GPC Operations Cell: gpc[at]unhcr.org
Gender-Based Violence: chase[at]unfpa.org
Child Protection: rpouwels[at]unicef.org
Housing, Land and Property: jim.robinson[at]nrc.no
Mine Action: unmasgeneva[at]un.org
Global Protection Risks
Theft, Extortion, Forced Eviction or Destruction of Personal Property
This risk includes forms of unlawful dispossession of persons either individually or collectively involving a direct or indirect responsibility of public officials or non-State actors, either by acts or by omissions. Theft includes looting, pillage and any other act of stealing. Extortion includes any practice to elicit actions, money or property through any form of coercion. Forced evictions are the permanent or temporary removal against their will of individuals, families and/or communities from the homes and/or land that they occupy, without the provision of, and access to, appropriate forms of legal or other protection. Destruction of personal property includes all damage and destruction caused by unlawful acts, committed wilfully or wantonly (done recklessly and with a conscious disregard of for substantial harm to people or property).
What factors must be identified for monitoring?
The monitoring of theft should include all acts causing further harm to people that result from the erosion of the protective environment owing to conflict, natural or other disasters. Any act of extortion should be monitored. This includes cases where no benefit is obtained and people are affected by threats, threats of violence or feeling of being in debt against their will to receive an essential service or avoid harmful consequences, including legal. As for forced evictions, everyone is protected from forced evictions independently from the type of tenure. As such, the monitoring could include all situations related to urban and rural development, transformation and/or zoning, mining, extractive and other industrial activities, land acquisitions and leases, privatization and/or speculation, lack of legal security of tenure, legislation or, changes related to housing and land, non-deliverance or non-recognition of titles, slum clearance, land grabbing, including by armed groups and paramilitaries, discriminatory laws and practices, informal settlements, unaffordability, defaulting on payments, domestic violence or abuse, housing tenure linked to employment permits, international and non-international armed conflicts, counter-terrorism measures. IDPs, specifically in situation of residing in informal settlement, are at a particular risk of eviction and require specific attention. As for the destruction of personal property, the monitoring should include any man-made destruction, or destruction caused by natural hazards that is causing harm to population due to the omission of responsibility by authorities or responsible parties. It includes both loss (the consequences that cannot be brought back) and damage (things that can be either restored or repaired).
What information & data can illustrate the presence of the risk?
Information and data on this protection risk can be found in assessment, monitoring and response activities coordinated by the house, land and property AoR, and specialized organizations working on legal response and research. Tracking mechanisms in country may monitor specific data, as well as other clusters such as Shelter cluster. Protection monitoring, available multi-sector assessments or existing data collection mechanism based on KII and FGD could guide the identification of the risk. For eviction, specific tracker may be available in country and specific information or data such as administrative and judicial decisions, harassment, threats, physical violence or other intimidation forcing people to move from their homes or land, situations where people are not allowed to return to their home or land after having left voluntarily or owing to a disaster, conflict, expropriation, may support the identification.
You can download the definition here.
