BADIL Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee

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Survey of Palestinian Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons (2006-2007)
instance, the UNHCR is responsible for protection, camp management and emergency shelter, while the
UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is responsible for nutrition. IDPs have the right to receive national and
international protection and humanitarian assistance. National authorities have a duty to accept protection and
assistance offers made to IDPs. The Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement stipulates that IDPs have the
right to seek safety in another part of the country, leave their country, seek asylum, and be protected against
refoulement. 8 The Guiding Principles also affirm the right of IDPs to “enjoy, in full equality, the same rights
and freedoms under international and domestic law as do other persons in their country.” 9 These include,
among others, the rights to liberty and security of person, freedom of movement, an adequate standard of
living, property rights, education, and respect for the family unit.
Protection also includes the search for durable solutions for refugees and IDPs at all stages of displacement.
The search for durable solutions is a core component of protection. Durable solutions refer to the three
possible solutions that will restore refugees’ rights, i.e., repatriation (return), local integration in the host
country, and resettlement in a third country.
The preferred solution for refugees and IDPs is repatriation, the only option constituting a fundamental
and inalienable right (i.e., the right of return) that can be implemented by individuals independently of the
search for durable solutions. No state is obliged to accord local integration or resettlement opportunities to
refugees. There is thus no “right to durable solutions”, other than the right of return. There is, however, a
duty of states to protect refugees and internally displaced persons from persecution and refoulement.
For refugee and IDP solutions to be durable, they must be voluntary. In other words, refugees should be
able to make informed choices concerning the solutions to their particular circumstances.
Voluntariness (Refugee and IDP Choice)
Refugee and IDP choice, or voluntariness, is the cornerstone of UNHCR repatriation programs and is dealt with extensively in
their Handbook on Voluntary Repatriation: International Protection. Voluntariness means that states should not take “measures
which push the refugee to repatriate, but also [...] [refugees] should not be prevented from returning.” 10
Respect for the principle of voluntariness is also enshrined in the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, which reaffirm that
“special efforts should be made to ensure the full participation of internally displaced persons in the planning and management
of their return or resettlement and reintegration. A participatory, voluntary, well-informed and individual choice to return of the
displaced is the most favoured durable solution.” 11
The UNHCR notes that refugee choice is affected both by conditions in the host country and by conditions in the country of
origin. In other words, the denial of basic rights guaranteed under the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and
pressure or threats on refugees to leave by interest groups or host country authorities, inhibit refugee choice and have the
potential to render their decisions less than voluntary. On the other hand, discrimination in domestic legislation and the provision
of essential services, lack of guarantees for the safety of returnees, and attempts to encourage anti-refugee sentiment among
the population in the country of origin, also prevent refugees from making a free choice as to whether they wish to exercise
their right of return.
Information is critical to refugee choice. Refugees should be provided with as much information as possible concerning the
conditions in their country of origin. Information should be disseminated via posters and leaflets, oral presentations, videos,
refugee information committees, and through counselling by international protection staff, as well as reconnaissance visits by
refugee groups to areas of return.
Details about the repatriation procedure should also be provided. These should include information on: customs, immigration
and health formalities; procedures for bringing in personal and communal property; access to land and restitution procedures;
registration and documentation for repatriation; the timing and phasing of the repatriation operation; special arrangements for
vulnerable groups such as women, children and the elderly; de-registration procedures for assistance, if any; and procedures
and options for those not wishing to repatriate. Refugees should also be aware of how to contact international protection staff
in their country of origin in case problems arise with regard to the promised protection.