Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement

In 1992, at the request of the UN Commission on Human Rights, the Secretary- General of the United Nations appointed a Special Representative to study the causes and consequences of internal displacement and the legal regimes which provided protection to this population. The Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement are the culmination of this research and consist of 30 principles based on international human rights, humanitarian and refugee law which outlined the rights of internally displaced persons. Some of the special needs of displaced women are identified within these guidelines. For example, Principle 19(2) provides that "special attention should be paid to the health needs of women, including access to female health care providers and services, such as reproductive health care, as well as appropriate counselling for victims of sexual and other abuses". [Descriptors: Migration - Refugees and Immigration, International]