ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the study of involvement with Somali internally displaced persons (IDPs). Humanitarian institutions interfered on behalf of Chechen displaced persons in response to demands of the Russian authorities. A traditional refugee policy ensued with humanitarian aid distributions and refugee camps alongside borders, yet outside the refugees' country of origin. Interventions were justified partly on humanitarian grounds partly on strategic, refugee-related, grounds. The chapter demonstrates the existence of displacement issues and their relevance to the emergence of international interest for starving Somalis. It discusses the implementation of humanitarian action for IDPs. The 1992-93 intervention was marked by a UN/US consensus regarding the food strategy and dissent concerning the provision of security. Development projects set up by humanitarian agencies were devoted to encourage the return of refugees from along the Kenyan border. The belief that media coverage automatically increases the safety of vulnerable populations is popular.
