DS has just published a major 184-page legal report on the land grabbing in Myanmar and how these processes constitute internationally wrongful acts. The report includes a 21-step legal roadmap to end land grabbing once and for in Myanmar, a nation that is one of the worst in the world in  Although the general power of States to compulsorily acquire, expropriate or otherwise confiscate or 'grab' land, homes and properties is legislatively recognised in virtually all national legal systems, to be lawful these processes generally carry with them five fundamental pre-conditions. Namely, when housing, land or property rights are revoked or limited through these processes, this can only be carried out when the taking concerned is:             1) subject to law and due process;             2) subject to the general principles of international law;             3) in the interest of society and not for the benefit of another private party;             4) proportionate, reasonable and subject to a fair balance test between the cost and the aim sought; and             5) subject to the provision of just and satisfactory compensation. In all countries, the act of compulsorily acquiring land is highly regulated and something which rights-respecting governments are often reluctant…...

DS Turns 10! 28 December 2016 DS marks its tenth anniversary after its founding in Geneva on the same day in 2006. DS Director and Founder Scott Leckie reflects on the activities and victories of the past ten years, and what to expect from DS in the years to come. Dear Friends, It's hard to believe that DS has now been active for ten busy and eventful years involving an extraordinary team of dedicated HLP experts from around the world. From developing the Peninsula Principles, spearheading efforts to obtain land for climate displaced people, IDP return designs in Timor Leste, Somalia, Colombia, Bhutan and many more, carrying on-site investigations in Tuvalu, Solomon Islands, Panama, Kiribati, Bangladesh and many other climate change hotspots, to HLP rights analysis and restitution design work in Myanmar, the publication of several books, inaugurating the world’s first law school courses on climate displacement, and scores of DS reports, producing films, building homes for climate displaced families in Chittagong, and so much more, this dramatic decade has been an exhilarating one. On this tenth anniversary of DS, I would like to thank all of our supporters for making this journey so productive and even sometimes victorious. Special…...

Displacement Solutions and the Norwegian Refugee Council have called for dialogue on the establishment of a new nationwide restitution programme that would return homes, land and properties to their rightful owners and its inclusion in the peace process. The new report Restitution in Myanmar: Building Lasting Peace, National Reconciliation and Economic Prosperity Through a Comprehensive Housing, Land and Property Restitution Programme explores both the progress made towards ending practices of land grabbing and forced displacement, as well as pointing out the still considerable gaps between law and policy in the country and international law and best practices. Based on the extensive global restitution experiences of both organisations, the report takes the view that redressing housing, land and property abuses and creating pathways by which those affected can access legal remedies for these losses. Though some important strides have been made to address some manifestations of land grabbing by the NLD-led government, millions of people throughout the country and overseas, including refugees and IDPs, have not yet been able to formally reclaim their homes. The report argues that restitution must form a central component of the peace process and find a prominent place within any eventual peace agreements. The report continues…...

DS carried out its latest mission to Myanmar in October with a focus this time on the question of housing, land and property restitution rights and how best to ensure these rights for everyone with an HLP loss and valid restitution claim in need of remedy. DS and the Norwegian Refugee Council will shortly be reducing a major new study on restitution, which it plans to publicly launch in Yangon in January 2017. A range of restitution measures are already in place in Myanmar, signalling a major concrete outcome of the political reform process. The new study proposes a series of specific recommendations on how to move to the next level of the quest of restitution for all. These efforts build on DS' extensive global experience on designing restitution laws and systems throughout the history of the organisation. ...