A/HRC/13/21
Governments of Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Serbia and Turkey on this
issue and notes that this has led to some positive policy changes on the part of the
Governments concerned.
77.
Modern peace agreements emphasize the right to return of all displaced, which is a
positive trend. At the same time, there is a tendency to neglect those who are not willing or
able to return. The Representative, sometimes with success,43 has suggested on several
occasions to negotiators that they recognize the right of internally displaced persons to
freely choose between return, local integration and settlement in another part of the country
in accordance with the Guiding Principles. Involving all sectors of the displaced at least
indirectly in peace processes, an issue on which the Representative has worked
extensively,44 should ensure that peace agreements and peacebuilding efforts reflect the
rights, needs and legitimate interests of the displaced.
78.
Protracted displacement can also be the product of political indifference on the part
of national authorities, development actors and donors. Internally displaced persons, who
may have received generous humanitarian assistance at the height of a crisis, are often
forgotten as soon as the guns fall silent or the flood waters recede. Without assistance in reestablishing their lives (and their livelihoods in particular) the displaced enter a vicious
cycle of dependency on aid and protracted displacement. The continued failure of the donor
community to adequately fund early recovery strategies and activities is particularly
worrisome in this regard.
79.
The Representative is also concerned that refugee or other protected status for
persons seeking protection abroad is sometimes revoked prematurely so that people are
forced to return home without conditions or programmes in place for their reintegration,
thus leading to situations where returned persons end up in protracted internal
displacement.45
IV. Allowing the displaced to move on with their lives: durable
solutions
80.
Durable solutions for internally displaced persons — the very opposite of protracted
displacement — are often simplistically equated with returns. It is important to emphasize
that a durable solution can be achieved through (a) return and sustainable reintegration in
the place of origin, (b) sustainable integration in local areas where internally displaced
persons have taken refuge, or (c) settlement and sustainable integration in any other part of
the country. There is no inherent hierarchy among these options. The internally displaced
have the right to make an informed and voluntary choice as to the durable solution they
would like to pursue.
81.
Building a durable solution is a complex process of gradually achieving a situation
where the internally displaced no longer have any displacement-specific needs and can
enjoy their human rights without discrimination related to their displacement. Families torn
apart by conflict or disaster have to be reunited. Livelihoods, housing, land and property
and public services have to be reconstructed so that internally displaced persons can enjoy
an adequate standard of living. In cases involving arbitrary displacement and other serious
violations, it is often also necessary to restore a sense of justice and provide the displaced
43
44
45
GE.10-10161
See A/62/227, paras. 31–32 (Nepal peace accord).
See A/HRC/10/13, paras. 30–36.
See A/HRC/13/21/Add. 1, paras. 67–69 and the Representative’s press statement of 20 August 2007
on Afghanistan.
19
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