A/RES/64/162
Emphasizing that States have the primary responsibility to provide protection
and assistance to internally displaced persons within their jurisdiction, as well as to
address the root causes of the displacement problem in appropriate cooperation with
the international community,
Reaffirming that all persons, including those internally displaced, have the
right to freedom of movement and residence and should be protected against being
arbitrarily displaced, 2
1F
Noting the international community’s growing awareness of the issue of
internally displaced persons worldwide and the urgency of addressing the root
causes of their displacement and finding durable solutions, including voluntary
return in safety and with dignity, as well as voluntary local integration in the areas
to which persons have been displaced or voluntary settlement in another part of the
country,
Recalling the relevant norms of international law, including international
human rights law, international humanitarian law and international refugee law, and
recognizing that the protection of internally displaced persons has been strengthened
by identifying, reaffirming and consolidating specific standards for their protection,
in particular through the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, 3
2F
Noting, in this regard, that 2009 marks the sixtieth anniversary of the Geneva
Conventions of 1949, 4 which constitute one vital legal framework for the protection
of and assistance to civilians in armed conflict and under foreign occupation,
including internally displaced persons,
3F
Welcoming the adoption on 22 October 2009 of the African Union Convention
for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa, 5 which
marks a significant step towards strengthening the national and regional normative
framework for the protection of and assistance to internally displaced persons,
4F
Welcoming also the increasing dissemination, promotion and application of the
Guiding Principles when dealing with situations of internal displacement,
Deploring practices of forced displacement and their negative consequences
for the enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms by large groups of
populations, and recalling the relevant provisions of the Rome Statute of the
International Criminal Court that define the deportation or forcible transfer of
population as a crime against humanity, and the unlawful deportation, transfer, or
ordering the displacement of the civilian population as war crimes, 6
5F
Welcoming the cooperation established between the Representative of the
Secretary-General on the human rights of internally displaced persons and national
Governments, the relevant offices and agencies of the United Nations as well as
with other international and regional organizations, and encouraging further
strengthening of this collaboration in order to promote better strategies for,
protection of, assistance to and durable solutions for internally displaced persons,
_______________
2
See Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, principle 6.
E/CN.4/1998/53/Add.2, annex.
4
United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 75, Nos. 970–973.
5
Available from www.africa-union.org.
6
Art. 7, paras. 1 (d) and 2 (d), and art. 8, paras. 2 (a) (vii) and 2 (e) (viii) (see United Nations, Treaty
Series, vol. 2187, No. 38544).
3
2