The total number of people internally displaced by armed conflict, generalised violence and human rights violations worldwide as of the end of 2012 was estimated to be 28.8 million. This represents an increase of 2.4 million on the previous year, and is the highest figure IDMC has ever recorded. Around 6.5 million people were newly displaced, almost twice as many as the 3.5 million during 2011.

ABSTRACED FROM EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

Kuchis, as nomads are now usually referred to in Afghanistan, occupy a peculiar place among Afghan communities. They constitute, like many nomadic communities in other countries, a particularly disadvantaged group with respect to many social indicators such as access to education, health or livelihood standards. Although many Kuchis are settling down, a growing and unregulated phenomenon taking place at the outskirts of the major Afghan cities, these indicators are still not improving.

According to the research and follow ups made by Pingo’s Forum and LHRC indicated that, most victims were not trespassers to the land as contented by the Government. The pastoralists including Sukuma, Taturu, hunters and gatherers (Hadzabe) lawfully living within the Conservation Area resisted the government movement to evict them without paying adequate compensation.

Pastoralists in Tanzania are suffering from many human rights violations, including forced evictions from their lands. This report gives a comprehensive analysis of the human rights situation of indigenous peoples in Tanzania, and documents cases of human rights violations against Maasai pastoralists during 2011. 

The information contained in this report is a result of a comprehensive survey and human rights analysis, which used both primary and secondary data collection methodologies covering a total of 10 districts and 18 villages. 

This report springs from series of field visits.Its aim was, among others, to examine further the extent of human rights violations suffered by pastoralists in Kilombero and Rufiji valley during the evictions. It additionally makes recommendations including the need for lobbying against the State’s contempt of court orders

A nation formed just 10 years ago, Timor-Leste struggles to overcome complex challenges of land ownership and use rights that were created under Portuguese and Indonesian rule. Competing land claims between individuals, and between individuals and the state, are quite common and occasionally result in armed conflict and deaths. Complicating the problem is the absence of a property rights legal framework in which to address land matters.

This publication is the product of the CSO Land Reform Monitoring Initiative, which was spearheaded by ANGOC and undertaken by Land Watch Asia members in seven countries, including Nepal. The said initiative seeks to strengthen CSOs’ capacities in monitoring selected indicators on land, and has proposed common regional indicators for monitoring land tenure and access to land at the regional level.

Contemporary waves of large scale land acquisitions for commercial production in developing countries in Africa and other parts of the world have been branded as ‘land grabs’ by many scholars, media and activists. Some scholars have describe this phenomena as the “new scramble for Africa” (Moyo and Yeros, 2011). However, others have refuted such a description on the grounds that the current land deals are being negotiated by sovereign African states in the exercise of powers that they have under national laws (Odhiambo, 2011).

This report provides a synthesis of three country level case studies (Namibia, Senegal, Kenya) carried out in African countries as a part of the overall legal review of Indigenous People’s and Community Conserved Territories and Areas (ICCAs). This regional synthesis report also incorporates information and material from other African countries’ experiences with ICCAs, as documented in a range of other studies and publications.

Across the world, areas with high or important biodiversity are often located within Indigenous peoples’ and local communities’ conserved territories and areas (ICCAs). Traditional and contemporary systems of stewardship embedded within cultural practices enable the conservation, restoration and connectivity of ecosystems, habitats, and specific species in accordance with indigenous and local worldviews. In spite of the benefits ICCAs have for maintaining the integrity of ecosystems, cultures and human wellbeing, they are under increasing threat.

Despite interesting patterns from the past and at least superficially striking parallels with the present, policies on Afghanistan have not been adequately informed by an understanding of the country’s history. Nor has the extensive academic literature on Afghan history been translated into policy; on the contrary, much that has been attempted in Afghanistan since late 2001 has been remarkably ahistorical. This report identifies broad historical patterns and distills relevant lessons that may be applicable to policies during the 2011 to 2014 transition and beyond.