A/HRC/56/47 56. As livelihood restoration efforts falter, some relocated persons develop strategies that straddle the relocation area and their previous village. In Papua New Guinea and Vunidogoloa (Fiji), limited access to livelihoods has reportedly prompted some to return to their previous fishing areas to earn an income.102 Relocated to higher ground following severe flooding, the Boca de Cachon community in the Dominican Republic used their previous land to graze livestock, as their new land plots were too small.103 Some members of the Guna Indigenous People in Panama reportedly split up between two homes, with young people moving to the mainland and the older generation remaining on the island, while others commuted back and forth.104 9. Indigenous and cultural rights 57. Planned relocations can have a particularly negative impact on the rights of Indigenous Peoples owing to their special attachment to their land for livelihoods, health, culture, well-being and identity, posing a threat to their existence.105 According to reports, in Vunidogoloa Village, Vanua Levu in Fiji, the loss of traditional lands and disruption to cultural practices and social cohesion are profound.106 Some Indigenous Peoples have already endured displacement, which influences the way they perceive relocations. Online consultations revealed that analysis and consideration of previous experiences of displacement are critical to ensuring respect for Indigenous rights in a planned relocation process. 58. Cultural loss can include loss of sacred sites, cultural values, burial sites, health and social well-being, or of other intrinsic values that communities experience when separated from their ancestral lands and ways of life.107 Persons relocated from Sagar Island, India and the Manta community in Bangladesh reported that their culture had been negatively affected following relocation because of the severing of important social ties. 108 In Tacloban, Philippines, the random allocation of housing units reportedly resulted in a new distribution of neighbours and family members across different relocation sites. Social support networks for food, financial aid or unpaid care services were reportedly no longer available.109 The loss of social connections and community dynamics led to diminished well-being. IV. Human rights-based approach to planned relocations A. Introduction 59. Based on the above analysis and drawing upon examples of planned relocations received in submissions and during consultations, the Special Rapporteur outlines below the key elements of a human rights-based approach to planned relocation, which is often regrettably lacking. It is hoped that the analysis in the section below will serve both as a specific tool and an additional resource, offering clarity on human rights-based planned relocations in the context of disasters and the adverse effects of climate change. 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 14 Submissions by the Asia Pacific Academic Network on Disaster Displacement and Yee, PiggottMcKellar and McMichael. See www.knomad.org/sites/default/files/201705/GMDAC%20S%20Melde%20PPT%20Planned%20relocation%2011%20April%202017.pdf. Submission of Human Rights Watch. Erica R. Bower and others, “Enabling pathways for sustainable livelihoods in planned relocation”, Nature Climate Change, vol. 13, No. 9 (2023). Government of Fiji, “The development of Fiji’s national planned relocation arrangements and associated financing mechanism”, 25 April 2023. Submission by the Legal Justice Coalition, Rising Voices and the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee. Submissions by Stefancu and Adger and the International Centre for Climate Change and Development. Submission by Cuaton and Su.