BADIL Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee

Protection
Almost 60 years after their initial displacement, Palestinian refugees and IDPs are still denied access to durable solutions
in accordance with international law, relevant UN resolutions, and best international practice. A variety of factors
have contributed to this stalemate. These include Israel’s refusal to provide protection and allow Palestinian refugees and
IDPs to return to their homes of origin; the collapse of UNCCP protection; the protracted Israeli occupation of the West
Bank, including eastern Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip; lack of effective protection by the Arab League and host states;
limited protection afforded by the UNHCR and UNRWA; varying interpretations of relevant instruments; and the lack
of sufficient international will to enable refugees to exercise their fundamental human rights under international law
as affirmed in relevant UN resolutions.
4.1 Protection of Refugees and IDPs
Protection is first and foremost the duty of a state to protect persons within its borders from persecution. 1
States must minimally respect the principles of non-discrimination and non-refoulement: i.e., the right of
persons not to be forcibly expelled or returned to territory where their life or freedom would be at risk on
account of their race, religion, nationality or membership of a particular social group, or political opinion.
The prohibition against refoulement forms part of customary law and therefore applies to all states, irrespective
of whether they are signatories to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. 2 When states are
unable or unwilling to protect, this responsibility falls upon the international community. 3
The refugee protection regime is enshrined in the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol, 4 which
cover the gamut of activities through which the rights of refugees are secured. The UN High Commissioner
for Refugees (UNHCR) is the agency mandated to provided protection and assistance to refugees.
Internally displaced persons (IDPs) are not covered by the 1951 Refugee Convention. There is no binding
international convention that sets forth the rights and duties of IDPs and concomitant obligations of
states. The 1998 Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement 5 outline the specific rights of IDPs and the
obligations of states towards them, under human rights and humanitarian law. International organizations
and UN agencies have recently established a “Collaborative Response”, which aims to provide protection
and assistance to IDPs.
Refugee and IDP protection can be said to encompass two intertwined components: the immediate, day-today
protection of basic rights; and the search for durable solutions in accordance with international law and
the principle of voluntariness (see box below). Basic, day-to-day international protection aims to provide
refugees and IDPs with a dignified life.
For refugees, an international agency, usually the UNHCR, supervises the implementation of international
conventions in host countries. The primary goals are to ensure physical security, access to territory and asylum
procedures, as well as respect for the principle of non-refoulement. 6 Once refugees are admitted to a territory,
an international agency or the host country will normally provide shelter, water, food and medical care.
Protecting agencies will also encourage host countries to show respect for the basic human rights of refugees.
States party to the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol are obliged to guarantee freedom of religion,
freedom of movement, the right to work, housing, property ownership and education, as well as the right
to identity papers, travel documents and social security. The 1951 Refugee Convention requires that most of
these rights be guaranteed at the same level as nationals of the state; all are guaranteed at least at the same
level as other foreigners. Promoting a proper legislative framework for refugee status determination within
states is also a component of protection. International protection is thus comprised of both “partnership”
and “confrontation” between states and international agencies mandated to protect refugees and IDPs. 7
Relevant UN agencies and international organizations will provide assistance and protection to IDPs. For
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