ABSTRACT
This chapter explores three different elements. The first is how the UN’s humanitarian system has gone through three attempts to create a sustainable system to respond to internal displacement, culminating in the cluster approach, which was introduced in 2005. The second is how peacekeeping doctrine has gradually evolved to see internally displaced persons (IDP) become a core concern in peacekeeping mandates, and a key element of the Protection of Civilians Agenda. The third is how the Responsibility to Protect doctrine, adopted by the UN in 2005, provides an alternative understanding to sovereignty and to state responsibilities toward their own population, thereby providing an additional form of protection for IDPs. The Council frequently includes language that the missions will create conditions for the provision of humanitarian assistance and access and security for humanitarian personnel. Following Francis M. Deng’s appointment as Representative of the Secretary-General, there remained the issue of how the UN should respond institutionally to the problem of internal displacement.
