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Forced Migration Review issue 59 – to be published in October 2018 – will include a major feature marking the 20th anniversary of the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement.

Deadline for submission of articles: Monday 4 June 2018

Full call for articles online at www.fmreview.org/GuidingPrinciples20

The 20th anniversary of the Guiding Principles provides an opportunity to acknowledge the applications and successes of the Guiding Principles while reflecting on their limitations, challenges to their implementation over the past twenty years, their relevance to contemporary incidences of internal displacement, future challenges that might have to be faced, and the potential application of new understandings, approaches and technologies.

The issue will provide a forum for practitioners, policymakers, researchers and internally displaced people to share experience and research findings, debate perspectives and approaches, discuss examples of good practice, and offer recommendations. In particular, the FMR Editors are looking for practice-oriented submissions, reflecting a diverse range of experience and opinions, which address questions such as the following:

Reflections

  • How have the Guiding Principles influenced States and other actors in relation to IDPs?  
  • What progress have States made in preventing, mitigating the impact of and resolving internal displacement, including through the adoption of laws and policies?
  • What successful – and less successful – approaches have States, regional bodies and other agencies employed in implementing the Guiding Principles? What ‘tools’ and examples of good practice do they offer?
  • The Guiding Principles identify certain groups of IDPs – children (particularly unaccompanied minors), pregnant women, mothers with young children, female heads of household, persons with disabilities and older people – as having specific needs. Are these needs being adequately met?
  • How do the Guiding Principles relate to the Framework for National Responsibility and the IASC Framework on Durable Solutions for IDPs? Are there ‘gaps’? Are these being addressed in other ways?
  • How successfully have the Guiding Principles been used as an advocacy tool by IDPs, civil society, and humanitarian and development actors?
  • The Guiding Principles are a set of non-binding guidelines restating existing international law. Would a global (hard law) treaty be desirable or feasible?

Durable solutions and sustainable development

  • What are the challenges to achieving durable solutions for IDPs in cases of protracted and repeated internal displacement?
  • Do the Guiding Principles provide a sufficient framework to reduce the risks of protracted displacement?
  • What good practices have emerged from implementation of the IASC Framework on Durable Solutions for IDPs? What else is needed to secure durable solutions for IDPs?
  • How are development actors supporting the integration of IDP issues in regional, national and local development plans and programmes?
  • Would applying a more development-oriented language to internal displacement result in more effective policy and implementation by linking the reduction of the risk of displacement to local economic growth and national social progress?
  • How do countries’ policies on and approaches to internal displacement tie in with their commitments to global policy agendas and frameworks such as the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, the New Urban Agenda and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change?
  • How can further displacement be anticipated, and any risks associated with it mitigated?
  • How can governments and key actors ensure that they are sufficiently prepared for internal displacement in the context of disasters?
  • How can development-induced displacement be avoided, and/or the risks associated with it mitigated, throughout the planning, negotiating and implementing stages?

Data and analysis

  • What challenges are there to the collection, sharing and use of quality data on internal displacement at local, national, regional and global levels? How can countries and regions help each other to establish sound data management standards? Can such data better ensure that internal displacement remains prominent on the global political agenda?
  • Can targets and indicators for the reduction and prevention of displacement, in line with the Guiding Principles, be usefully developed and applied?

IDP participation

  • How can state, non-state and national/international actors and IDPs themselves facilitate and strengthen IDP participation and engagement at all levels of response and policy making?
  • IDPs have been active and innovative in responding to displacement and in advocating for better protection and respect of their rights. What can be learned from their initiatives and how can these best be supported?

Looking to the future

  • How can the capacity of national- and local-level actors to improve their protection of IDP rights – and prevent and resolve internal displacement – be strengthened? What lessons can be drawn from specific examples of how different States address internal displacement?
  • Responsibility to prevent displacement and protect IDPs lies primarily with States. How can the international community support States in fulfilling this responsibility? What happens when States are themselves the cause of internal displacement?
  • What are the barriers to progress in policy and action on internal displacement?
  • How do States and the international community address developments such as growing urban internal displacement and the emergence of ‘new’ categories of forced migrants (such as those displaced by climate change and long-term environmental degradation)?
  • How can States and the international community ensure that IDP issues remain high on the international agenda?

Deadline for submission of articles: Monday 4 June 2018

Maximum length: 2,500 words.

If you are interested in contributing, please email the Editors at fmr@qeh.ox.ac.uk to discuss your ideas for an article.

Please consult our guidelines for authors at www.fmreview.org/writing-fmr. When you submit the full written article, please note that authors are asked to ensure that their article complies with specific FMR submission requirements.

We also welcome articles on other subjects relating to forced migration for consideration for publication in the ‘general articles’ section of the issue.

Marion Couldrey & Jenny Peebles
Forced Migration Review Editors
fmr@qeh.ox.ac.uk

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