Protecting the Internally Displaced

Today, there are over 40 million conflict-induced internally displaced persons (IDPs) globally, almost double the number of refugees. Yet, IDPs are protected only by the soft-law Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement at the global level. Instead of a dedicated international organization, IDPs receive protection and assistance only through the UN’s cluster approach. Orchard argues that while an international IDP protection regime exists, many aspects of it are informal, with IDP issues boun