Preamble

We, heads of State and government of the Member States of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region;

Considering our Declaration on Peace, Security, Democracy and Development in the Great Lakes Region adopted and signed on 20^th November 2004 in Dar-es-Salaam;

Reaffirming our commitment to its implementation on behalf of our peoples, particularly its Article 69 under which the Member States committed themselves to ensure that refugees and displaced persons, upon return to their areas of origin, recover their property with the assistance of the local traditional and administrative authorities;

Expressing our commitment to comply with the right of everyone to own property under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948, and the guarantee of the right to property in the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights 1981;

Conscious that property disputes arising from claims by internally displaced persons and refugees when returning to their places of origin can be a hindrance to the attainment of the durable solutions of voluntary repatriation and reintegration;

Deeply concerned that the failure to resolve such disputes can be a source of recurrent conflict in the Great Lakes Region;

Download PDF