Internally displaced persons

Armed conflicts and other severe situations may cause populations to move, as people flee persecution or violence. The applicable law varies depending on whether or not the individuals in question crossed an international border:

• If they do, they will be qualified as asylum seekers who seek refuge. Their rights and obligations are then covered by international refugee law; 
• If not, they remain “internally displaced persons” (IDPs).

When IDPs are displaced due to an armed conflict, they enjoy the protection of civilians as granted under international humanitarian law. If the legal treshold for armed conflict has not been met, IDPs may enjoy international assistance but may not be granted international protection as such.

IDPs do not benefit from any specific protection under international law. In principle, IDPs are still under the protection of their national laws, but often the State itself may be the source of their displacement.

There is no international institution with a general mandate, or one with the overall means, to protect and provide concrete assistance to individuals displaced within their own State. Yet many of these people face the same needs of assistance and protection as refugees. Therefore, the United Nations High Commisioner for Refugees can set up material assistance programs for IDPs. However, UNHCR’s protective role therefore depends entirely on the negotiation and content of the ad hoc agreements that must be signed with the government concerned.

Capacity building

In 1998 the United Nations Human Rights Council adopted thirty non-binding guiding principles which reflect international human rights and humanitarian law, restating existing norms and tailoring them to the needs of the displaced persons. Also, the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) was established as the leading international body monitoring conflict-induced internal displacement worldwide. The Centre does not directly provide assistance to IDPs, its mandate is to contribute to improving national and international capacities to protect and assist the millions of IDPs worldwide.

In 2002, an Internal Displacement Unit was created within OCHA. In July 2004, it became the Inter-Agency Internal Displacement Division (IDD). It does not directly run field operations. The mandate of the Division is to make the UN collaborative response approach work by rallying the United Nations’ agencies in order to provide efficient assistance and protection to displaced people. It relies on a network of resident coordinators and field-based United Nations coordinators to address humanitarian issues and works in close cooperation with the United Nations High Representative for Displaced People. The Division publishes reports on missions it undertakes on the ground and makes recommendations to countries. The IDD regularly provides specific support to UNHCR and UNDP on Protection, Emergency Shelter, Camp Coordination/Management, and Early Recovery.