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Mon, 26 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Since 2004 there have been encouraging trends related to internal displacement. Walter Kälin notes that the use of the Guiding Principles as the relevant framework for protecting IDPs and the development of national and regional laws and policies on internal displacement have been positive trends. However, despite such positive trends, the challenges presented by climate change, the disregard for civilian populations in conflict zones, a shrinking humanitarian space, and protracted displacement situations still remain unchanged.
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Wed, 21 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT
In a recent op-ed in Roll Call, the Brookings and Duke Immigration Policy Roundtable offered substantive recommendations on how to usher in immigration reform, including enhanced enforcement of workplace laws, new legalization standards, the establishment of an independent standing commission and engagement with the Mexico on cross-border population issues.
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Tue, 06 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT
The immigration debate is exceedingly difficult given the challenges to the rule of law, exploitation of vulnerable newcomers, and real and perceived competition with Americans for jobs and public resources. The Immigration Policy Roundtable, a joint undertaking of Brookings and the Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University, agreed on a set of recommendations that address the most vexing and controversial obstacles to immigration reform.
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Tue, 06 Oct 2009 14:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- October 06, 2009, 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM
On October 6, the Brookings-Duke Immigration Policy Roundtable released a report proposing six policy changes to break the immigration reform stalemate, including emphasizing enforcement at the workplace, setting standards for the legalization of illegal immigrants and establishing an independent Standing Commission on Immigration.
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Wed, 23 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT
The need to protect the rights of persons displaced by conflict and find durable solutions to their displacement is inextricably linked to achieving a viable, sustainable peace. Therefore, as Andrew Solomon argues, no realistic plan for peace and reconciliation should ignore the rights and interests of internally displaced persons.
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Wed, 23 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Central America is a region constantly exposed to risks from natural disasters. It is important for governments to develop a human rights based approach to disaster response in order to decrease the likelihood of human rights violations of the victims of natural disasters. In order to promote the development of such strategies as well as strengthen the cooperation of humanitarian and human rights agencies in the field, CONRED, CEPREDENAC, and the Brookings-Bern Project, with the support of the Embassy of Switzerland, convened a workshop on disaster response and protection in situations of natural disaster in El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala.
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Tue, 22 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT
People affected by natural disasters such as floods, cyclones, earthquakes, volcanoes, and other calamities often face urgent protection needs that may not be immediately visible to humanitarian actors caught up in trying to provide water, food, shelter, medical care and other lifesaving assistance. In this paper, Elizabeth Ferris and Diane Paul provide an overview of protection challenges confronting those affected by natural disasters.
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Wed, 16 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT
The effects of rapid climate change have led to an increase in natural disasters. The international system is seeking to strengthen and expand its approaches in responding to natural disasters, reflecting a sense of urgency and fresh perspectives. A more coordinated, adaptable and rights-based approach to sustainable development may offer vulnerable populations the ability to protect themselves from natural disasters.
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Mon, 03 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Internal displacement continues to be one of the world's major humanitarian and human rights challenges and many internally displaced persons (IDPs) experience serious violations of their human rights. In his annual report to the UN General Assembly, Walter Kälin argues that it is important to translate the increasing recognition of the human rights dimension of internal displacement at the international and regional levels into effective action at the national and local levels of government.
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Wed, 22 Jul 2009 09:24:06 GMT
As part of a new “Brookings Immigration Series,” Audrey Singer describes the new geography of immigration in the United States. She discusses how many more states and municipalities have a stake in the passage of federal immigration reform.
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Tue, 21 Jul 2009 00:00:00 GMT
With the new political landscape, the importance of immigration for the American economy and new policy ideas that address concerns regarding low-skill workers and border security, the ingredients are in place for comprehensive immigration reform. What are required are bold leadership, a new narrative and a commitment to overcome old stereotypes. History does not have to repeat itself on immigration policy, writes Darrell West.
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Tue, 21 Jul 2009 00:00:00 GMT
In most societies, citizens have more interaction with municipal authorities than with national government officials. The same is true in Colombia. However, policies that address displacement are often developed by the national government and left to the municipal authorities to implement. In this report, the Brookings-Bern Project presents the issues discussed at a workshop for municipal authorities in how to better respond to the needs of Colombia's IDPs.
