| Abstract: | The 1951 Refugee Convention affords protection for those whocross a border, but there is no specific legally binding instrumentfor internally displaced persons (IDPs). As of December 2007,there were an estimated 26 million IDPs in the world. The 1998Guiding Principles are, in and of themselves, soft law, andthey emphasise that the primary responsibility and duty to provideprotection and humanitarian assistance to IDPs lies with thestate in whose jurisdiction they are found. The Guiding Principlesare an excellent tool for the development of national policiesand laws on internal displacement. Nevertheless, without effectiveimplementation and an independent judiciary, as well as disseminationand awareness, these national laws remain pieces of paper thatonly give the impression that measures have been taken. If individualsare not provided with effective mechanisms to access their rights,and if governments do not develop systems to review their effectiveness,then we are little better off than before the national policieswere developed. This article will consider the cases of Colombia,Turkey and Angola to determine the scope of the laws, theirconcurrence with international principles, as well as theirpractical effectiveness for those displaced. |
