A/81/339 anonymous feedback options, separate consultations for persons belonging to marginalized groups and safeguards against retaliation. 33. Local public authorities and municipalities are essential to reconstruction and the meaningful participation of displaced persons. Their proximity to affected populations enables them to understand the differentiated impacts, convene consultations, coordinate services and translate national reconstruction plans into locally workable processes. Where reconstruction frameworks are shaped through centralized or externally driven approaches, local authorities are often marginalized. 38 34. Community committees, volunteer groups, women’s groups, youth networks and family- and faith-based actors often fill gaps left by formal systems. It is important that these actors not be bypassed in reconstruction processes and that they be adequately resourced and integrated. 39 New technologies can expand engagement by enabling remote participation, bearing in mind challenges such as online harassment, unequal connectivity, and the protection risks arising from the collection and retention of data on displaced persons. 35. Internally displaced persons facing intersecting forms of discrimination bring distinct strengths to reconstruction. Older persons transmit the knowledge, memory and practices that anchor communities to their history and traditions and sustain community life; women often sustain family and community networks and are frequently at the forefront of local recovery; young people contribute skills and vision; persons with disabilities possess expertise on accessibility and inclusive design; Indigenous Peoples and minorities hold knowledge of land, environment and cultural practices, including traditional building techniques, that can strengthen the resilience and cultural continuity of reconstruction. 36. Reconstruction and land restitution have been most responsive and durable where participatory models have been institutionalized. In Colombia, Act No. 1448 of 2011, on victims and land restitution provides displaced communities with formal participation in municipal-level return and reconstruction planning, including Tables for the Effective Participation of Victims ( Mesas de Participación Efectiva de las Víctimas). 40 This has contributed to shifting the focus from emergency assistance towards recognizing internally displaced persons as actors of recovery. In Ukraine, internally displaced persons councils advise the Government at various levels, channelling those persons’ perspectives into decision-making and contributing to community-based solutions, in some cases participating in project implementation by representing the interests of current or future residents. 41 C. Housing, land and property, and infrastructure 37. The loss of housing, land and property threatens a range of human rights that States have an obligation to respect, protect and fulfil. 42 In reconstruction contexts, the recurrent issues are insecurity of tenure and forced evictions; the secondary occupation of homes; contested restitution and compensation claims; and the loss of the records on which legal rights depend. Housing, land and p roperty grievances are not only a consequence of mass devastation; they are frequently a driver of conflict and displacement. The exercise of these rights rests on well -functioning institutions __________________ 38 Submissions from Romania and the Association of Palestinian Local Authorities . Submissions from Open Doors and World Evangelical Alliance. 40 Submissions from Colombia and the Ombudsman’s Office. 41 Submission from Stabilization Support Services. 42 See A/HRC/47/37. 39 10/24 26-12053