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Tue, 21 Jul 2009 00:00:00 GMT
The Obama administration announced plans to restructure how immigrants—most of whom have no criminal records—are detained. Immigration presents courts and administrative agencies tremendous challenges due to a lack of consensus and resources for total enforcement of laws governing entry to and status in the country. Russell Wheeler has explained why crafting better policies for institutions most responsible for enforcing the laws fairly should be part of the broader immigration reform effort.
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Mon, 20 Jul 2009 00:00:00 GMT
New trends in immigration are changing communities across the United States. In describing the new geography of U.S. immigration, the restructuring of the U.S. economy, and the accompanying decentralization of cities and growth of suburbs as major employment centers, immigrant settlements have shifted to a new class of metropolitan areas, writes Audrey Singer. As a result, recent trends in immigration have placed a higher stake in the passage of federal immigration reform for states and municipalities.
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Sat, 18 Jul 2009 00:00:00 GMT
New federal policies on immigration will require a new narrative, bold and innovative ideas and a determination to overcome major obstacles to action. Darrell West and Thomas Mann offer a forecast for immigration reform in the new political climate as the nation’s growing Latino factor and some recent shifts in immigration positions suggest that forging a new policy is possible. However, the topic still evokes economic, social, political and cultural obstacles that must be overcome if congressional reform is going to effective.
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Fri, 17 Jul 2009 00:00:00 GMT
There is broad agreement that the nation needs to overhaul its immigration policies, but how to change national policy is shaping up to be a major debate. Sketching the policy outlook for immigration reform, William Galston divides the problem into the specific issues that new immigration legislation must confront: overall level of new legal permanent residents to be admitted; the role of family reunification; employment and skills; making the new law responsive to economic change; enforcement; coping with past policy failures, and integrating the new arrivals.
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Tue, 07 Jul 2009 00:00:00 GMT
On May 16, 2009, the Sri Lankan government announced that it had overrun the last insurgent stronghold and that 26 years of civil conflict had finally come to an end. Despite the end of the war, the humanitarian emergency continues. And, as Elizabeth Ferris argues, the underlying causes of the Tamils' demands—whether for autonomy or simply greater respect for their human rights—have yet to be addressed.
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Tue, 07 Jul 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Displacement is one of the tragic consequences of conflict. Elizabeth Ferris argues that once a conflict ends, resolving displacement and preventing future displacement is inextricably linked with achieving a lasting peace.
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Thu, 02 Jul 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Recently discussion has turned to the prospects for the large-scale return of refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) to Iraq. More than 4 million Iraqis have been displaced, either internally or externally. And while the Iraqi and US governments, policymakers in the region, and humanitarian actors assume that most will return to Iraq in the near future, Elizabeth Ferris points out that experience with other displacement crises indicates that return will be neither automatic nor straightforward.
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Tue, 30 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT
It is positive, and a clear step forward, that Serbian authorities like the Serbian Commissioner for Refguees have started programs to help IDPs leave collective centers, move to their own houses, and regain their livelihoods. Yet, as Walter Kälin points out in an address to the Parliament of Serbia, bureaucratic obstacles continue to make it unnecessarily difficult for many IDPs to access public services.
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Sat, 27 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT
To date, over twenty countries, including Turkey, have already adopted policies or legislation specifically addressing internal displacement—many of which are based on the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement—and other countries are in the process of doing so. In this statement, Elizabeth Ferris puts the issue of law and policy development into the broader framework of national responsibility and gives an overview of the ways in which governments have addressed internal displacement in their laws and policies, including in the search for durable solutions.
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Wed, 24 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Over the last few years, the internal displacement situation in Europe has remained stagnant. Europe continues to have more than 2.5 million IDPs, over 99% of whom find themselves in situations of protracted displacement. In order to improve the situation of IDPs in Europe, Walter Kälin argues that both the adoption of the Draft Resolution before the Parliamentary Assembly as well as a national laws and policies "would radically change the fate of these forgotten people."
