Table Of ContentUNHCR Manual on
Security of Persons
of Concern
UNHCR Headquarters
Case Postale 2500
CH – 1211 Genève 2 Dépôt
Switzerland
Acknowledgements
This UNHCR Manual on Security of Persons of Concern is the product of the
collaborative initiative of UNHCR staff worldwide led by the Division of Emergency,
Security and Supply, in cooperation with the Division of International Protection.
The Division of Emergency, Security and Supply particularly wishes to thank the many
colleagues in the Field and at Headquarters who contributed to the process of drafting
of this First Edition of the Manual by providing concrete inputs, based on their rich
experience in addressing security threats to persons of concern.
First Edition, November 2011
© United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Geneva, November 2011
This document is issued by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees for general distribution. All rights are reserved.
Reproductions are authorised without the prior permission of UNHCR, provided that all
parts are distributed free of charge and UNHCR is acknowledged.
Please address any comments, feedback and any requests for additional copies of the
UNHCR Manual on Security of Persons of Concern to:
Field Safety Section, Division of Emergency, Security and Supply
UNHCR Headquarters
Case Postale 2500
CH-1211 Geneve 2 Dépôt
Switzerland
Telephone: +41 22 739 8628
Fax: + 41 22 739 73 04
Email:
UNHCR Manual on Security
of Persons of Concern
Geneva
First Edition, November 2011
Foreword
Working in close partnership with States and other actors to ensure
the safety and security of the people we serve is a key protection
function. I am therefore pleased to introduce this first edition of the
Manual on Security of Persons of Concern.
In 2009, UNHCR carried out a comprehensive review of the
organization’s approach to the safety and security of staff,
operations and persons of concern, including an examination of
security preparedness. That same year, the first UNHCR security
audit recommended a review of existing policies and procedures. It
encouraged the development of tools to help protection and security
staff work together to identify and prevent security risks. In response,
I announced the UNHCR Security Management Plan of Action and
Strategy for Implementation: a series of measures to enhance security
management throughout the organization. This Manual is a critical
component of this strategy.
Over the past sixty years, UNHCR staff and partners have worked on
a daily basis to address threats to the safety and security of people of
concern. We do so often under very challenging circumstances, both
in times of peace and during situations of armed conflict. This Manual
draws on this extensive experience and serves as a practical guide for
UNHCR staff, as well as national and international partners and other
humanitarian actors. It offers a menu of options for action which can
reduce the occurrence and mitigate the effects of common security
risks. We hope it will be used as a living document, to complement
existing references and guidelines and to reinforce a multidisciplinary
approach to resolving security problems.
The first edition of this Manual will be rolled out to UNHCR operations
worldwide in 2011. It will periodically be revised, enriched, and
expanded, based on the feedback received from staff and partners.
UNHCR Manual on Security of Persons of Concern iii
With the continued commitment of all concerned actors to working in
partnership, I am confident that we can attain the goal of enhancing
the physical security of persons of concern to UNHCR.
