A/HRC/40/26
32.
The Ambassador also referred to the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular
Migration and the global compact on refugees, to be finalized in 2018, noting that they
offered scope for climate risk-informed action, in which reference to the Guiding Principles
and to an integrated approach was key. In practice, the synergies among development,
human rights and climate change were clear, especially in small developing island States
such as Fiji. Climate change, development and internal displacement were indivisible, and
planned migration, which reflected the need to put people at the centre of such migration,
was crucial. That approach, based on the premise that well-planned and voluntary
resettlement could reduce poverty, diversify and increase incomes and reduce further
vulnerability to climate change impacts, was the one taken by Fiji. Waiting for migration to
become necessary before planning for it inevitably resulted in increased vulnerability and
inequality. Planned migration could also lead to a greater chance of successful integration
for migrants. It could create new livelihoods and opportunities, facilitate the development
of new technology and skills and strengthen cultural and social knowledge. It could
transform communities by introducing new patterns of consultation, for instance with
women and children. It could make persons with disabilities more visible and lead to
greater diversity in sources of income.
33.
Continuing to draw on the case of Fiji, the Ambassador noted that, in accordance
with draft relocation guidelines that drew heavily on the Guiding Principles and prioritized
community consent, a participatory approach to consultation and community
empowerment, 63 local communities would need to consider relocation in the near future.
In conclusion, she highlighted the need to develop national policies and mechanisms to
address climate-induced migration and displacement internally and to guide the current and
future movement of populations. Such policies must reflect the necessary interconnectivity
of the Sustainable Development Goals, human rights and climate policy.
IV. Summary of the discussion
34.
During the ensuing discussion, contributions were made by representatives of
Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Botswana, China, Colombia, Denmark, Ecuador, the
European Union, Iraq, Ireland, Kuwait, Lesotho, Norway, the Russian Federation, Serbia,
Switzerland, the Syrian Arab Republic, Togo (on behalf of the Group of African States),
Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates (on behalf of the League of Arab States), the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of). In
addition, the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions, the United Nations
Development Programme, an internally displaced person from Borno State in north-eastern
Nigeria and five NGOs took part in the discussion.
35.
Overwhelmingly, delegations expressed concern about the magnitude of internal
displacement worldwide and about the lack of durable solutions for internally displaced
persons, which was leading to growing numbers of such persons living in protracted
displacement. In that context, many delegations noted that the Guiding Principles had
played a critical role in highlighting the plight of internally displaced persons for the past
20 years and stressed their continued relevance in addressing internal displacement from a
human rights perspective. Several delegations welcomed the holding of the panel
discussion on internally displaced persons in commemoration of the twentieth anniversary
of Guiding Principles in the Human Rights Council as an excellent and timely opportunity
to reaffirm the rights of internally displaced persons and the fundamental role of the
Guiding Principles in preventing, responding to and finding durable solutions for internal
displacement.
A.
Addressing internal displacement: a national responsibility
36.
Several delegations, including those of Armenia, Botswana, China, Denmark, the
European Union, Lesotho, Togo (on behalf of the Group of African States), Tunisia and the
United Arab Emirates (on behalf of the League of Arab States), stressed that first and
foremost, national authorities had the primary duty and responsibility to provide protection
and humanitarian assistance to internally displaced persons within their jurisdiction.
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