Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs)

Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) Defined

• IDPs are individuals or groups forced to flee their homes due to armed conflict, violence, human rights violations, or natural disasters.
• IDPs remain within their country's borders.
• IDPs do not receive the same level of legal protection as refugees because they do not cross international borders.
• IDPs often face insecurity, lack necessities, and difficult access aid.
• The UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement (1998) offer a non-binding legal framework for IDP protection.
• The UNHCR plays a crucial role in assisting displaced populations
• Regional mechanisms like the Kampala Convention in Africa exist to strengthen IDP protection.

Causes of Displacement in India

• Displacement in India primarily comes from armed conflicts, ethnic violence, natural disasters, and large-scale development projects.
• There is no specific national law on IDPs in India.
• Constitutional provisions, judicial pronouncements, and policy measures aim to safeguard IDP rights.
• The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and state initiatives provide relief and rehabilitation.
• Long-term resettlement, livelihood restoration, and legal recognition of IDPs remain challenges.

Internally Displaced Persons - Further Details

• IDPs are persons forced to flee their homes to avoid the effects of armed conflict, generalized violence, human rights violations, or natural/human-made disasters.
• A key characteristic of IDPs is that they have not crossed an internationally recognized border.
• Common causes of displacement include armed conflicts, generalized violence, human rights violations, and disasters.
• Specific triggers can include wars, ethnic/religious/political violence, persecution, repression, earthquakes, floods, industrial accidents, pollution, and environmental degradation.
• IDPs suffer significantly higher mortality rates than the general population and are at high risk of physical attack, sexual assault, and abduction.
• Women and children are particularly vulnerable to abuse, and IDPs often remain close to conflict zones, increasing their risk.

Difference Between an IDP and a Refugee

• According to the 1951 Convention on the Status of Refugees, a refugee is someone persecuted (or fearing persecution) based on race, religion, nationality, social group, or political opinion, who is outside their country and unable or unwilling to seek protection there.
• A refugee must have crossed an international border.
• International instruments such as the Cartagena Declaration on Refugees have broadened the definition to include those fleeing armed conflict or natural disasters.
• Unlike refugees, IDPs lack a special status in international law and specific rights.
• "Internally displaced person" as a term is descriptive.

UNHCR's Role in Protecting IDPs

• The UNHCR focuses on protecting refugees who cross international borders.
• The UNHCR has expanded its role to include IDPs, especially in cases of conflict, violence, or human rights violations.
• Though IDPs do not explicitly fall under the 1951 Refugee Convention, the UNHCR assists them based on humanitarian principles and UN/national government requests.
• UNHCR promotes the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement (1998), outlining IDP rights and state responsibilities.
• Legal frameworks and policies for IDP protection and rehabilitation are developed by the UNHCR.
• The UNHCR monitors human rights violations against IDPs.
• Conflict resolution and mediation efforts are made by the UNHCR to prevent further displacement and facilitate safe return or resettlement.
• Shelter, food, healthcare, and other essential services are provided to IDPs.
• The World Food Programme (WFP) and UNICEF are UN agencies that are sometimes coordinated with the UNHCR for comprehensive responses.
• The UNHCR supports the return of IDPs to their homes in safe conditions and also assists in resettlement/local integration when return is unfeasible.
• Livelihood programs, education, and community-building initiatives are initiated by the UNHCR to help IDPs rebuild their lives.
• Technical and financial assistance is delivered to governments and local organizations dealing with internal displacement, and the UNHCR leads protection clusters in humanitarian responses
• The UNHCR advocates for, protects, and assists IDPs despite the lack of a specific international legal mandate.
• Upholding IDP rights and facilitating long-term solutions is sought through working with national governments, NGOs and UN agencies.
• Ensuring the safety and dignity of IDPs worldwide requires stronger legal frameworks and global cooperation.

