriate arrangements are set up with regard to protection and assistance in
specific situations of internal displacement.
At
the field level, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator/Resident Coordinator
(HC/RC) is, in full consultation with the inter-agency Country Team, responsible
for the strategic coordination of assistance to internally displaced persons[17].
This includes ensuring that humanitarian requirements before, during and after
an emergency are adequately addressed, and advocating for assistance and
protection. The HC/RC is responsible for recommending to the ERC the most
appropriate collaborative arrangement, among agencies, for responding to the
displacement crisis in a specific country.
Through
a network of IDP focal points in IASC member agencies, the ERC's Office for
the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) maintains a system-wide
liaison concerning situations of internal displacement. This enables OCHA to
assist the ERC and the IASC with its Working Group in developing an inter-agency
consensus in matters relating to internally displaced persons.
OCHA
is also in close contact with the Representative of the Secretary-General on
internally displaced persons in order to keep him up to date on relevant
policy developments, provide him with country specific information and proposals
for his advocacy efforts on behalf of internally displaced persons.
The
Representative of the Secretary-General on Internally Displaced Persons (RSG on
IDPs)
In
1992, in response to growing international concern about the large number of
internally displaced persons throughout the world and their need for protection
and assistance, the UN Secretary-General, at the request of the Commission on
Human Rights, appointed a Representative on internally displaced persons.
The RSG was requested to examine the human rights issues relating to
internal displacement and to prepare a comprehensive study identifying existing
laws and mechanisms for the protection of internally displaced persons, measures
to strengthen their implementation, and additional ways of addressing protection
needs.
The
mandate of the RSG has been renewed three times and the RSG requested to
continue his analysis of the causes of internal displacement, the needs of those
displaced, measures of prevention, and specific ways to improve protection,
assistance and solutions for the internally displaced. In fulfilment of these
responsibilities, the Representative monitors internal displacement world-wide,
undertakes country missions, establishes dialogues with governments,
collaborates with intergovernmental, regional and non-governmental organisations,
makes recommendations to improve international and regional institutional
arrangements, assesses international legal protection, and publishes reports for
action by Governments, the Commission, the General Assembly, international
organisations and non-governmental organisations.
In
1998, the RSG presented the first international standards on internally
displaced persons to the Commission – the Guiding Principles on Internal
Displacement. Their development had
been preceded by an evaluation of existing human rights and humanitarian law and
refugee law by analogy to determine the degree to which they provided an
adequate basis for the protection of the internally displaced. On the basis of
the findings, contained in a compilation and analysis of legal norms, the RSG
had been requested by the Commission and General Assembly to develop an
appropriate normative framework for the protection of internally displaced
persons. The Guiding Principles are
the first comprehensive statement of what protection should mean for the
internally displaced. They set
forth the rights of the internally displaced and the obligations of governments
and insurgent groups toward these populations. They provide guidance to the RSG,
States, all other authorities, groups and persons, and intergovernmental and
non-governmental organisations when addressing internal displacement.
The Commission acknowledged the Principles in 1998 and has welcomed the
fact that the RSG is making use of them in his dialogue with Governments and
intergovernmental and non-governmental organisations, and in particular in the
framework of seminars he has held on internal displacement (in collaboration
with regional organisations, UN agencies and local NGOs).
The Economic and Social Council also acknowledged the Principles, as have
international organisations, regional bodies and non-governmental organisations,
all of which have been widely disseminating them.
Another
important aspect of the mandate is country missions which provide the means for
assessing the extent to which the protection, assistance and development needs
of the internally displaced are being met on the ground. Discussions are held
with government officials, international organisations, non-governmental
organisations and displaced populations, all of which serve to raise national
and international awareness to areas that need attention.. Thus far, the RSG has
undertaken fourteen such visits. The
RSG submits reports on his findings to the Commission and General Assembly. He also shares the findings and recommendations of these
missions with the IASC, soliciting its support in their implementation.
In
its Recommendations Related to the Review of the Capacity of the United Nations
System for Humanitarian Assistance, the IASC recognised the role of the RSG as
focusing primarily on advocacy for protection and assistance of the internally
displaced, the setting of global standards and principles for enhanced
protection, and making recommendations on how the application of existing
instruments and protocols can be made more effective.
Since 1997, the RSG has been a standing invitee to the IASC and its
subsidiary bodies, participating actively in these forums with a view to
ensuring that attention to protection is integrated into the international
response to situations of internal displacement.
