What is the legal basis for the Guiding Principles?
In 1996, a study conducted by the Representative and a team of independent legal experts found that while existing human rights and humanitarian law provides substantial coverage for the internally displaced, there are significant areas in which it fails to provide an adequate basis for their protection and assistance (E/CN.4/1996/52/Add.2). The Guiding Principles were then developed, reflecting existing norms, but also seeking to clarify the grey areas and fill in the gaps identified in the earlier study. The legal basis for each of the principles contained in the Guiding Principles is set out in the Annotations to the Guiding Principles, written by Walter Kälin.