Internal Displacement in India - Causes

• Political causes, like secessionist movements, contribute to internal displacement
• North-east India has had two major armed conflicts since its independence:
• The Naga movement
• Led by the National Socialist Council of Nagaland
• The Assam movement
• Led by the All Assam Students Union
• Largely taken over by the extremist United Liberation Front of Assam
• Violence and retaliatory actions from the government and other anti-secessionist forces continue to displace people steadily.
• In Kashmir, the killing of Kashmiri Pandits by fundamentalist secessionist groups, the political instability-induced widespread anarchy, and human rights violations by both state and militant groups caused large-scale displacement of Kashmiri Pandits (estimated at 250,000) to Jammu and cities like Delhi.
• While elections and a popular government were restored in 1996, displaced people can't return due to ongoing massacres in Kashmir; the conditions are miserable, the displaced find camps offer better opportunities, education, and security.
• Identity-based autonomy movements in Bodoland, Punjab, Gorkhaland, and Ladakh have provoked violence and displacement.
• "Cleansing" of non-Bodo communities by the Bodos in the Bodo Autonomous Council area of western Assam has forced non-Bodos to flee to camps.
• Internal displacement has occurred because of caste disputes (Bihar, Uttar Pradesh), religious fundamentalism ( Bombay, Coimbatore, Bhagalpur, Aligarh), and denial of residency/employment rights to non-indigenous groups:
• “Son-of-the-soil” policy (Meghalaya/Khasi students/Arunachal Pradesh/Chakmas)

Environmental and Development Induced Displacement in India

• India invested in industrial projects, dams, roads, mines, power plants, and new cities to achieve rapid economic growth, leading to massive land acquisition and displacement.
• According to the Indian Social Institute, 21.3 million development-induced IDPs include those displaced by:
  • Dams: 16.4 million
  • Mines: 2.55 million
  • Industrial development: 1.25 million
  • Wildlife sanctuaries/national parks: 0.6 million

Development Projects in India

• Development projects, dams, have stirred controversy in India as a source of displacement-related conflicts.
• 18.5 million people were affected by national resettlement due to development projects during 1950-90.
• The Central Water Commission states over 3,300 dams are built since independence and ~1,000 more are under construction.
• A study by the Indian Institute of Public Administration found that a large dam displaced 44,182 people on average.
• The Pong Dam uprooted over 21,000 families ~25 years ago, with no proper rehabilitation measures to date.
• The World Bank's ‘Project Completion Report’ for the controversial Sardar Sarovar dam on the Narmada, projected to displace 0.2 million people has cast a shadow over the project because India's track record in operations/maintenance is responsible for uncertainty.
• India has borrowed US$151.5 million from the World Bank to build the dam, but in 1993 the Bank cancelled plans to lend more because the Indian government failed to identify the displaced/prepare resettlement plans.
• Development projects are in remote villages, hills, and forests, meaning indigenous people who are traditional agents of conservation are displaced causing a loss of livelihood, habitat, assets, social disruption, disorder, severance from a sustaining eco-system which threatens the poor/weak with impoverishment.
• Rehabilitation never a factor according to the 1894 Land Acquisition Act as cash compensation for loss is the only emphasis.
• Involuntary resettlement cases lead to state intervention with some measure when highlighted.
• The government believes rehabilitation should not be a reason when acquiring land for 'public purpose' and have sought to take away the right of appeal by those whose land stands to be confiscated, making the Supreme Court the appellate forum.
• Globalization is posing a threat to indigenous communities as private conglomerates encroach rural lands to build the government's infrastructure.
• If the 1894 Act's proposed amendments pass, it will make it easier for private interests to acquire land, leading to new waves of displacement.

Institutional Response in India

• There is no national policy or legal framework to deal with refugees or IDPs in India.
• India has not ratified the 1951 Convention and 1967 Protocol, nor permits UNHCR access to most refugee groups.
• Granting refugee status is at the discretion of political authorities.
• There is no national policy on resettlement/rehabilitation of IDPs so project/state level ad hoc initiatives are the only measures

The UN Guiding Principles on IDPs

• The UN Guiding Principles contains 30 principles that protect IDPs in all phases of displacement.
• The Guiding Principles on IDPs has five sections outlining protection measure for internally displaced persons, stand as soft law, a legally non-binding obligation, and seek to encourage of norms of protection for IDPs.
• The principles address the rights/guarantees of IDPs during displacement, resettlement, reintegration according to individuals/groups forced to leave their habitual residences without crossing borders because of conflict, violence, human rights violations, or disasters.
• The principles are aligned with human rights/humanitarian laws.
• Former refugees unable to return to their homes or find durable solutions through social/economic integration; displaced stateless persons; displaced nationals of another country who have lived there and largely lost contact with their country meet conditions for right to protection as internally displaced persons