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Mon, 22 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Civilians have long borne the brunt of the conflict in Afghanistan. According to the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, civilian casualties in 2008 were 40% higher than the previous year. However, although civilian casualties are widely covered and are being addressed, Alex Mundt and Susanne Schmeidl point out that the broader protection concerns, particularly the plight of battle-affected IDPs, remain invisible and largely unacknowledged.
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Mon, 22 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT
The phenomenon of internal displacement, affecting between 24-26 million people, combined with the estimated 10.5 million refugees worldwide, has been characterized by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon as "arguably the most significant humanitarian challenge we face." Further, as Walter Kälin points out, this challenge is even more serious where it overlaps with other key humanitarian challenges such as the global AIDS epidemic, whose impact on the internally displaced is unclear.
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Thu, 11 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT
With increased levels of security in Iraq in 2008-9, displaced persons have begun to make decisions about their future: whether to return to their place of origin, locally integrate or resettle in a third location. As Jamille Bigio and Jen Scott argue, the time is ripe to assess how the government of Iraq, with the support of international and national actors, can advance the process of achieving durable solutions to displacement.
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Thu, 11 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Once again the newspaper headlines report a massive displacement crisis. This time the displaced are fleeing counter-insurgency campaigns in Pakistan. Though the situation of displacement in Pakistan will have its own unique circumstances, Ferris points out that there are some lessons learned from other displacement situations that may be applicable to planning an appropriate response.
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Mon, 08 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Massive displacement of people within and across borders has become a defining feature of the post-cold war world. It is also a major feature of human insecurity in which genocide, terrorism, egregious human rights violations and appalling human degradation wreak havoc on civilians. Though there has been a critical shift in thinking at the international level with regards to forced displacement, Cohen and Deng argue that concepts of sovereignty as responsibility and the responsibility to protect remain far ahead of international willingness and capacity to enforce them.
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Fri, 05 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT
2008 marked the tenth anniversary of the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement—an occasion both to commemorate efforts over the past decade to uphold the human rights of IDPs and to remind ourselves that much remains to be done. In this report, the Project presents its work from 2008 and discusses the challenges that lie ahead.
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Mon, 01 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT
At first glance, the return of hundreds of displaced Pashtun families from war-torn Kandahar province in southern Afghanistan to their villages of origin in the comparatively peaceful north would seem an obvious and attractive option. It is a solution welcomed by a beleagured Afghan government and supported by the United Nations agencies. But, as with many things in Afghanistan, as Mundt, Schmeidl, and Ziai argue, apperances often deceive.
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Sun, 17 May 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Audrey Singer points out that Alabama has historically had very low levels of immigration, but within the past decade it has experienced a significant growth and change in immigrant populations.
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Fri, 15 May 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Pakistan's aggressive military campaign against the Taliban's growing threat has resulted in almost a million Pakistanis being displaced in the past two weeks—in addition to the 500,000 who were displaced last fall by fighting. Despite the turmoil, Beth Ferris says there is an opportunity to strengthen civilian government, build strong civil society organizations and support internally displaced people in a way that builds confidence in their government.
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Mon, 04 May 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Migration and displacement in and from Afghanistan are bewilderingly complex. One of the world's largest protracted refugee situations coincides with the largest repatriation in recent history. Returnees to Afghanistan cross paths with increasing numbers of cross-border migrants, traders, and new refugees moving in the opposite direction. Other returnees have become IDPs. Khalid Koser argues that as a result, Afghanistan's border regions illustrate a "migration-displacement nexus."
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Tue, 21 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT
All humanitarian work is, or should be, grounded in international human rights law.
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Thu, 09 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT
One of the tragic and yet regular consequences of the absence of peace is forced displacement. All too often, civilian populations become the target of armed forces and insurgents who drive them away from their lands. National parliaments and their members play a key role in addressing this challenge.
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Mon, 06 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT
The advances in laws related to IDPs have not addressed the relationship between internal displacement and peacebuilding in Colombia. Elizabeth Ferris explores the issue.
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Tue, 24 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT
At the American Society of Public Administrators’ national conference, Jill H. Wilson outlined the major trends in U.S. immigration, including its size, growth, geographic spread, and the changing origins and characteristics of immigrants.