The RSG also makes recommendations for more effective institutional
arrangements for internally displaced persons at the national and international
levels.
The
RSG reports annually to the Commission and biennially to the General Assembly.
The RSG on IDPs is a voluntary position, which is serviced by the Office
of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva.
In 1999, UNHCR seconded a staff person to New York to support the work of
the mandate.
The
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
Protection
is at the core of the mandate of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human
Rights (OHCHR). In addition to
servicing the mandate of the RSG on
IDPs, OHCHR plays a protection role with internally displaced persons in its own
right. OHCHR has a field presence
in several situations of internal displacement, which in a number of cases has
specific responsibilities relating to promoting and protecting the rights of
internally displaced persons. Enhancing
the human rights field presence in situations of internal displacement would
help to ensure greater attention to human rights abuses and protection needs.
The
human rights monitoring undertaken by the thematic and country-specific Special
Rapporteurs, thematic working groups and the human rights treaty bodies is also
important. The Commission on Human
Rights has called upon these mechanisms to seek information on situations that
have already created or could create internal displacement, and to include
relevant information and recommendations thereon in their reports and to make
these available to the RSG.
In
addition to human rights monitoring, OHCHR can contribute to addressing
protection needs of internally displaced persons through technical cooperation
activities such as supporting the strengthening of judiciary and the creation
and effective functioning of national institutions for promoting and protecting
human rights, programmes of human rights education, providing training in human
rights, and capacity-building for local non-governmental organisations. The
Commission on Human Rights has called upon the OHCHR to develop, in cooperation
with governments, international organisations and the RSG, technical cooperation
projects specifically aimed at promoting the rights of internally displaced
persons.
The
mandate of the High Commissioner relating to mass exoduses also is relevant, in
particular for its emphasis on early warning and response to situations of
displacement. The General Assembly,
in its resolution on Human Rights and Mass Exoduses, has requested the United
Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, in the exercise of her mandate “to
pay particular attention to situations which cause or threaten to cause mass
exoduses and to contribute to efforts to address such situations effectively
through protection measures, emergency preparedness and response mechanisms,
including information sharing with the United Nations early-warning mechanisms,
and the provision of technical advice, expertise and cooperation in countries of
origin as well as host countries”.
The
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) plays a critical role in the resettlement phase of internally displaced persons. Internally displaced persons can attract significant support while they remain a distinct target group in camps, or shanty towns, but once they are absorbed into communities, their 'targetability' erodes and delivery of emergency programme support becomes progressively more difficult. The UNDP sustainable human development role begins to grow wherever the targetability of internally displaced persons fades, primarily in:
facilitating joint planning of different interventions well beforehand, to ensure that development activities are sufficiently synchronised with relief;
supporting development of the communities that the displaced have rejoined;
implementing rehabilitation activities in the displaced communities of return in order to facilitate their sustainable reintegration, and;
providing
local capacity building support to local entities to enable them to take an
active role in the reintegration and resettlement process.
Experience
has shown that the conversion from the ‘target group’ paradigm to the
‘development’ paradigm is far less jarring if the planning processes for the
two stages are coordinated at a very early stage. Here, both the Resident and
Humanitarian Coordinator functions are key in repeatedly bringing all of the
actors together. UNDP plays an important role in supporting Resident
Coordinators to provide the support during the displacement phase, to link
rehabilitation activities as appropriate to the emergency and humanitarian
relief, and to provide support to joint planning among international and local
actors, to ensure that the needs of internally displaced persons are not
neglected following their return to their original communities or permanent
settlement when reintegration is not option.
The
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
UNHCR has an interest in the protection and welfare of persons who have been displaced by persecution, situations of general violence, conflict or massive violations of human rights: in other words, in all those who, had they crossed an international frontier, would have had a claim to international protection. This interest arises from the similarity between such internally displaced persons and refugees, in terms of the causes and consequences of their displacement and their humanitarian needs. Like refugees, many internally displaced have been forced to leave their homes because of fear of persecution, war and violence. Again, like refugees, they are in need of protection and assistance, as well as a solution to their plight.
Although UNHCR’s involvement with the internally displaced goes back to the early 1970s, in recent years the scale and scope of UNHCR’s activities on behalf of the internally displaced have dramatically increased in response to the changing nature of humanitarian crises. UNHCR is currently providing protection and assistance to some 5 million internally displaced persons in Europe, Africa, Asia and Latin America.
