REPRESENTATIVE OF SECRETARY-GENERAL ON INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS TO VISIT MEXICO

16 August 2002





The Representative of the Secretary-General on Internally Displaced Persons, Francis M. Deng, will undertake a visit to Mexico at the invitation of the Government from 18 to 28 August 2002.

Through a dialogue with the Government, the civil society and the international community, as well as with those affected by displacement, the Representative aims to obtain a better understanding of the situation of internal displacement in the country and to assess the opportunities for the enhancement of the national and international response to the plight of the displaced population.

The Representative’s programme during the visit includes meetings with senior officials of the federal authorities; the National Human Rights Commissioner; representatives of humanitarian, human rights and development non-governmental organizations; academic researchers, and representatives from the international community. The Representative is expected to visit several communities of internally displaced people in the State of Chiapas, where he will also meet with state authorities, the President of the State Human Rights Commission and groups directly assisting the population affected by displacement. Also during the visit, Mr. Deng will give a talk in Mexico City entitled, “The Global IDP crisis and State Responsibility”, and another on the “Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement”, in Chiapas.

The Representative’s findings and recommendations will be presented to fifty-ninth session of the Commission on Human Rights and to the United Nations Secretary-General. His report will also be shared with the United Nations Inter-Agency Standing Committee.


For further information, please contact the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Geneva, tel: +41 22 917 9280, or the Office of the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Mexico, Mexico City, tel: +52 52 63 97 50



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