UN Representative on displaced persons returning to Caucasus

GENEVA (4 November 2009) - The Representative of the Secretary-General on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons, Prof. Walter Kaelin, will carry out a visit to the Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia from 5-6 November 2009 to follow up on the mission to Georgia he conducted in October 2008.

 

During his visit, the Representative will look into the situation of those who were displaced in the course of the August 2008 conflict as well as those who have been displaced since the 1990s in the Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia. Kaelin will visit sites of displacement and meet with displaced persons and also have consultations with senior representatives of the authorities on the ground.

 

The Representative expects to share some preliminary observations with the press upon his return to Geneva. His full report will be presented to the Human Rights Council in March 2010.

 

Walter Kaelin, professor of law at the University of Bern (Switzerland), has been the Representative of the Secretary General on the Human Rights ofInternally Displaced Persons since 2004. He is mandated by the UN Human Rights Council to dialogue with governments and international actors in order to enhance the protection of the human rights ofInternally Displaced Persons. In support of his mandate, he undertakes working visits and missions to countries affected by internal displacement.