10 Facts about Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement

1. In response to the request of the UN Commission on Human Rights in 1992, they were prepared by Mr. Francis M.Deng in several years and presented to the Commission in 1998.
2. The main purpose of this was to find out the causes and consequences of internal displacement and to create the ways to improve protection and assistance for IDPs.
3. They define Internally Displaced Persons
4. They include 30 principles providing protection for the IDPs in all the phases of displacement.
5. They present a guidance for the states, international organizations and individuals dealing with the situation.
6. They are not internationally binding.
7. The principles give the main responsibility for the protection of IDPs to their nation states.
8. Some regional organizations and states made references to or incorporated the Guiding Principles into their resolutions or laws.
9. In 2005, the Commission on Human Rights expressed "its appreciation of the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement as an important tool for dealing with situations of internal displacement", welcomed "the dissemination, promotion and application of the Guiding Principles" and encouraged "the continued dissemination and promotion of the Guiding Principles".
10. Considering that the internal displacement is as old as the nation state, 1998 dated, non-binding principles shows how far behind we are in the field.