UNHCR’s Statute recognises in article 9 that the High Commissioner may, in addition to the work with refugees, “engage in such activities… as the General Assembly may determine, within the limits of the resources placed at (her) disposal.” Based on this article and over a period of several decades, a series of UN General Assembly resolutions have acknowledged UNHCR’s particular humanitarian expertise and encouraged its involvement in situations of internal displacement. In particular, UN General Assembly resolution 48/116 (1993) set out important criteria to guide UNHCR’s decision on when to intervene on behalf of internally displaced persons. These resolutions, together with article 9 of the Statute, provide the legal basis for UNHCR’s interest in and action for internally displaced persons.
In addition to advocating on behalf of the internally displaced and mobilising support for them, UNHCR provides protection and assistance to internally displaced persons when certain conditions and considerations are met. UNHCR’s decision to become involved in a specific operation is subject to the fulfillment of the following conditions:
Specific
request or authorisation from the UN Secretary General or other competent
principal organ of the UN.
Consent
of the state concerned, and where relevant, other entities in a conflict.
Access
to the affected population and adequate security for UNHCR and implementing
partners to operate effectively.
Clear
lines of responsibility and accountability with the ability to intervene
directly with all parties concerned, particularly on protection matters.
Adequate resources and capacity to carry out activities.
Operational involvement is also dependent on an assessment of the
following considerations
UNHCR’s involvement should not compromise the non-political and humanitarian nature of its mandate.
Refugee protection and the right to seek asylum must be upheld.
UNHCR’s involvement would have a positive impact on the protection situation and solutions possibilities of the internally displaced.
UNHCR’s experience and expertise is relevant to the situation.
The nature and degree of UNHCR’s involvement varies, depending upon the phase of the displacement, the degree to which internal displacement is linked to a refugee problem, and the complementarity of mandates and expertise of other agencies present, or contemplating presence. The political and operational environment, including security considerations, can also define or restrict activities. Recognising the importance of co-operation and collaboration based on complementary mandates, UNHCR works closely with the Emergency Relief Co-ordinator, sister UN agencies and other relevant governmental and non-governmental organisations.
Whatever the nature and degree of UNHCR’s involvement, the Office’s fundamental objective is to improve the protection of the internally displaced and promote solutions to their plight. UNHCR has sought to meet the immediate protection needs of the internally displaced persons through international presence, monitoring and interventions to reduce violations of human rights and international humanitarian law, as well as assistance activities. Protection has been a major aspect of UNHCR’s involvement in a number of operations, such as the former Yugoslavia, Kosovo, Sri Lanka and Colombia. Although generally UNHCR’s protection role has been combined with major assistance activities, UNHCR has undertaken protection activities without a significant assistance component in Colombia.
Assisting the internally displaced as part of a reintegration operation for returnees is frequently the way in which UNHCR has been involved with internal displacement, particularly in Africa. Because UNHCR’s activities for the internally displaced in the context of a repatriation operation are usually indivisible from its mandated protection and assistance activities for returning refugees, prior authorisation is not required for such involvement.
UNHCR’s protection role is not limited to the stage of displacement but has been critical in the solutions phase in a number of operations involving internal displacement or a mixed population of returnees and the internally displaced. For instance in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Tajikistan, UNHCR has complimented its protection monitoring role with measure to strengthen national protection, e.g. by building the capacity of national legal and judicial institutions, local NGOs and community groups in co-operation with international governmental and non-governmental organisations. The search for solutions to situations of internal displacement has required UNHCR to co-operate with international conflict resolution processes, e.g. in the Balkans and the Caucasus. Following a protection and solution-oriented strategy, UNHCR has been able to phase out of situations of internal displacement, such as Tajikistan and northern Iraq.
The
United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF)
Broadly
speaking, protecting the rights of the child means ensuring the rights provided
for in the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Protection of displaced
children focuses, first, on shielding them from physical and psychosocial harm
inflicted by others, such as violence, exploitation, sexual abuse, neglect,
cruel or degrading treatment, or recruitment into military forces. Displaced
status makes children especially vulnerable to each of these forms of abuse.
Second, protection refers to those actions that preserve the identity and
cultural, linguistic, and inheritance rights of displaced children, since
children removed from their home communities are at significant risk of losing
these portions of their heritage. But protection finally also entails providing
or ensuring provision at the basic needs of children in terms of food, health
and education.
