Since 1998 the internal displacement concept has been settled by the ONU’s Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement. Despite its non-binding nature, the definition enshrined by this international instrument has had a strong influence on both domestic legislation and public policies crafted to deal with this phenomenon. Moreover, it has shaped the way academics, activists, and practitioners conceive this kind of forced migration. After two decades it is about time to revisit this concept and questioning if it is still an adequate tool for guaranteeing the rights of those who have been uprooted. The Latin American Network on Internal Displacement is willing to open such a discussion. This panel at the 5th RLI Annual Conference brings together five presenters from the LANID network.
What Does “Internal Displacement” Mean? Opening Pandora’s Box. An Analysis from the Latin American Network on Internal Displacement (LANID) Moderator: Dr Leticia Calderón Chelius (Instituto Mora, Mexico)
“Control and Protect: The tensions within the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement. Is this Instrument Really Focused on Protecting those Forced to Flee or is Avoiding Mass Exodus its Main Aim?” – Dr Beatriz Eugenia Sánchez-Mojica (Independent researcher and LANID coordinator, Colombia)
“Law’s Blind Side: The Inability of the Legal System to Understand and Attend to the Complex Nature of Internal Displacement” – Dr Clara Inés Atehortúa Arredondo (Universidad de Antioquia, Colombia)
“Reducing IDPs’ Identity through the Legal Framework” – Andree Viana Garcés (Independent Researcher and Council of State Auxiliary Judge, Colombia)
“The Maya Train Project, or How to Trigger Uprooting Processes in the Name of Sustainable Development and Green Tourism” – Ramón Martínez Coria (Foro para el Desarrollo Sustentable, México)
