Below follows a non-exhaustive description of and guidance on the various activities that can be implemented by DRC when working with displacement-related law and information. The different activities are seldom done in isolation but for the sake of clarity they are discussed one by one below. They are:

Awareness raising about rights of refugees, IDPs and returnees
Often, displaced and conflict-affected persons are unaware about their rights, including rights and opportunities for durable solutions.

Awareness raising can take many forms; awareness training sessions, street drama, distribution of leaflets, exhibitions, film documentary as well as activities with a larger outreach disseminating information about rights - e.g. radio and television.

Return Facilitation & Information Dissemination
The activities aim at conveying information about the options for durable solutions, the situation in areas of potential return as well as facilitating the access of IDPs’ and refugees to information, thereby enabling them to make an informed decision on whether to exercise their right to return.

Legal Aid, Counseling & Information
The legal information, aid and counseling DRC does, is often implemented through legal aid centres but may also be carried out at meetings with displacement affected groups and communities. The activities are often focused on information related to the rights to return and to personal documents.

The possession of personal documents, such as birth certificates, marriage certificates, identity papers and/or refugee registration documents is absolutely essential in finding solutions to the conflict-affected persons’ displacement problems. Other documents of great importance are land and property documents.

Community Mobilisation – Building Capacities for Self-protection
Through mobilization and capacity building of communities, activities aim at enhancing people’s ability to exercise, claim and enjoy their rights. The activities have strong elements of empowerment and participation. Thus, they built upon the coping mechanisms, strategies and capacities for self-protection that people already possess – with the aim of further strengthening these.

Humanitarian Presence
Humanitarian presence in the field can be used as a protection tool:

• Accompanying people and communities at risk
• Bearing witness and thereby exposing perpetrators to sanctions, prosecution and moral/political judgements
• Creating space for putting in place systems and rules for the protection of people
• Restricting the political space of perpetrators, thereby increasing the costs of their abuses

Presence should be proactive and it should be planned and implemented in a strategic manner that is designed to minimize the possibility of harmful side-effects.

Protection Monitoring & Reporting, Referral and Follow-Up
Used appropriately, monitoring and reporting can be a very powerful protection tool.

Monitoring should be operational and action-oriented with the objective of protecting human rights. Protection monitors should identify problems and their causes, consider potential solutions and assist in problem solving.
Monitoring may be undertaken by DRC to improve the ability to respond to violations and concerns and generally for planning purposes.

Capacity Building of Duty-Bearers (state & non-state)
Capacity Building is one of DRC’s operational principles.
Under displacement-related law and information, capacity building of duty-bearers has a very specific objective, namely to facilitate and support the government and authorities in becoming capable of fulfilling their obligations - to protect, respect and fulfil the rights of people. Capacity-building of duty-bearers can be done at many levels. It can target many different duty-bearing individuals and institutions.

Advocacy
Advocacy is one of DRC’s operational principles. Specific advocacy vis-à-vis the duty-bearers can be conducted at many different levels from the global international level to regional, national, district/province down to community level. Advocacy activities can target individual duty-bearers or duty-bearing institutions.

Advocacy is closely linked to visibility and presence as being present in itself can send a strong message that DRC is concerned about the situation and pays attention to the issues. Very strong and direct advocacy may jeopardize the access to the people of concern.

Dialogue and Interaction between Rights-holders and Duty-bearers & Opposed Groups
The relationship, interaction and dialogue between the rights-holders and the duty-bearers is of primary importance when promoting and strengthening the respect, protection and fulfillment of the rights of IDPs, refugees, returnees and other conflict-affected people. Therefore, DRC works to facilitate and strengthen such relations.