By
definition, the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF)’s mandate demands that
it act whenever and wherever women and children- families- are vulnerable,
whether they be refugees, displaced, affected by conflict, by inequity or by
poverty. UNICEF can bring to the displaced populations its experience in
capacity development, in community participation and in development of coping
skills of children, of parents, of families and of communities- required for
survival, development and protection in situations of poverty and inequity, and
in more extreme uses of violence and armed conflict.
Supporting
the rehabilitation and recovery of displaced children, their families and
communities entail actions to restore psychosocial health is not only a matter
of recovery but also one of reintegration, prevention and protection. UNICEF
also provides assistance in the area of maternal and child health care, schools,
water supply and sanitation systems, and promotes long-lasting solutions to the
problem of internal displacement through the creation and strengthening of
self-help capacities at the family and community level. In order to achieve
these goals, UNICEF builds its interventions around four primary components:
advocacy, assessment, care and protection.
UNICEF
also play an important role in the area of providing assistance and protection
measures for unaccompanied displaced children, and providing for their reunification with families. Internally displaced children are also targeted in landmine awareness programmes both in order to ensure protection during displacement, and to provide for their safe return or relocation.
In
the area of preventing recruitment and demobilising children who have been
recruited by the military, UNICEF focuses particularly on displaced communities
to ensure that priority is given to this issue as displaced children are
particularly prone to join the military.
The
Convention on the Rights of the Child gives added impetus to UNICEF’s advocacy
and protection roles with regard to children in the widest range of difficult
circumstances, especially within national boundaries, given the CRC’s emphasis
on the obligations of the state of the child and family.
The
World Food Programme (WFP)
In
recent years, internally displaced persons have constituted a major category of
beneficiaries for the World Food Programme (WFP).
WFP, mandated to provide food aid to the most vulnerable and
food-insecure, plays a major role in providing food aid assistance to internally
displaced not only during the period of displacement, but also in support of
return, resettlement, reintegration and post-conflict recovery.
WFP’s assistance activities, carried out in collaboration with
partners, support, both directly and indirectly, the protection of internally
displaced persons. These include:
Firstly,
WFP engages in negotiations on access and safe passage for humanitarian
supplies, including food, with governments and non-state actors in order to
reach internally displaced persons and other conflict-affected persons at risk.
Advocacy for continuous and unrestricted access to the internally
displaced means not only access for the provision of assistance and related
protection, but also unrestricted access for regular and systematic needs
assessments and follow-up monitoring.
Secondly, WFP’s food assistance is provided in ways that are intended to protect and promote the human rights of beneficiaries. For example:
During programming design, food delivery schedules and commodities and quantities to be distributed are planned so as to minimise the risk of attacks, harassment, etc. In addition, WFP’s food assistance in response to the essential needs and rights of displaced persons may preclude repeated displacements and further erosion of their basic rights and security of displaced persons.
WFP
ensures that its assistance programmes are designed and implemented on the
basis of broad-based participation. As women constitute the majority of
internally displaced people, WFP’s Commitments for Women play a particular
role. They are aimed at
ensuring women’s direct access to appropriate and adequate food; women's
equal access to, and participation in, power structures and decision-making;
and women's equal access to resources, employment, markets and trade.
WFP Food-For-Work (FFW) activities can provide an incentive for activities such as reconstruction of public and private assets, community infrastructure and private housing, involving civilian populations affected by conflict. As such, FFW can aid in the process of resettlement, recovery and reconciliation.
In the broad sense, food assistance provides protection during displacement and return phases, by reducing the burden for local communities and lessening the friction that can be caused between displaced people and resident populations.
WFP
is undertaking a review of its assistance to internally displaced persons with
one objective being the identification of opportunities to strengthen linkages
between protection and assistance.
The
Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)
Although
protection per se does not fall under
FAO’s mandate, the Organisation recognises that all human rights are
interrelated and interdependent. It has a special responsibility in protecting
the right to food as a basic human right. FAO’s Constitution sets “ensuring
humanity’s freedom from hunger” as one of its basic purposes. The World Food
Summit (WFS), organised in Rome in 1996, reaffirmed that food should not be used
as an instrument for political and economic pressure; international humanitarian
law bans the deliberate starvation of civilians. The WFS also acknowledged that
in many instances the lack of security and enjoyment of all human rights are the
main impediments to food security. Furthermore all instances of hindrances to
the right to food, such as food blockades, mining of agricultural areas and
fishing zones, destruction of food production means, the uprooting of people
from their lands etc. are of direct concern to the Organisation. Therefore, FAO
will strive to cooperate in general protection activities in country teams, and
pay special attention to protection of the right to food.
