NOVEMBER- DECEMBER 2021

COVER STORY
Jihad groups with no hope for the future.
Increasingly, humanitarian aid workers
continue to bear the blunt of the violence.
For example, for the past two years, major
attacks affecting aid workers occurred
in many countries, but they were at the
highest levels in South Sudan, Syria, and
the DRC. In 2020 alone, more than 470 aid
workers were attacked including more than
100 who paid the ultimate price with their
lives, more than 200 who were seriously
injured and more than 100 who were
kidnapped.
These tragic numbers are a sober
reminder of the dangerous nature of
humanitarian work especially when all
the rules and laws governing the conduct
of hostilities are ignored and those
in positions of power don’t summon
the courage to hold to account those
responsible. Despite several resolutions
and statements by the UN General
Assembly and Security Council on the
need to protect humanitarian workers,
killings and violence continue with
impunity.
Amidst all these tragedies, what
should be done to address this unfortunate
situation? Truth is, we can’t address
these challenges without commitment to
dialogue and willingness to address our
differences without resorting to violence.
But most important, even when
dialogue fails – as it has done often – it is
critical that parties to the conflict respect
the law, and those who don’t, should be
held to account with the full force of the
law.
Respect for international human
rights and international humanitarian
law is first and foremost a requirement to
mitigate suffering continuously inflicted
on the population. Under IHL, people are
protected from and during displacement as
civilians, provided they do not take a direct
part in hostilities.
It has further been shown that
international humanitarian law provides
for limited circumstances under which
the displacement of civilians during
armed conflict is allowed, namely if
it is carried out for the security of the
individuals involved, or for imperative
military reasons. Nevertheless, in such
‘
Increasingly, forced
displacement is growing in
complexity
’
circumstances, displacement is temporary
and must be carried out in such a manner
as to ensure that displaced persons are
returned to their homes as soon as the
situation allows.
Unfortunately, parties to a conflict
continue to ignore or deny protection to
the displaced, including guarantees of
sustained and unhindered humanitarian
assistance to vulnerable civilians. The
immediate priority must be for all civilians
to have access to the food, water and
medical assistance they urgently require.
Facilitating access for monitors and
protection actors is also key to safeguard
the rights of civilians.
The UN Guiding Principles on Internal
Displacement and the 2009 Kampala
Convention provide useful guidance on
displacement-specific aspects. Many of
the rules contained in these instruments
are part and parcel of international human
rights law and international humanitarian
law.
For example, the principles make clear
that states have a duty to provide displaced
people with lasting return, resettlement and
reintegration solutions, and that displaced
people must be involved in planning and
managing measures that concern them.
But also, these instruments provide that
a state must take all necessary measures
to avoid displacement of its population
and when it does, must provide necessary
compensation to that effect.
The decision to end internal
displacement should be voluntary,
and depend on legislative, political,
economic, and social reforms and the
successful transition to peace or a return
to “normality”. The return process can be
difficult to monitor and assess, however, as
it is usually the responsibility of the host
country.
Displaced people should not feel
forced to return, but the issues that militate
against a return are often the same as those
against remaining. These include security,
infrastructure, employment, land, health
care and housing.
Perhaps the most important aspect
in addressing forced displacement is
the accountability question. As noted
above, most displacement emanates from
conflicts and violence often between
government allied forces and multiple
groups of rebels with multifaceted
demands and claims.
It has also been noted that one of the
single most important requirements for the
belligerents in the conduct of hostilities is
the respect for international humanitarian
law and international human rights law. Yet
often this obligation has been ignored or
disregarded without much accountability.
In situations like Syria and Yemen,
we have had multiple UN backed
reports which clearly indicate the
culpability of both parties to the conflict
in causing massive violations of human
rights including forced displacement.
Unfortunately, we have seen no appetite
at the international level or within the UN
Security Council to action these reports by
holding these parties to account rather.
Sadly, some of the worst violators
have found their protectors in the
Council and other related forums. While
the International Criminal Court was
established with the singular aim of ridding
humanity with atrocity crimes of the past,
the same humanity has demonstrated
monumental failure in using this institution
to address challenges it was precisely set
up to address.
Unless we gather political will and
summon courage to address violence
and conflicts by all necessary tools at
our disposal, including the UN Charter
and other Human Rights instruments and
institutions we have painstakingly adopted
and created over the years, it is unlikely
that we can tackle resultant effect of wars
especially conflict induced displacement.
The causes of displacement are
many and varied. And as such, solutions
should be innovative and multifaceted.
We have seen that while climate induced
displacement continues to emerge as a
threat to the wellbeing and livelihood
of millions around the world, conflict
constitutes, and is still, by far the primary
cause of forced displacement.
This type of displacement is most often
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