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Mon, 23 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Changing demographics—where people live, educational attainment, aging of boomers, diversity in population growth, poverty rates—raises key policy and program issues for the new government in Washington. In view of that, the Metropolitan Policy Program has compiled and detailed important trends that are shaping the nation’s engines of economic growth and opportunity.
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Fri, 20 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT
New Census estimates show that the most footloose nation in the world is now staying put. William Frey explains that America’s migration levels, like stock market values, have plummeted. And the usual suspects—formerly booming Arizona and Florida and hemorrhaging older cities like New York and Los Angeles—reveal this new demographic reversal.
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Thu, 12 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Marking the 10th Anniversary of the adoption of the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement has provided an opportunity to celebrate the achievements of the Guiding Principles. However, according to Walter Kälin, the dire situation on the ground for the world's over 26 million IDPs indicates that more work needs to be done.
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Tue, 10 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT
The federal government relied heavily on immigration laws in its immediate response to the September 11 terrorist attacks, largely because they were available, flexible, and could be directed toward targets deemed immediate and urgent. In a Brookings paper, David Martin suggests how to refine immigration law’s role in counterterrorism, which have clouded a traditional American stance of openness and welcome that has been valuable to diplomacy, business and the successful integration of immigrant populations.
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Thu, 05 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT
At Oxford University’s Refugee Studies Centre, Audrey Singer outlined major immigration trends, federal policy reform elements, and discussed how the American immigration debate has moved from the federal level into the states and localities.
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Sat, 28 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Post-conflict reconstruction and stabilization requires protecting and assisting internally displaced persons (IDPs) who have been uprooted from their homes and made vulnerable to violence, exploitation, discrimination and other human rights violations. In this paper, Andrew Solomon and others review the international standards and best practices for protecting the housing, land and property rights of IDPs.
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Wed, 25 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Colombia has one of the world’s largest populations of internally displaced persons (IDPs), estimated between 2.6 and 4.3 million people. Although Colombia’s government has implemented political reconciliation and socioeconomic stabilization measures in recent years, long-term solutions for millions of displaced Colombians continue to be elusive.
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Wed, 25 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT
The failure of federal immigration reform in 2007 has reverberated in some fast-growing local areas, including in Virginia’s Prince William County—where community leaders and residents successfully organized to pressure county government to crack down on illegal immigration. Following these trends for a year, Audrey Singer, Jill Wilson and Brooke DeRenzis have completed a case study of the local, regional, and ultimately, national factors that led Prince William County to adopt new policies toward unauthorized immigrants.
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Fri, 20 Feb 2009 10:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- February 20, 2009, 10:00 AM to 11:30 AM
The Justice Department’s immigration courts have been the object of attention not only for how their judges have been selected but also for their heavy caseloads and shortage of resources, including the inadequacy of legal representation available to aliens. On February 20, Russell Wheeler moderated a discussion on these issues with Judge Robert A. Katzmann of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and other immigration law experts.
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Fri, 20 Feb 2009 12:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- February 20, 2009, 12:00 PM to 2:30 PM
The basic principles of humanitarian action are being challenged from all sides. Upholding the neutrality of humanitarian action and protecting humanitarian space is increasingly difficult and perhaps nowhere as much as in Afghanistan and Iraq.
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Mon, 16 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Nearly five million refugees have returned to Afghanistan since 2002 and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) often cites Afghanistan as a positive example of refugee repatriation. In reality, however, the return of Afghan refugees may prove to be one of the most ill-conceived policies in the Islamic world in recent times.
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Mon, 16 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Iraq and Afghanistan face displacement crises of massive proportions. According to best estimates, the number approaches two million refugees and 2.8 million IDPs. Although the pace of displacement has slowed since mid-2007, few IDPs and refugees have been able to return, their resources are running out, and international assistance has been inadequate. The longer displacement lasts, the more complicated it will be to resolve.
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Mon, 16 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Throughout the Muslim world, millions of people have been forced to flee their homes and communities for many reasons, including both conflicts and natural disasters. This massive displacement of people affects both national development plans and individual human development, affecting relationships between countries, UN Security Council discussions, and peace processes. In short, as Hady Amr and Elizabeth Ferris argue, understanding—and resolving—displacement is central to development, peace, and security.