Protection
of the right to food requires monitoring of household food security of
internally displaced persons, understanding the specific constraints that
prevent internally displaced persons from accessing the required food and
ensuring that appropriate measures are taken to facilitate this access.
Discrimination on the grounds of race, ethnicity, opinion or gender is of
particular concern. FAO regards assistance to return to self-sufficiency, by
access to land, seeds, tools, or general income-generating activities as
inherent in the concept of the right to food. The right to adequate food implies
that food assistance should be adequate in quality and quantity to meet the
dietary needs of every individual for a healthy and active life, with due regard
for cultural preferences. Special efforts should be made to ensure the
participation of internally displaced men and women in assistance activities.
Regarding
general protection concerns, FAO believes that its visible presence in concerned
regions, as such, can contribute to deterring violence and abuses, facilitating
the protection of internally displaced persons, especially when complemented by
sufficient awareness. FAO Representatives and field staff in countries affected
by internal displacement are encouraged to be aware of the special needs of
internally displaced persons, for instance by familiarising themselves with the
Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement and other material being prepared
under the auspices of the IASC-WG. FAO staff is encouraged to participate in
inter-agency activities, including training, and to notify partners with a
protection mandate of cases, events and situations requiring their intervention.
More specifically FAO staff should promote and participate in monitoring,
assessing and planning related to household food security of internally
displaced persons.
The
World Health Organisation (WHO)
WHO
main role is to support the national authorities in strengthening health
services and in improving health care for all segments of their populations. Furthermore, its constitution mandates WHO “to provide or
assist in providing, upon the request of the UN, health services and facilities
to special groups”. Internally displaced persons represent one of these
special groups: a group most vulnerable to health hazards.
WHO
is fully aware that protection of health rights of internally displaced persons
is an inseparable part of their full human rights. Full coordination between
local authorities and external agencies, UN, NGOs, RCRC, etc. is an absolute
necessity.
WHO-assistance
to internally displaced persons hinges on the Organisations country office which
ensures a permanent presence in the country before, during and after
emergencies. The country office can be strengthened according to needs by the
regional office concerned while HQ ensures the coordination with other agencies
and the donor community, as well as facilitating technical backstopping from
relevant WHO programmes. For instance, technical guidelines can be adapted to
the needs of internally displaced persons and disseminated to all other
partners.
Normally, WHO does not provide health care directly but works through other health care providers, national or international. WHO can intervene in different phases of assistance and in complementary ways:
during
the emergency phase WHO participates in the assessment of the health
situation. The internally displaced persons health needs will be identified
and brought to the attention of the national authorities, other UN agencies,
NGOs and the donor community.
this technical assessment will serve also as a basis for advocating for the protection of internally displaced persons vis-B-vis the national authorities and the international community.
consistently with the above, WHO fosters and facilitates the involvement of national authorities in the provision of health care to the internally displaced persons and their coordination with other national and external agencies as may be present.
when
reintegration is in sight WHO, together with the other UN agencies, will
assist the national authorities and NGOs to ensure that internally displaced
persons are reintegrated and provided the same level of health services as
the rest of the population. This requires the formulation of health plans
for the internally displaced persons that are integrated in long term
strategies aimed at the promotion of equitable and sustainable health care
systems for all citizens.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
The
mandate of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is based on
international humanitarian law (IHL) and on the Statutes of the Movement. The
ICRC is active primarily in situations of armed conflict and internal violence.
By seeking to assist all victims of armed conflict, its also works to prevent
arbitrary displacement and to ensure protection of and assistance to internally
displaced persons. In recent years the magnitude of the needs to be met has led
the ICRC to launch large-scale operations in practically all armed conflict
situations. It has therefore dealt with millions of displaced persons.
Thanks to its right of initiative and its neutral and independent status, the ICRC is often well placed to take action during hostilities. Its specific nature and virtually permanent contacts with all parties to conflict generally enable it to obtain access - whether in government territory or in areas held by armed opposition groups - to the victims it is mandated to protect and assist.
ICRC’s protection and assistance cover a broad range of activities, including promoting respect for IHL, making representations to governments and non-state actors when violations occur, lending its good offices to facilitate the establishment of hospital and safety zones, evacuating civilians from situations of danger, maintaining family links through tracing activities and exchange of Red Cross messages, and providing a variety of material assistance and services (e.g. medical care, shelter, food).
