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Contributions from
the Column
Media
Rape as a war crime
Lobbying guide
Taking foreign cultures more seriously
Globalisation myths
12/2006 |
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Lobbying guide
Michaela Ludwig and Andreas Richter:
Vertreibung von Kindern verhindern! Für ein Menschenrecht auf Schutz vor Vertreibung [Prevent displacement of children! The argument for a human right to protection from displacement.]
terre des hommes, Osnabrück 2006,
315 p., ¤14.95, ISBN 3-924493-65-0
This book’s title is misleading, as the tome does not only deal with children, but rather all people forced to flee their homes and remain within the borders of their own countries. Worldwide, there are at least 25 million of such internally displaced persons, or IDPs. According to this book, more than half of them are children and young people, making them the most affected group.
According to Michaela Ludwig and Andreas Richter, a major obstacle to protecting people is the still-prevailing belief that internal displacement is a purely domestic issue. In 1998, the UN Representative on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons published the “Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement”, based on standards of international law, which prohibit displacements in a range of situations. However, it is not always possible to clearly define the demarcation line between displacement and mere resettlement – for the construction of major dams, for example.
To redress this problem and encourage public discussion, the authors call for the formulation of a basic human right not to be arbitrarily displaced. Walter Kälin, the current UN Representative on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons, agrees with them. In a comprehensive interview in the book, the Swiss professor of international law refers to the deplorable situation under international criminal law, which only holds individuals, but not states, accountable for displacements.
The authors conclude with four country examples. They describe displacement campaigns in the “Golden Triangle” between Burma and Thailand, the situation in the Indonesian province of Aceh after the 2004 tsunami, as well as efforts on behalf of internally displaced persons in Colombia and on the Philippine island of Mindanao. A supplementary German translation of the “Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement” is included. A detailed glossary and index make the book easy to work with. It is also illustrated with impressive images, drawn up by terre des hommes with the support of InWEnt. While the constant appeals for donations are irritating, the publication is nonetheless recommended without reservation to anyone wishing to gain a thorough insight into internal displacement, or to become active in this field.
Uwe Kerkow
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