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Wed, 07 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT
The recent news from Iraq has been mostly good. Violence is down significantly, sectarian militias are giving ground to Iraqi security forces, and we see signs of a political process that could foster reconciliation, deliver basic services and pave the way for an orderly U.S. withdrawla. However, one major threat to Iraq's hard-won stability has yet to be fully acknowledged, let alone addressed: the problem of displacement.
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Mon, 05 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT
As the world commemorates the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Elizabeth Ferris writes that it is timely to focus on international efforts to uphold the rights of those who have been forced to leave their homes and communities.
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Wed, 31 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Refugees and internally displaced persons are hardly a new phenomenon for Iraq. Under Saddam Hussein's regime, forced displacement was a tool used to subdue recalcitrant populations and punish political opponents. Roberta Cohen says that the U.S. invasion and the toppling of Saddam Hussein, far from resolving the problem however, made it worse. The ensuing conflicts increased the number of people forced to flee their homes and a combination of national and international steps needs to be taken.
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Wed, 31 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT
In this article, Roberta Cohen and Francis Deng explain that the need for international standards to protect and assist internally displaced persons arose directly from the explosion of civil wars in the last decade of the 20th century. These wars left tens of millions uprooted within the borders of their own countries.
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Wed, 31 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT
The Guiding Prinicples' objectives were clear but, ten years on, how can we assess their impact? The late Sérgio Vieira de Mello identified four ways the Principles might benefit IDPs: raising awareness of their needs; mobilizing support within the humanitarian community; helping field staff find solutions; and assisting governments to provide for IDPs' security and well-being. In this article, Elizabeth Ferris examines the impact of the Guiding Principles by examining their progress made on Vieira de Mello's points.
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Wed, 31 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT
The emergence of the right to post-displacement property restitution represents a significant development in human rights law in the ten years since the Guiding Principles were submitted. While Guiding Principle 29 has contributed to the development of this right, significant obstacles remain to its consistent application in displacement settings.
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Wed, 31 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT
In this article, Walter Kälin explains that while it is hard to take an objective view on an enterprise in which you have been closely involved, he thinks that it is fair to say that over the last ten years the Guiding Principles have demonstrated their utility and impact but also their limitations.
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Wed, 24 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT
New census estimates provide the first real glimpse of how migration and population growth may be responding to the housing slowdown, job losses, and broader recession. William Frey concludes that this economic downturn is not isolated to specific regions with slumping industries. Both Michigan and Florida lost migrants, while other states saw dramatic one-year drops in persons moving in. "We seem to be in a land of transitory limbo," he writes.
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Tue, 23 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT
It is no coincidence that many internally displaced persons and refugees are members of minority groups. In every region of the world, minorities have been repressed, killed and displaced by governments and other armed actors seeking to take over their territory, command their loyalty, and control their actions. In this paper, Elizabeth Ferris & Kimberly Stoltz examine the relationship between minorities and displacement, with a particular emphasis on Iraq's smaller minorities.
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Fri, 19 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT
As violent incidents decrease in Iraq and as US combat troops prepare to withdraw, expectations will grow that Iraqis will return to their communities in growing numbers. In fact, UN Officials and political leaders in Iraq, the region, and the US have always expected that return will be the durable solution for Iraqi IDPs and refugees without giving serious consideration to other options. For returns to be successful, the government of Iraq and the international community need to learn from the lessons of other mass returns of displaced populations and refugees.
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Wed, 03 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT
The intensification of the armed conflict in Colombia during the 1990s provoked the forced displacement of more than 2.4 million people, with the vast majority of municipalities either losing or receiving persons displaced by the conflict. Though Colombia has several national laws and decrees on internal displacement, implementation has been slow and uneven throughout the different state and municipal institutions. In this new report commissioned by the Brookings-Bern Project, Ana María Ibañez and Andrea Valásquez, examine the obstacles to greater involvement by municipal authorities with IDPs, focusing on four cases: Bogotá, Medellín, Antioquia, and Santa Marta.