The
International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (The
Federation)
The
Federation works on the basis of the Principles of the Red Cross and Red
Crescent Movement to inspire, facilitate and promote all humanitarian activities
carried out by its member National Societies to improve the situation of the
most vulnerable people. The Federation directs and co-ordinates international
assistance of the Movement to victims of natural and technological disasters, to
refugees and displaced people and in health emergencies.
It acts as the official representative of its member Societies in the
international field. It promotes co-operation between National Societies, and
works to strengthen their capacity to carry out effective disaster preparedness,
health and social programmes.
National
Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies embody the work and principles of the
International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement in more than 175 countries.
National Societies act as auxiliaries to the public authorities of their own
countries in the humanitarian field and provide a range of services including
disaster relief, health and social programmes.
Together,
the components of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement (the
"Movement") are guided by the same seven Fundamental Principles:
humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity and
universality. In the same manner, all Red Cross and Red Crescent activities have
one central purpose: to help those who suffer without discrimination and thus
contribute to peace in the world.
National
Societies are already present in the local situation through their extensive
branch system and with direct access to internally displaced persons and are
therefore particularly suited to support international efforts locally. The
Federation may complement other international efforts by making use of its
unique network of locally based Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
National
societies may be able to play important roles in some or all of the following
fields: contribute to an early warning system through information sharing, build
a local and national standby capacity, mobilise support to emergency relief at
the local, national and international level; promote respect for humanitarian
principles through dissemination and training; support protection efforts of the
mandate of humanitarian organizations; remain present and involved throughout
the difference phases of assistance and protection to displaced persons until
solutions are found.
The
International Organisation for Migration (IOM)
The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) provides a broad
range of activities to individuals, such as providing transport and fulfilling
their basic needs of food, shelter and supplies. By providing assistance and
meeting the material needs of internally displaced persons, IOM is offering a
form of protection to them. Indeed, protection of the human rights of internally
displaced persons often consists in meeting their essential needs.
In
particular, IOM’s migration assistance covers activities such as organising
transport, evacuations, and returns; providing temporary shelter and other
material relief, providing early warning and rapid analysis of migratory flows,
developing national population information systems and censuses, and providing
expert advice to governments on migration policies and laws.
The
Organisation also carries out projects such as reintegration and vocational
training to assist these people in the long-term, in the recognition that viable
alternatives are indispensable for displacement not to reoccur. Governments are
also the beneficiaries of IOM programmes which build the national capacities’
need to manage or prevent internal displacement, in this light the Organisation
has concluded bilateral cooperation agreements with many States, which
specifically make provisions for IOM’s involvement in assisting internally
displaced persons. With regard to
inter-agency cooperation IOM has entered agreements with UNHCR, UNFPA and UNDP
to enhance provision for migration assistance and protection to internally
displaced persons.
Non-Governmental
Activities
The
non-governmental sector is involved in a wide range of protection activities for
internally displaced persons. At an operational level humanitarian NGOs
regularly work with internally displaced persons in various theatres around the
world, including, for example, the CIS region, former Yugoslavia and the Great
Lakes region. Generally operational humanitarian NGOs do not specifically target
internally displaced persons for assistance but provide assistance as part of an
overall relief effort or as implementing partners for various UN agencies.
In
recent years many operational NGOs have gone beyond providing “assistance”
in a narrow sense and initiated internal processes, or collaborated with
partners, to examine ways to better incorporate human rights programming and
human rights protection into operations.
Several
NGOs are involved in monitoring displacement situations. Human rights monitoring
and advocacy NGOs regularly report on the state of human rights in various parts
of the world and do report on the respect for the rights of internally displaced
populations.
Some
refugee organisations also report regularly on internally displaced populations
most notably the US Committee for Refugees which includes internally
displaced persons in its World Survey and occasionally does country specific
studies on internal displacement such as Colombia and Sri Lanka.
The
Norwegian Refugee Council has a well-established information
dissemination project on internally displaced. It is establishing a database on
internally displaced persons, examining both the protection and assistance needs
of the displaced. It has worked to
support the work of the Secretary-General’s Representative on internally
displaced persons by disseminating and promoting the Guiding Principles and has
more recently played a part in training national NGOs on the Principles. In
collaboration with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights it has
developed some training modules on the Guiding Principles. NRC also served as
the focal point for NGO input into UNHCR’s new Field Guide for NGOs on
protecting refugees, which includes a section on protection of internally
displaced persons. Finally the Forced
Migration Review, a joint NRC undertaking with the Refugee Studies Programme,
have given space to protection issues as they relate to the displaced.
