SECRETARY-GENERAL’S REPRESENTATIVE ON INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS TO VISIT PHILIPPINES

5 November 2002




The Representative of the Secretary-General on Internally Displaced Persons, Dr. Francis M. Deng, will visit the Philippines at the invitation of the Government from 6 to 13 November 2002.

With this visit, his first to the country, Dr. Deng aims to better understand the situation of internal displacement in the Philippines through dialogue with the Government, civil society, the United Nations team in the Philippines and other international partners. The visit is also a good opportunity to explore how to enhance national and international responses to the plight of the internally displaced.

The Representative's programme during the visit includes meetings with senior Government officials; regional and local authorities, the Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission; representatives of humanitarian, human rights and development non-governmental organizations; academic institutions, and representatives of the international community.

The Representative is expected to visit several communities of internally displaced people in Mindanao, where he will also meet with regional and local authorities, and groups directly assisting the population affected by displacement.

Also during the visit, Dr. Deng will participate in a round table discussion on the latest developments regarding the promotion of the Guiding Principles on Internally Displacement with a large number of non-governmental organizations. The Principles are available in English, Tagalog, Cebuano and Maguindanao. The Representative will address also the members of the National Human Rights Commission and others on the key role of national institutions in promoting the Guiding Principles.

The Representative's findings and recommendations will be presented to fifty-ninth session of the Commission on Human Rights next spring 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 94 13, or the Office of the United Nations Resident Coordinator in the Philippines, Manila, tel: + 632 89 20 611



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