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Wed, 26 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT
While Africa could be considered the continent of internal displacement because it has more than 12 of the roughly 25 million displaced by armed conflict worldwide, Europe, with its estimated 2.5 million internally displaced persons (IDPs), could be called the continent of protracted displacement, since 99% of Europe's remaining displaced fled their homes some 15-25 years ago. In recent years, some governments have taken important steps to improve their situation, but overall the situation of most IDPs remains a cause for concern.
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Mon, 24 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT
With the opportunity of a new U.S. administration and Congress, Brookings’s Partnership for the Americas Commission released its final report noting the need for a new hemispheric partnership to address key transnational challenges and providing specific policy recommendations on five key areas: energy and climate change, migration, trade, organized crime and drug trafficking and U.S.-Cuban relations.
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Mon, 24 Nov 2008 10:30:00 GMT
Event Information:
- November 24, 2008, 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM
On November 24, the Brookings Institution hosted the Partnership for the Americas Commission for the release of their report, “Re-thinking U.S.-Latin American Relations: A Hemispheric Partnership for a Turbulent World," which offers a set of policy recommendations to the next U.S. administration to meet the challenges facing the U.S. and Latin America, from economic and poverty policies to security, foreign policy and energy.
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Sun, 23 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT
In a new op-ed outlining the recommendations by Brookings’s Partnership for the Americas Commission, co-chairs Ernesto Zedillo and Thomas Pickering detail the need for stronger hemispheric relations and outline five areas for potential policy partnerships for the next administration.
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Thu, 13 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Immigration to metropolitan Philadelphia has been rising recently after several stagnant decades. This paper examines recent trends in immigration to the region with attention to the varied immigrant groups, the opportunities they bring, and the challenges for policymakers, service providers, and communities across the area. The report argues for the development of a Regional Council on Immigration to best address the needs of the area’s newcomers.
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Tue, 11 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT
There is a close relationship between finding solutions for displaced persons and peacebuilding as peacebuilding involves: re-establishing security and law and order, reconstruction and economic rehabilitation, reconciliation and social rehabilitation, and political transition to creating more accountable governance structures and institutions. If IDP concerns in these areas are not taken seriously, it may jeopardize the sustainability of peace in the country.
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Fri, 31 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Gaps in protection still remain for those people displaced by climate change within their own countries.
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Thu, 30 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Ten years after the UN defined legal rights for them, internally displaced people - refugees in their own countries - remain a neglected global responsibility.
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Tue, 28 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Though there are important similarities in the impact of prolonged displacement on the lives of IDPs and refugees, there are also significant differences in their situations -- particularly when it comes to solutions. While return is often the desired solution for both IDPs and political actors, Alex Mundt and Elizabeth Ferris argue that local integration and return should not be seen as mutually exclusive alternatives, as they can encourage IDPs to build new lives elsewhere without having to give up the possibility of an eventual return.
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Sat, 25 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Most people who are displaced by natural disasters remain within the borders of their country, making them internally displaced persons (IDPs) as defined by the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the national government to provide protection and assistance to them and to facilitate durable solutions for their displacement. In disaster response, Elizabeth Ferris argues, it is necessary to develop a rights-based approach to guarantee that the rights of those who've been displaced by the disaster are protected.
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Fri, 17 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT
In the course of the past year, over 400 natural disasters took 16,000 lives, affected close to 250 million people and displaced many millions. But many humanitarian actors continue to see natural disasters and those displaced by them as marginal to the central thrust of humanitarian action: responding to those affected by conflict.
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Thu, 16 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Currently an estimated 26 million men, women and children have been displaced within their countries' borders because of conflict, with even larger numbers displaced by natural disasters and development projects. While this is a global phenomenon, responsibility rests with national governments.
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Thu, 16 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Sixty years ago the international community responded to the needs of those crossing national borders because of persecution and conflict by adopting a convention on refugees and creating a UN refugee agency; however, the fate of those displaced within their countries' borders was largely ignored. In an effort to address this gap in the international humanitarian system, the Brookings Project on Internal Displacement took on the task of developing basic standards for the treatment of internally displaced persons.
