A/HRC/32/35
I. Introduction
1.
The present report of the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally
displaced persons, Chaloka Beyani, is submitted in accordance with Human Rights Council
resolution 23/8. It is the last report submitted to the Council by the present mandate holder.
2.
The Special Rapporteur pays tribute to Francis Deng, the Representative of the
Secretary-General on internally displaced persons for the period 1992-2004, and Walter
Kälin, the Representative of the Secretary-General on the human rights of internally
displaced persons from 2004 to 2010. He thanks them sincerely for their unreserved support
during his tenure as Special Rapporteur.
3.
In the first section, the Special Rapporteur provides an overview of his activities
over the reporting period and progress relating to key priorities that he had identified for his
work. In the second section, he considers some major challenges and emerging issues for
consideration by all stakeholders relating to the human rights of internally displaced
persons.
4.
The Special Rapporteur thanks the numerous entities that have supported and
assisted his mandate during his tenure, including Member States, United Nations agencies,
international and national non-governmental organizations, civil society organizations and
volunteer groups, academic and research organizations and numerous other stakeholders.
He is grateful for the support provided by the Office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). In order to maximize its impact, the mandate
also relies on the additional support provided by the Office for the Coordination of
Humanitarian Affairs and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees (UNHCR), with which he has built fruitful and effective partnerships.
Memorandums of understanding with both offices have enabled the flow of information
and exchange of expertise and initiatives and have allowed additional mandate support staff
to be located in both bodies.
5.
The Special Rapporteur acknowledges the work and contributions of the Internal
Displacement Monitoring Centre and the Joint IDP Profiling Service, with which he has
formed valuable collaborations. Their innovative work in the areas of research, profiling,
field support, capacity–building, training and advocacy have contributed to improving
national and international responses to internal displacement and provided essential tools to
national Governments and other stakeholders.
6.
The Special Rapporteur pays tribute to and has benefited immensely from civil
society organizations. National civil society groups, non-governmental organizations and
volunteer groups are always on the front line of assistance efforts and bear much of the
social responsibility for supporting internally displaced persons, frequently with minimal
resources.
7.
The Special Rapporteur expresses sincere appreciation to the Brookings Project on
Internal Displacement for its support to the mandate. The project concluded its work and
partnership with the respective mandates of the Representatives of the Secretary-General
and the Special Rapporteur in 2015.
8.
The mandate has been and must remain an important voice in the international
community on and for millions of internally displaced persons globally. The Human Rights
Council and the General Assembly among others have recognized the catalytic role played
by the mandate in raising the level of awareness of the alarmingly high numbers of
internally displaced persons, addressing their development and specific needs, including
through mainstreaming the human rights of such persons into all relevant parts of the
United Nations system. In its resolution 70/165, the General Assembly requested the
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