A/HRC/55/53 I. Introduction 1. Resettlement has significant impacts on the lives and well-being of people. While forced evictions and arbitrary displacement have long been recognized as gross violations of human rights, less attention has been given to what displaced persons endure after displacement. Many displaced communities have never been accorded durable solutions or offered the opportunity to resettle in conformity with international human rights standards. Regrettably, when people have been resettled, the outcomes have often been very poor, undermining the human rights of those affected. 2. In recent decades, the number of persons displaced owing to conflict, disasters, development, land grabs, “green grabs”,1 and climate change has increased and is expected to continue to grow. Urbanization, land speculation and over-commodification of land and housing, uncontrolled use of eminent domain, industrial agriculture and water management, infrastructure projects, mega-events, violent conflicts, conservation, disasters and climate change are all drivers of large-scale displacement and resettlement. 3. While there are already several international standards on internal displacement and development-based displacement, the Special Rapporteur argues that there is a need to develop human rights principles and guidelines on resettlement of all kinds, building on existing human rights treaty law, international human rights standards, legal principles enshrined in national law and best international practices. The purpose of such guidelines is to close a significant protection gap, to harmonize existing standards and regulations and to ensure that any resettlement is carried out in conformity with human rights. 4. Although certain elements of resettlement, such as free, prior and informed consent and the right to participation, are acknowledged in certain international instruments and select national laws and policies, there are currently no general international guidelines that address all stages of the resettlement process and ensure that resettlement is carried out in full conformity with human rights standards. The lack of clear standards has led to inconsistent approaches by States, financial institutions, businesses and other actors. As a result, the human rights mechanisms of the United Nations continue to receive frequent reports of inadequate resettlement processes that do not respect the human rights of affected persons. 5. In the present report, submitted in accordance with Human Rights Council resolution 52/10, the Special Rapporteur identifies the human rights challenges that arise from and during the process of resettlement and takes stock of existing international law, regulations, policies and practices related to resettlement. Furthermore, he assesses gaps in the legal architecture and provides an analysis of the processes required to ensure that human rights related to resettlement are not only protected on paper, but are also respected in practice. The report does not focus on refugee resettlement involving cross-border efforts and processes for selecting and transferring refugees to third countries. To inform the report, the Special Rapporteur held an expert consultation on 29 November 2023, relied on written submissions and conducted extensive research. The Special Rapporteur is grateful to all who provided written submissions.2 6. While the terms “relocation” and “resettlement” are often used interchangeably in scholarly literature and standards, in the present report, resettlement is understood as the relocation of a group of people, large or small, to a new location where they re-establish their habitual place of residence and rebuild their lives and livelihoods. 7. The present report contains the following sections: (a) resettlement under international law; (b) impact of resettlement on human rights; (c) main drivers of resettlement: tackling the causes; (d) why resettlement often undermines human rights; (e) towards improved resettlement; and (f) conclusions and recommendations. 8. In his forthcoming report to the General Assembly, the Special Rapporteur will address the lessons learned from different resettlement projects and discuss in more detail the 1 2 GE.24-00501 See A/HRC/52/28. Submissions are available at https://www.ohchr.org/en/calls-for-input/2023/call-inputs-resettlementhuman-rights-issue. 3