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Thu, 16 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Forced displacement is not just a passing event in people's lives. It is a devastating transformation that shatters lives. In order to protect the rights of the displaced, through all phases of displacement, the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement were drafted and adopted by the United Nations. Today, ten years later, they are as relevant as ever in protecting those displaced by conflict, natural disasters and development projects.
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Mon, 13 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT
The future of Iraq hinges on its young, but far too many of them have been driven into exile.
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Fri, 10 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Most causes of displacement triggered by climate change, such as flooding, hurricanes, desertification or even the "sinking" of stretches of land, are not new. However, their frequency and magnitude are likely to increase. The challenge is to better analyze these causes of displacement, to identify the areas where the effects of climate change are most likely to occur and to examine the character of forced displacement and other population movemetns they could trigger.
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Thu, 09 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT
The importance of engaging directly with populations affected by poverty, conflict and disaster is a common theme in the literature on humanitarian aid, development and peacebuilding. However, despite the many documented benefits, consultation with and participation by affected populations -- including IDPs -- remains limited.
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Thu, 02 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Provincial elections are an important step toward national reconciliation in Iraq, but steps must be taken to ensure that the displaced— both refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs)— are able to participate. Despite the passage of the provincial elections law, there are no provisions for Iraqis living outside the country to vote, meaning that close to 10% of Iraq's populatioin will be disenfranchised, with serious consequences for the legitimacy of the elections.
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Fri, 26 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT
At first glance, the reaction of humanitarian actors on the ground in Darfur to potential indictments of the Sudanese president Omar Bashir seems pretty obvious. Darfur's 2.5 million internally displaced people, the 4.2 million in need of food assistnace and the 17,000 or so humanitarian workers would make easy targets for an angry Sudanese government. But like everything in Darfur, Elizabeth Ferris explains, the situation is more complicated than it seems at first glance.
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Thu, 25 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT
A new Brookings/USC report finds that the U.S. media have hindered effective policy making on immigration in recent years, and their impact has been increasing as a result of an ongoing evolution in the media industry.
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Tue, 23 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Arbitrary displacement as a consequence of violence or threats thereof, ethnic persecution or cleansing, as well as displacement as a consequence of natural disasters, is not just a passing event in peoples' lives. Rather, displacement means that, from one day to the next, families lose their homes and livelihoods, leaving behind all they had cherished, shattering lives. In responding to displacement situations, it is necessary to look for long-term, durable solutions for all groups of displaced persons, rather than focusing on one specific group.
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Tue, 16 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT
When those working with IDPs develop programs and policies without taking the time to listen to those most affected — the IDPs themselves — plans often go wrong. In order to ensure their needs not only are met but also that lasting solutions are found for their displacement, Roberta Cohen explains that it is critical to listen to the voices of IDPs.
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Mon, 08 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Recently featured by the Council of Foreign Relations as a "Must Read" on the topic of integrating Islam into European society, this paper by Justin Vaïsse presents the basic facts and issues concerning Muslims in Europe, from a political and sociological perspective, and offers elements of comparison with the United States.
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Thu, 28 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Most of those writing about future scenarios for Iraq rarely mention the fate of the five million displaced Iraqis, but when they do, they seem to assume that once security and political progress in Iraq are achieved, the refugees and interanlly displaced persons (IDPs) will return to their communities and life will go on. Unfortunately, even in the best of political scenarios, it is unlikely to be so straightforward.
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Thu, 21 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Iraq has improved dramatically across almost all fronts in the last year, but largely still unaddressed is the plight of those displaced by violence. Current estimates say that more than 2 million Iraqis are refugees abroad and almost 2.8 million are displaced internally. Elizbeth Ferris and Michael O'Hanlon say that people who think that Iraq is nearly stable need to remember that the return of these 4.8 million people carries huge risks for that stability.
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Tue, 19 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT
In this speech, Elizabeth Ferris says that when people are forced to leave their places of residence due to violence or human rights abuses, there is obviously a high human cost. But, internal displacement also has significant economic costs, both short and long-term. Such costs, including the loss of homes and property, the loss of livelihoods, the loss of educational opportunities, and the increased burden on host communities can have serious consequences for the stability and development of a country.