Section I: General Principles

• Principle 1: IDPs enjoy the same rights/freedoms as other citizens via equality/non-discrimination
• Principle 2: National authorities bear primary responsibility for protecting/assisting IDPs.
• Principle 3: The principles apply universally and ensure no impact on international/domestic law. via application without prejudice
• Principle 4: There should be no discrimination; consideration should be given to children, expectant mothers, mothers with young children, female heads of household, people with disabilities, and the elderly

Section II: Protection from Displacement

• Principle 5: Prevention of Displacement i.e. authorities must act on displacement conditions
• Principle 6: Prohibition of Arbitrary Displacement i.e. no displacement for apartheid, discrimination, unjustified reasons
• Principle 7: Alternatives and Safeguards i.e. efforts need to be made to minimize the negative effect of displacement
• Principle 8: Displacement should uphold values, by respecting the rights of life and security
• Principle 9: The state has obligation towards displacement regarding peasants, pastoralists, minorities or indigenous people

Section III: Protection During Displacement

• Principle 10: Right to life and safety i.e. IDPs must be protected from violence
• Principle 11: Dignity and integrity i.e. protection against enslavement and torture
• Principle 12: Everyone has the right to personal security and liberty
• Principle 13: Under no circumstance can displaced children be recruited, internally displaced persons have to be protected against discriminatory recruitment
• Principle 14: Every IDP can choose their residency and movement
• Principle 15: The right to seek safety, the right to leave, and the right to seek asylum
• Principle 16: They have the right to know the relatives that are missing, and also access to the relative grave sites
• Principle 17: Honouring rights between community and family
• Principle 18: Basic needs need to be met, authorities have to ensure healthcare, shelter, etc

Authorities

• Legal consideration needs to be given
• Principle 19: Healthcare needs to be a priority, particularly psychological
• Principle 20: Every individual is entitled to a law
• Principle 21: No one is deprived from their possession
• Principle 22: IDPs, whether in camps or not cannot be discriminated upon
• Principle 23: Education is a human right

Humanitarian Assistance

• Principle 24: Impartiality and humanity i.e. assistance given with no discrimination
• Principle 25: Responsibility falls to the state, with assistance to those stepping up
• Principle 26: Humanitarian workers have to be protected

Return Strategy

• Principle 28: Resettlement has to be voluntary
• Principle 29: Authorities will assist with providing lost property and fair compensation
• Principle 30: Equal access to public services, i.e. the governments have provide reintegration with support

Displaced Persons (Compensation and Rehabilitation) Act, 1954

• Enacted to provide grants to displaced persons who migrated to India due to the 1947 partition.
• The Act and its definition of "displaced person" applies to the partition of India and differs from the Guiding Principles definition
• Displaced person:
  • Any person who on the accounts of creation of India etc left civil disturbances that form west Pakistan left, after march 1947, and been displaced, residing in India
  • Those Pakistan residents now reside in India cannot manage assets in west Pakistan, their successors too

Judgements In India

• Narmada Bachao Andolan v. Union of India & Ors.AIR 1999 SC 3345
  • A case dealt with dam displacement i.e. the Sardar Sarovar dam project and argued against displacement
  • Those primary issues of displacement of villages, lack of rehab, effect to the environmental
  • The R and R need to proper, government strict approach
  • Displacement is within the right to file
  • Displacement and environmental law dismissed
  • Highlighting India growth is necessary
  • There is a post effects, hardship tribal folk could not adapt
  • Lack of government efforts, they were not efficient
• People's Union v Gujarat 2002 riots
  • Violence occurred, shelter
  • The state is obligated to care for idos
  • No choice but to squat
  • State used force
  • Inhumane nature of eviction

Civil Application

• Multiple court actions, notice issue
• There was not compensation given to those living on public land, and thus should be identified
• It was not housing from encroachment
• Assam Moslem
• The petitionership failed
• No document evidence and citizenship, it was not compliance it was an irregular court, it had procedures issues
• The citizens are the matter of subject, the judge are supposed to be fair

National

• Highlighting issue and failure with lack of rehabilitation
• International
• Rights africa
• Angola charter rights for displaced people
• Forced immigration
• Mass deportation with no remedy

Right To Be Uprooted

• Colombia
• Security
• And liberty

Conclusion

• IDPs remain a extremely population
• The lack access due to international borders
• The ethnic conflict cause the issue
• They lake protections
• There is a international level, and must be adopted