Institutional Concerns of Development Induced Displacements: Human Right View

In the 1950s and 1960s, the dominant view in the development was informed by modernization theory which if put crudely saw development as transforming outmoded, simple third world societies into modern, complex westernized ones. Seen in this light large-scale capital intensive developmental projects accelerated the pace towards a brighter and better future. If people were evacuated along the way it was believed a necessary evil or even an actual good, since it made them more susceptible to the change. In recent decades, however, a new development paradigm has been articulated, one that promotes poverty reduction, environmental protection, social justice and human rights. In this paradigm, development is seen as both bringing benefits and imposing costs. Among its costs, the greatest cost has been involuntary displacement of millions of vulnerable people.