By Ian Piper

In the past few years, the problem of the world's internally displaced people has grown, attracted more media attention and increasingly involved a wider section of the international humanitarian community.

There have been calls for UNHCR to take a more prominent role and other agencies such as the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) have adopted higher profiles in helping this group of uprooted persons – actions which might be seen as clouding the established operational role of the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The ICRC has been active for many years in helping the internally displaced, estimated by the U.N. to number 20-25 million around the world, a role widely recognized by governments and military authorities and based on international humanitarian law. Recent operations in West and Central Africa underline this ongoing commitment.

But clearly, with wars themselves becoming more complex and confused and the increased number of humanitarian actors signaling the biggest change in the IDP environment in a decade, there is a need for greater understanding, cooperation and coordination to avoid unnecessary overlap and confusion.

The ICRC must be centrally involved, and a major challenge for the organization will be how well it handles its relations with other agencies.

These issues have to be tackled at headquarters level, but also critically in the field where fumbled decisions can cost lives.

Within the Red Cross 'family' the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and some of its individual members are already involved with helping the internally displaced. This requires coordination between these organizations and their partners. The solution may be an increased leadership and coordination role by the ICRC, even outside the immediate Red Cross/Red Crescent movement.

The most critical relationship is that between UNHCR and this greater Red Cross family. Often operating in the same areas on behalf of the same people, ICRC and UNHCR, in particular, need to be clear about their respective responsibilities and roles and their attitude to donor-driven organizations new to the scene, especially in view of the new complexities including the involvement of ethnic, religious and even criminal elements in armed conflict and the growth of internal wars in the last 30 years.

GROWING ROLE

ICRC's own operational role is growing. It focuses on the urgent needs of all people affected by conflict – not only persons forced to abandon their homes, but also local populations in whose communities IDPs have sought sanctuary. Both groups have the right to protection under the Geneva Conventions.

In some cases, for instance, while IDPs can eventually move on, local civilians may wish to stay and look after their homes, therefore needing greater protection.

The ICRC has to be clearer about what it means by 'urgent needs' and a 'direct result of conflict.' It needs to clarify to what extent it will support and rehabilitate IDPs in periods of transition, including populations returning home after a war.

There is cause for concern about so-called neglected situations, problems which have slipped from the media gaze, attract less interest from governments and are no longer considered emergencies. Long-term IDPs who are not covered by ICRC's mandate often fall into this category. Their eligibility for support may be challenged as they settle into lives of poverty and discrimination, living on the outskirts of cities such as Bogotá, Sarajevo, Khartoum and Luanda.

To further strengthen its operations, the ICRC has now included a blueprint called the "Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement" in its training schedule, recognizing these principles as a useful tool in areas not already covered by international humanitarian law such as the return of displaced persons to their homes or the recovery of documentation. The ICRC helped draft the principles, though they are not legally binding.

Finally, while helping uprooted people in a practical manner, ICRC also contributes to the global debate on displaced persons, refugees and migrants.

The responsibility of states, with which the ICRC has a unique relationship, is important. Governments that create the problem of displacement must be held to account. They must recognize people who are in a precarious and threatening situation need security, humanity and justice and must not be treated simply as migration statistics by states fearful of population movements.

IAN PIPER is a senior press officer at ICRC's Geneva headquarters.

Source: Refugees Magazine Issue 132: "The Changing Face of Protection" (September 2003). Download the complete issue in pdf format: low-resolution (620Kb) here or high-resolution (1.8Mb) here