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Mr. Chairman,
High Commissioner,
Your Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,

We do not know how many millions of people are trapped by war, conflict and persecution within their own countries.

Estimating the numbers is difficult, partly because there is no general agreement on the definition of an internally displaced person.

According to UN sources there are approximately 25 million people internally displaced – in over 40 countries. Over 70 per cent are women and children.

According to the same UN sources, over 12 million internally displaced persons are to be found in Africa, with the rest mostly in the Balkans, Central Asia, Sri Lanka and Latin America.

This is nearly twice the global figure for refugees.

So we – the international community – need to focus much more on the extremely difficult situation of the millions of internally displaced people.

I am therefore very pleased to welcome you to this conference on Internally Displaced Persons, which is being organized by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in cooperation with the Norwegian Refugee Council.

Mr. Chairman,

We are here to discuss what we can do to help people who are internally displaced.

The bad news is:

The increasing number of internally displaced people worldwide reflects the increasing number of internal conflicts since the beginning of the 1990s. The great majority of these people are civilian victims of armed conflicts, of violence and of human rights abuses.

There is no doubt that the increasing number of IDPs is one of the world’s most acute problems – and it is growing. At the same time, it is a both a humanitarian problem and a security problem.

The good news is:

We have made some progress over the past ten years. The suffering of people forcibly displaced within their own borders has become – for the first time – a subject of international concern. Due to this growing awareness, a protection framework has been developed, and relief is being provided by the international community.

In recent years, thanks to the work done by the United Nations and non-governmental organizations such as the Norwegian Refugee Council, the situation for the internally displaced has become more widely known and is attracting more and more interest.

And this has yielded results.

In the intense debate on how best to enhance protection and assistance for internally displaced people, many proposals have been put forward. One of the most promising measures to promote protection has been the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, presented in 1998 by Francis Deng, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General on Internally Displaced Persons.

So far much has been done to fill the protection gap and the assistance needs of the displaced. But much more remains to be done.

One of the main challenges is to achieve a more integrated approach between the humanitarian and human rights concerns on the one hand, and the overall political and security objectives on the other.

Mr. Chairman,

We need to know more about the magnitude of the challenge we are facing with regard to the internally displaced.

The Global IDP Survey undertaken by the Norwegian Refugee Council on behalf of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, has provided us with an extremely useful tool.

Protection and assistance to vulnerable internally displaced people is a humanitarian imperative. It is a shared obligation. It is our duty. The internally displaced are entitled to the same solidarity, the same national and international assistance as refugees and other vulnerable groups.

The ultimate objective must be to find lasting solutions.

The best solution is usually to help internally displaced people return to where they came from. Another alternative is local integration, either temporary or permanent.

To achieve these objectives, it is important to support practical solutions that meet the needs of vulnerable IDPs.

Norway warmly welcomes the efforts made by the United Nations to promote concrete, systematic and efficient solutions.

We consider it very positive that this work is being carried out in close collaboration with the Red Cross movement and with non-governmental organizations.

The NGO community plays an essential role in the provision of assistance to the internally displaced. The NGOs are out there, in the field. They are in the front line. Close to the victims, close to the vulnerable, close to the people who are suffering.

The Norwegian Refugee Council, which has been involved in the fate of the internally displaced since the early 1990s, has made great efforts to help these people. Among its most successful projects is the Global IDP Database, which has become an important tool for the international aid community. The Council also actively promotes the Guiding Principles.

However, humanitarian access remains a major problem.

The right to protection is enshrined in international humanitarian law. Indeed, it can be argued that the obligation to provide protection has become a principle of international law and as such applies to all types of modern conflict. It is imperative, therefore, that it be complied with whenever and wherever the need arises. And to achieve this, access for impartial humanitarian relief is crucial.

Any debate on issues involving the internally displaced touches on difficult and sensitive political considerations. Not surprisingly, many countries fear that the international community’s concern for this vulnerable group reflects a hidden agenda and poses a threat to national sovereignty.

But the humanitarian imperative to assist people who are suffering – including those who are internally displaced – is not the same as humanitarian intervention. We must make this clear to the countries concerned.

We have with us here today a representative of a host government to internally displaced people, Mr. Tom Butime, Minister of Disaster Preparedness and Refugees in Uganda. He will later share with us his valuable experience of implementing the Guiding Principles.

Mr. Chairman,

I have said that assistance to internally displaced people is a humanitarian imperative. But it must also include a political perspective.

The issue should be a crucial component of all efforts to negotiate peace. This is because political destabilization and insecurity can spread over a whole region if the internally displaced become refugees. Solving the problem of people who are internally displaced will facilitate an overall political solution and contribute to national reconciliation.

This is why Norway regards the issue of refugees and internally displaced persons as a security issue that requires our full attention.

Mr. Chairman,

What is needed to make a real difference in the lives of the millions of internally displaced people is a combination of legal, institutional and practical measures.

The United Nations system has led the way here and has laid down the mandates and responsibilities of the various institutions involved. Mr. Dennis McNamara heads this work as the UN Special Coordinator of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee network. And you, High Commissioner, have outlined a series of "green lights", pointing out the necessary steps to be taken before the UNHCR involves itself or its partners in IDP situations.

We in the international community must join forces and focus our attention on internally displaced people’s need for protection and assistance. We must also bear in mind that a more integrated approach is required between humanitarian and human rights concerns on the one hand, and the overall political and security objectives on the other. If we can start to solve the problems of the internally displaced, we can create new opportunities for peace and development.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.