Aside
from activities of both humanitarian relief organisations and human rights
organisations independent of each other there have also been efforts to increase
information sharing between both types of organisation. In February 1996, Médecins
Sans Frontières-Holland convened an international conference in Amsterdam
to seek ways that humanitarian and human rights groups might collaborate more
effectively
Other
international organisations have also held discussions on protection and
assistance concerns which relate to internally displaced persons.
The Lutheran World Federation and the World Council of Churches
for example have examined humanitarian ethics with specific reference to
tensions between protection and assistance.
The Steering Committee on Humanitarian Response is also involved
in efforts to develop a “policy framework” for protection concerns.
The Save the Children Alliance has developed a set of training
materials and modules as part of its Action for the Rights of Children which are
relevant to internally displaced persons.
Médecins
du Monde convened a major
conference in Paris in June 1999, on Saving Lives in the Midst of Conflict: From
Humanitarian Action towards Humanising Governmental Action. InterAction has
been the venue for an ongoing series of discussion of protection and related
issues among U.S. NGOs.
Inter-Agency
Standing Committee
Protection of Internally Displaced Persons
Annex
B
Supplementary
Guidance
To
Humanitarian/Resident Co-Ordinators
On
Their Responsibilities In Relation To Internally Displaced Persons[1][18]
Introduction
Internal displacement may result from “armed conflict, situations of generalised violence, violations of human rights or natural or human-made disasters”[19]. This note sets out to guide the UN Humanitarian Co-ordinator/Resident Co-ordinator (HC/RC) and the Country Team in discharging their responsibilities with regard to IDPs. This Guidance is supplementary to the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Policy on the Protection of Internally Displaced Persons and therefore needs to be read in conjunction with it. It is also complementary to the generic Terms of Reference of Humanitarian Co-ordinators of 9 December, 1994.
This Guidance is part and parcel of a comprehensive plan of action which the IASC is developing in order to implement its Policy on the Protection of IDPs.
The primary responsibility for protection of and assistance to civilians in crises of internal displacement lies with the national authorities of the affected countries. However, the capacity and/or willingness of the authorities to fulfil their responsibilities is often insufficient or even lacking. Under such circumstances, the international community needs to support and supplement the efforts of the Government and local authorities.
The scope and complexity of internal displacement call for a multifaceted response and the active involvement of organisations both within and outside the UN system which possess special expertise and resources, including the beneficiary communities and civil society groups.
It should be noted that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has a specific mandate to provide protection and assistance to victims of armed conflicts, internal disturbances and tensions, including IDPs. In general, ICRC’s mandate is discharged in close co-operation with National Societies of the Red Cross/Red Crescent supported by their International Federation. The National Societies are mandated to assist the most vulnerable within their own countries, including IDPs, and are often the first and only organisation present at the inception of a disaster[20].
A number of documents provide important guidance on the programming of field activities based on international human rights, humanitarian and, by analogy, refugee law. The “Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement” are fundamental to a comprehensive response to the protection and assistance needs of IDPs in all phases of displacement. The “IASC Policy on the Protection of Internally Displaced Persons” outlines the field of protection in internal displacement situations. Additional guidance is also available in the “Handbook for Applying the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement”, and the “Manual on Field Practice in Internal Displacement”.
A – Institutional Arrangements
In order to make sure that the UN’s involvement is adequate and effective, mechanisms of co-ordination must be established which guarantee a comprehensive response and provide clear lines of responsibility and accountability.
At headquarters’ level, the Emergency Relief Co-ordinator (ERC), as Chair of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee and focal point for the inter-agency co-ordination of protection of and assistance to IDPs, is responsible for global advocacy on protection and assistance, resource mobilisation, global information on IDPs, and ensuring that field arrangements are adequately supported. The ERC brings to the attention of the IASC, for review in its Working Group, situations of internal displacement requiring a co-ordinated response. The ERC, in consultation with the IASC, is responsible for ensuring that satisfactory mechanisms have been established at field level for the effective co-ordination of the international response to situations of internal displacement. When necessary and appropriate, the ERC brings issues concerning IDPs to the attention of the Secretary-General and the Security Council.
The principal responsibilities of the Representative of the Secretary-General on Internally Displaced Persons (RSG on IDPs) include serving as an advocate on behalf of IDPs and, in that capacity, undertaking missions, including missions at the request of the IASC, and making recommendations for improved response. His mandate and responsibilities are described in detail in annex A to the IASC Policy Paper on the Protection of IDPs.
The Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC), chaired by the ERC, is the inter‑agency forum for consultations on all matters regarding IDPs The IASC’s Working Group[21] reviews country arrangements with regard to IDPs and is to monitor the follow-up to field visits by the ERC, inter-agency teams and the RSG on IDPs.
At
the field level, in situations of
internal displacement defined as complex emergencies, a Humanitarian Co-ordinator
(HC) is normally designated by the ERC, in consultation with the IASC, as
the responsible and accountable official, whether or not he/she is also
serving as the
Resident Co-ordinator (RC).
In
countries affected by displacement, but where no HC has been appointed, the Resident
Co-ordinator is the responsible official.
In countries where the Secretary-General has designated an overall Lead Agency for humanitarian action, the Representative or Country Director of the Lead Agency is normally the responsible official.
The UN’s response to the needs of IDPs is carried out by UN operational agencies which have a specific role on behalf of IDPs, and their implementing partners.
B – Collaborative Approach
The HC/RC, in consultation with the UN Country Team and other relevant partners, recommends to the ERC an allocation of responsibilities for the protection of and assistance to IDPs.
The origin, magnitude and multifaceted nature of displacement crises have led the IASC to recognise that an effective and comprehensive response to the protection and assistance needs of displaced persons necessitates a collaborative approach with a clear allocation of responsibilities. Thus, the management model for assistance and protection in situations of internal displacement is one that involves the Government and local authorities, UN agencies, international organisations, international and local NGOs, working together.
C – Dialogue with National and Local Authorities
The HC/RC ensures that consultations with national and local authorities take place in order to assess their capacity to respond to the needs of the IDPs. In so doing, the HC/RC impresses upon the authorities their primary responsibility for the protection of and assistance to civilians, including the internally displaced, taking into account their special needs, in conformity with international human rights and humanitarian law, as elaborated in the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement.
The HC/RC is encouraged to suggest to the Government and local authorities the appointment of a focal point within their structure on issues of internal displacement, to serve as counterpart for the international community. The HC/RC may also suggest ways in which the UN system can help to strengthen the local and national capacity to provide protection and promote durable solutions.
D – Implementation of the Responsibilities of the HC/RC
The generic Terms of Reference of the Humanitarian Co-ordinator (9 December, 1994) provide detailed guidance on the overall responsibilities of the Humanitarian Co-ordinator, which is also relevant to situations of internal displacement. Paragraph 20 on humanitarian advocacy, including advocacy for unimpeded access to affected populations, is of particular relevance.
The HC/RC[22] is responsible for the strategic co-ordination of the UN’s response to the needs of IDPs and reports to the ERC. The HC/RC takes into account the contribution of all relevant partners on the ground and is also responsible for ensuring that gaps in the response to the needs of IDPs are systematically addressed.
In addressing such gaps and in developing the Country Team’s response to situations of internal displacement, the HC/RC may call upon the ERC and the IASC to make available expertise in the form of specialised inter-agency missions, training programmes and temporary reinforcement of personnel and equipment. The HC/RC, on behalf of the Country Team, can also call upon the ERC and the IASC to take the case of IDPs and other war-affected communities to the Security Council as deemed appropriate.
The HC/RC should advise the ERC on possibilities for the RSG on IDPs to dialogue with the authorities in the country in question, and with the international community, in support of the protection of and assistance to IDPs, in addition to the Representative’s regularly scheduled activities and missions.
The HC/RC may encourage the development of Memoranda of Understanding or other institutional agreements between key partners (governmental, non-governmental and international organisations) in order to clarify roles and responsibilities in the response to displacement situations.
E – Planning the Response
The HC/RC oversees the development of a comprehensive plan for responding to the assistance/protection needs of IDPs, which becomes the basis for IDP components of the Consolidated Appeal and its Common Humanitarian Action Plan.
The plan takes into account the activities of the Government and local authorities. It also reflects the protection role and mandate of organisations with special expertise or mandates. The plan reflects the need to maintain a focus on the systematic search for durable solutions for the IDPs. It also addresses the specific needs of vulnerable groups within the internally displaced population, such as women heads-of-household, children, the elderly and the disabled. This plan, after approval by the UN Country Team, is submitted to the ERC.
Because
of the perilous and difficult environment in which they have to operate, the
security and well-being of workers providing assistance and protection in
situations of internal displacement are often at risk. Plans for responding
to the needs of IDPs should, therefore, include adequate provisions to
ensure personal and operational security.
4 April, 2000