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VI. Plight of Persons Displaced by the Conflict
Even after three years of the forcible displacement of people into camps and the
exodus of people from Chhattisgarh to neighboring states (principally Andhra
Pradesh) began, neither the Indian central nor the state governments of Chhattisgarh
and Andhra Pradesh have developed a policy for protection of and assistance to
displaced persons. Andhra Pradesh authorities claim that there is a need for a
national policy on displaced persons. 178 They further added that in the absence of
such a policy they are powerless to make decisions to protect and assist such
people. 179 While there is certainly a need for a national policy, the absence of one
does not absolve state governments from their responsibilities to protect and assist
displaced persons.
India is party to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
(ICESCR) and has an obligation to “recognize the right of everyone to an adequate
standard of living for himself and his family, including adequate food, clothing and
housing, and to continuous improvement of living conditions.” 180 The ICESCR also
requires states to respect the rights of all individuals without discriminating against
them on the basis of “race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion,
national or social origin, property, birth or other status [emphasis added].” 181
Under the United Nations Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement (UN Guiding
Principles), 182 persons who are displaced have the rights to seek safety in any part of
178 Human Rights Watch interviews with B. Shafiullah, divisional forest officer of Bhadrachalam, Bhadrachalam, December 7,
2007; K. Bhaskar, sub-collector of Khammam district, Bhadrachalam, December 7, 2007.
179 Ibid.
180 ICESR, art. 11.1.
181 ICESR, art. 2.1.
182 United Nations Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, UN Document E/CN.4/1998/53/Add.2; November 11, 1998.
The UN Guiding Principles though not binding on governments, reflect and are consistent with international human rights law
and international humanitarian law, and are intended to provide guidance to states confronting internal displacement. UN
agencies and nongovernmental umbrella groups in the Inter-Agency Standing Committee have endorsed the Guiding
Principles. Regional bodies in the Americas, Africa, and Europe have endorsed or acknowledged the Guiding Principles with
appreciation. The Council of Europe has also endorsed the Guiding Principles through its Parliamentary Assembly Committee
on Migration, Refugees and Demography, which recommends respect for the Guiding Principles in the course of fact-finding
missions to displacement-affected countries. Individual governments have begun to incorporate them in national policies and
laws, and some national courts have begun to refer to them as a relevant restatement of existing international law. For more
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Human Rights Watch July 2008