Background
The Dayton Peace Agreement recognizes that "[t]he early return of refugees and displaced persons is an important objective of the settlement of the conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina." It invokes well-established principles guaranteeing that refugees and displaced persons are able to return to their homes voluntarily and in circumstances of safety and dignity. Annex 7 to the Dayton Agreement provides that the Parties* "will accept the return of such persons who have left their territory," and further requires them: (i) to ensure that refugees and displaced persons are permitted to return in safety, without risk of harassment, intimidation, persecution, or discrimination; (ii) to take all necessary steps to prevent activities within their territories that would hinder or impede the safe and voluntary return of refugees and displaced persons; and (iii) to immediately take various confidence building measures, including "the repeal of domestic legislation and administrative practices with discriminatory intent or effect." Annex 7 also binds the Parties to create in their territories the political, economic, and social conditions conducive to the voluntary return and harmonious reintegration of refugees and displaced persons, without preference for any particular group.
The January 1996 repatriation plan prepared by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) for Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was developed on the basis of the Dayton Agreement, emphasizes the objective of "ensur[ing] that lasting solutions are found for refugees and internally displaced persons, through a process of early, peaceful, orderly and phased return or resettlement to a place of their choice in Bosnia and Herzegovina. All efforts must be made to promote the (re)integration of individuals and families into stable communities where their fundamental human rights will be protected and where normal conditions prevail." The UNHCR plan sets out "objective criteria" for considering whether to lift the status of "temporary protection," (promoted by UNHCR to countries of asylum since 1992): the implementation of the military provisions of the Peace Agreement; proclamation of a limited amnesty; and the establishment and functioning of mechanisms for the protection of human rights (one of these mechanisms is the Commission for Displaced Persons and Refugees).
In many instances, repatriation pursuant to the Dayton Accords will be affected by the resolution of issues concerning ownership of real property by dispossessed citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina (i.e.whether there is a home to which to return, or whether compensation is available for property lost as a result of the conflict). Accordingly, Annex 7 to the Dayton Agreement binds the Parties to establish, by March 14, 1996, the Commission for Displaced Persons and Refugees.
This paper discusses several elements of this Commission in terms of mandate, function, procedure and staffing, and poses various questions for consideration. The analysis is shaped by an overarching perspective: how might the Commission for Displaced Persons and Refugees contribute best to the establishment of conditions which would facilitate durable solutions for refugees and displaced persons, including safe return? Indeed, this may be considered the fundamental purpose of the Commission.
