PART 2.1
its Refugee Protocol. These two instruments
also detail the human rights guarantees to be
provided to refugees – including property, civil,
labour and welfare rights.95
Trafficking within the borders of one country
shares many common features with internal
displacement, and it has been argued that
individuals who have been internally trafficked
should be regarded as IDPs.96 The introduction to
the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement97
defines IDPs as “persons or groups of persons
who have been forced or obliged to flee or leave
their homes or places of habitual residence …
and who have not crossed an … [international]
border.” The Handbook for applying the Guiding
Principles confirms that “the distinctive feature of
internal displacement is coerced or involuntary
movement that takes place within national
borders. The reasons for flight may vary and
include armed conflict, situations of generalized
violence, violations of human rights, and natural
or human-made disasters.”98 The elements of
For a comprehensive analysis of the rights of refugees,
see James Hathaway, The Rights of Refugees under
International Law (2005) [Hereinafter: Hathaway, The
Rights of Refugees…].
95
Susan Martin, “Internal trafficking”, Forced Migration
Review, No. 25 (May 2006), p. 12.
96
Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement (E/
CN.4/1998/53/Add.2, annex). The Guiding Principles,
which “are based upon existing international humanitarian
law and human rights instruments”, were developed to:
“serve as an international standard to guide governments
as well as international humanitarian and development
agencies in providing assistance and protection to
IDPs”: Statement by the Under-Secretary-General for
Humanitarian Affairs, Sergio Vieira de Mello in Walter
Kälin, Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement:
Annotations (American Society of International Law and
Brookings Institution Project on Internal Displacement,
2000).
97
Brookings Institution Project on Internal Displacement
and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of
Humanitarian Affairs, Handbook for Applying the Guiding
Principles on Internal Displacement (1999) [Hereinafter:
IDP Handbook].
98
70
coercion and involuntary movement fall within
the definition of trafficking and it is widely
accepted that conflict, disaster and violation
of human rights all increase the vulnerability of
individuals and groups to trafficking and related
forms of exploitation.
The Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement
identify the rights and guarantees relevant to
the protection of persons who have become
internally displaced. They are grounded in
and consistent with international human rights
law. Guiding Principle 1 provides that IDPs
shall enjoy “in full equality, the same rights
and freedoms” as other persons in the country
and shall not be discriminated against in
the enjoyment of their rights because of their
displaced status. The Guiding Principles set out
a detailed range of measures that are required
to protect, support and assist those who have
been internally displaced, including through
trafficking. Of particular importance are the
principles relating to longer-term solutions to
displacement, including return, resettlement and
local integration.99 Note that the special needs
of IDP women and girls are recognized in the
Guiding Principles and elsewhere.100
99
For more on the Guiding Principles on Internal
Displacement, see the IDP Handbook, and Walter Kälin,
“The guiding principles on internal displacement as
international minimum standard and protection tool”,
Refugee Survey Quarterly, vol. 24, No. 3 (2005), p. 27.
See, for example, Principle 4 (non-discrimination;
protection and assistance to take account of the special
needs of certain IDPs including unaccompanied minors,
mothers and female heads of household); Principles 7
and 18 (involvement of affected women in planning
and decision-making about their relocation as well as
the distribution of supplies); Principle 11 (protection
against gender-based violence); Principle 19 (special
attention to the health needs of IDP women); and Principle
23 (involvement of IDP women and girls in education
programmes). The Beijing Declaration and Platform for
Action, para. 58 (l), calls on Governments to “ensure that
internally displaced women have full access to economic
opportunities and that the qualifications and skills of
refugee women are recognized”.
100
RECOMMENDED PRINCIPLES AND GUIDELINES ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND HUMAN TRAFFICKING
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