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Fri, 08 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Climate change is expected to sharply increase the number and severity of natural disasters, displacing millions on all continents. To meet this coming challenge, Roberta Cohen says that the recognition of "disaster" IDPs is needed along with new institutional arrangements to protect their human rights.
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Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Lost in discussions of the military surge, the pace of troop drawdowns, and political benchmarks are millions of displaced Iraqis. Their plight is both a humanitarian tragedy and a strategic crisis that is not being addressed.
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Wed, 16 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Climate change is happening and one of its visible impacts is the increasing numbers of persons displaced by natural disasters. In the course of the past year, more than 400 natural disasters affected over 234 million persons, cost over 16,000 lives, and also displaced millions of people. According to Walter Kalin, the existing system is only partially equipped to deal with this challenge and it's necessary to develop appropriate humanitarian responses.
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Wed, 09 Jul 2008 16:20:14 GMT
A new United Nations report finds that in the past year the number of refugees worldwide has increased from 9 to 11 million. Khalid Koser, deputy director of the Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement, discusses the causes behind this increase as well as possible implications if the number of refugees continues to climb.
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Sat, 28 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Justin Viasse joined L’Orient-Le Jour for a discussion on Islam in France. (French)
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Fri, 27 Jun 2008 14:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- June 27, 2008, 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM
On June 27, the Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement hosted a discussion with representatives from the Sudanese government; Lynn Fredriksson, Africa advocacy director for Amnesty International USA; and Pamela Fierst, a member of the Sudan policy group at the State Department, to examine Sudan’s 2005 peace agreement and to explore the ways in which it has been successfully implemented and the areas in which challenges still exist.
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Mon, 23 Jun 2008 09:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- June 23, 2008, 9:00 AM to 10:30 AM
The resurgence of the Taliban in Afghanistan has complicated the displacement crisis in the country, as fighting continues to displace both new groups and IDP and refugee returnees. The Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement hosted a breakfast with Ewan McLeod, the Deputy Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Afghanistan to discuss the displacement sitaution for both IDPs in Afghanistan and refugees who have fled elsewhere.
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Tue, 17 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT
An estimated 80,000 migrants have been displaced by the recent wave of anti-immigrant violence in South Africa. While some have returned to their home countries, many still remain in temporary camps. The South African government aims to reintegrate them in the communities from which they fled. Throughout their displacement (and return), the government will need to take steps to protect the rights of these migrants who have been displaced.
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Mon, 09 Jun 2008 15:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- June 09, 2008, 3:00 PM to 05:00 PM
One of the most difficult challenges to achieving durable solutions for persons displaced by conflict arises where the homes and lands they left behind have been destroyed or occupied by others. The Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement hosted a round-table discussion on the opportunities and challenges posed by property issues in post-conflict displacement settings.
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Fri, 06 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Jonathan Laurence and Justin Vaisse defend the record and the significance of the French Council for the Muslim Religion (CFCM in French) which will be renewed by a vote in mosques across France on June 8. (French)
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Thu, 22 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Since being adopted 10 years ago in 1998, the acceptance and use of the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement has grown. As a way to mark the 10th Anniversary of their adoption, Walter Kälin, the Representative of the UN Secretary-General on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons, drafted a second edition of the Annotations. In this edition, new legal instruments that refer to the Guiding Principles are included, intending to make the legal background for the Guiding Principles more accessible to policy makers at all levels.
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Fri, 02 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT
The presidential candidates all seem to agree that current immigration policies are broken and need to be fixed. But so far they've avoided dialogue on specific policy ideas. Audrey Singer's ideas for our next president include an Earned Legalization program; an Impact Aid program that would offset state and local expenditures; and New Americans Initiative to help all immigrants integrate into American life.
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Thu, 01 May 2008 09:13:51 GMT
Martha Raddatz interviews Audrey Singer about the estimated 11 million people living illegally in the United States, and the economic force that undocumented workers exert. Her ideas include an Impact Aid Program that would offset state and local expenditures, and a New Americans Initiative to help integrate immigrants into American society.
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Wed, 30 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Resolving internal displacement is inextricably linked with achieving lasting peace.