Protecting the rights of those in conflict

Abstract

The world's 40 most unstable states contain 38% of the world's population and have a per-capita gross domestic product of US$750, just 10·3% of the global average.1 Within these states, much of the world's violence and human rights abuses occur. Beset by conflict, poverty, structural violence, and rights abuses, fragile states fail to meet the basic needs of their citizens. The humanitarian community is now almost always present in fragile states. They often maintain activities throughout the protracted phases of crisis: during conflict, in the descent into violence, and in the unstable peace and the chronic uncertainty that characterise the fragile state's post-conflict status.