António Guterres
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
November 2011
iv UNHCR Manual on Security of Persons of Concern
Table of Contents
Foreword iii
Acronyms and Abbreviations 3
Introduction 7
Introduction 9
Problem and Cause Analysis 12
Part One: Threats 17
1.1 Persons of Concern Engaged in Gang Violence 19
1.2 Protests, Demonstrations and Group Disturbances 25
1.3 Tension and Conflict between Groups of Persons of Concern 33
1.4 Tension and Conflict between Persons of Concern and
Host Communities 39
1.5 Banditry 47
1.6 Kidnapping, Abduction, Disappearance and Hostage Taking 51
1.7 Physical Attacks on Camps and Settlements 57
1.8 Physical Attacks on Persons of Concern 65
1.9 Presence of Combatants and Armed Elements among
Persons of Concern 73
1.10 Abuse of Power by Persons of Concern 83
1.11 Abuse of Power, including Corruption and Exploitation,
by Humanitarian and Peacekeeping Actors 89
1.12 Abuse of Power, including Harassment and Corruption
(not committed by Persons of Concern or Humanitarian
and Peacekeeping Actors) 99
1.13 Verbal Harassment and Spread of Rumours 109
1.14 Domestic Violence 117
1.15 Exploitation 127
1.16 Human Trafficking and Smuggling 133
1.17 Self-harm 147
1.18 Sexual Violence and Harmful Traditional Practices 155
1.19 Unlawful Killings 165
1.20 Detention 175
1.21 Refoulement and Arbitrary Expulsion 183
UNHCR Manual on Security of Persons of Concern 1
1.22 Improvised Explosive Devices and Crossfire 195
1.23 Landmines and Unexploded Ordnance 201
Part Two: Responses 209
2.1 Access to Essential Services and Basic Needs 211
2.2 Site Selection and Planning 219
2.3 Access to Primary Health Care and Counselling 225
2.4 Access to Mental Health and Psychosocial Support
Programmes 231
2.5 Enhance the Capacity of National Institutions and NGOs 237
2.6 Access to Justice 245
2.7 Referral Mechanisms and Standard Operating Procedures
as a Response to Security Threats 253
2.8 Adherence to International Norms and Standards in Law
and Practice 259
2.9 Promote the Use of the Code of Conduct 267
2.10 Security Sector Reform (SSR) and Disarmament,
Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) Programmes 271
2.11 Training on Human Rights, Refugee and International
Humanitarian Law 277
2.12 Screening Points and Reception Centres 285
2.13 Efficient Status Determination Procedures 291
2.14 Ensure Registration and Documentation 299
2.15 Resettlement 309
2.16 Livelihoods 317
2.17 Local Integration 323
2.18 Community Awareness and Mass Information Campaigns 329
2.19 Coexistence Measures 335
2.20 Deployment of Security Personnel in Assistance to
UNHCR Operations 343
2.21 Presence and Effectiveness of Police in Camps, Centres
and Settlements 349
2.22 Internal Relocation and Safe Houses 355
Further References 363
2 UNHCR Manual on Security of Persons of Concern
Acronyms and
Abbreviations
AGD Age, Gender and Diversity
AGDM Age, Gender and Diversity Mainstreaming
AFSA Associate Field Safety Adviser
AHC(P) Assistant High Commissioner (Protection)
BBIED Body Borne Improvised Explosive Device
BID Best Interests Determination
CAT Convention against Torture
CBOs Community-Based Organizations
CEDAW Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination
against Women
CSOs Civil Society Organizations
DDR Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration
DFS Department of Field Support
DIP Division of International Protection
DPKO Department of Peacekeeping Operations
DSA Daily Subsistence Allowance
ECHR European Convention on Human Rights
ETF Emergency Transit Facilities
EU European Union
EUFOR European Union Force
FGM Female Genital Mutilation
FSA Field Safety Adviser
FSCO Field Security Coordinating Officer
FSS Field Safety Section
GIS Geographical Information Systems
HIV/AIDS Human Immunodeficiency Virus/Acquired Immunodeficiency
Syndrome
HIVIS HIV Information System
HQ Headquarters
HRIT Heightened Risk Identification Tool
UNHCR Manual on Security of Persons of Concern 3
ICCPR International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
ICRC International Committee of the Red Cross
ID Identity Document
IDF Indirect Fire
IDP Internally Displaced Persons
IEDs Improvised Explosive Devices
IFRC International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent
Societies
IGO Inspector General’s Office
IGOs Intergovernmental Organizations
IHL International Humanitarian Law
ILO International Labour Organization
IMAS International Mine Action Standards
INGO International Non-Governmental Organization
IOM International Organization for Migration
IP Implementing Partner
IT Information Technology
ITC Information Technology and Communications
KADH Kidnapping, Abduction, Disappearance and Hostage Taking
LGBTI Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex
LOU Letter of Understanding
MAIED Magnetically Attached Improvised Explosive Device
MFT Multifunctional Team
MOI Ministry of Interior
MOU Memorandum of Understanding
MPs Members of Parliament
NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organization
NFI Non-Food Items
NGO Non-Governmental Organization
OCHA Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN)
OHCHR Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for
Human Rights
OSCE Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
PBIED Person Borne Improvised Explosive Device
4 UNHCR Manual on Security of Persons of Concern
