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THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,
HAVING
SEEN:
The Annual Report of the Permanent Council to the General Assembly
(AG/doc.4376/05);
The Annual Report of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights
to the General Assembly, in particular the chapter on the Sixth Progress
Report of the Special Rapporteurship on Migrant Workers and Their Families
(CP/doc.3984/05);
RECALLING its resolutions AG/RES. 1928 (XXXIII-O/03) and AG/RES.
2027 (XXXIV-O/04); and
TAKING
INTO ACCOUNT:
The Plan of Action of the First Summit of the Americas, adopted in
December 1994 in Miami, Florida, United States of America; the Declaration
of the Second Summit of the Americas, held in Santiago, Chile, in April
1998; and, more particularly, the Plan of Action of the Third Summit of
the Americas, adopted in Quebec City, Canada, in April 2001, where the
Heads of State and Government stated that they would “[e]stablish an
inter-American program within the OAS for the promotion and protection of
the human rights of migrants, including migrant workers and their
families, taking into account the activities of the IACHR and supporting
the work of the IACHR Special Rapporteur on Migrant Workers and the UN
Special Rapporteur on Migration”; and
That in the Declaration of Nuevo León, the Heads of State and
Government, gathered in Monterrey, Mexico, in January 2004, for the
Special Summit of the Americas, underscored “the importance of
cooperation among countries of origin, countries of transit, and receiving
countries to ensure full protection of the human rights of all migrants,
including migrant workers and their families”;
EXPRESSING ITS SATISFACTION with the establishment, in January
2004, within the Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs of the
Permanent Council, of the Working Group to Prepare an Inter-American
Program for the Promotion and Protection of the Human Rights of Migrants,
on the basis of the draft presented by the Inter-American Commission on
Human Rights and the proposals of member states, specialized
organizations, and other bodies;
BEARING IN MIND the holding, in September 2004, of the Special
Meeting of the Working Group to Prepare an Inter-American Program, with
the broad participation of government experts and of representatives of
the Organization’s organs, agencies, and entities; multilateral and
intergovernmental organizations; and civil society organizations; and
CONSIDERING the “Draft Inter-American Program for the Promotion
and Protection of the Human Rights of Migrants, including Migrant Workers
and Their Families” (CAJP/GT/TM-24/05 rev. 7), prepared by the Working
Group of the Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs,
RESOLVES:
1.
To adopt the Inter-American Program for the Promotion and
Protection of the Human Rights of Migrants, Including Migrant Workers and
Their Families, which is appended to this resolution.
2.
To convene, as established in the Inter-American Program, a meeting
of the Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs in the first half of
2006, with the participation of government experts and representatives of
the organs, agencies, and entities of the inter-American system; other
international organizations; and civil society, for the purpose of sharing
best practices and activities carried out during last year in support of
the program, as well as new proposals that might be incorporated into the
Program.
3.
To instruct the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to
continue to provide its support, through the Special Rapporteur on Migrant
Workers and Their Families in the Hemisphere, to the Inter-American
Program adopted herein.
4.
To request the relevant organs, agencies, and entities of the
Organization to include, in their annual reports to the General Assembly,
their actions aimed at implementing the activities set out in the Program.
5.
To instruct the Permanent Council to constitute a specific fund
composed of voluntary contributions, called the “Fund for the
Inter-American Program for the Promotion and Protection of the Human
Rights of Migrants, including Migrant Workers and Their Families,” to
contribute to funding of the activities assigned to the organs, agencies
and entities of the OAS in support of this Program, and to urge member
states, permanent observers, regional organizations, international
organizations, and civil society organizations to contribute to that Fund.
6.
To request the Permanent Council to report to the General Assembly
at its thirty-sixth regular session on the implementation of this
resolution, which will be carried out in accordance with the resources
allocated in the program-budget of the Organization and other resources.
APPENDIX
INTER-AMERICAN
PROGRAM FOR THE PROMOTION AND PROTECTION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF MIGRANTS,
INCLUDING MIGRANT WORKERS AND THEIR FAMILIES
I.
INTRODUCTION
A.
Program’s Background
The Working Group to Prepare an Inter-American Program for the
Promotion and Protection of the Human Rights of Migrants, Including
Migrant Workers and Their Families (GT/TM) was established by the
Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs on January 15, 2004, to
prepare a draft of an Inter-American Program for the Promotion and
Protection of the Human Rights of Migrants including Migrant Workers and
their Families.
1.
Summits of the Americas
The topic “Promotion and Protection of the Human Rights of
Migrants, Including Migrant Workers and their Families” has been present
throughout the Summits of the Americas process. In the Plan of Action of
the First Summit of the Americas, in December 1994 in Miami, Florida, the
Heads of State and Government, in reaffirming their commitment to the
promotion and protection of human rights pledged, inter alia, to
“[g]uarantee the protection of the human rights of all migrant workers
and their families.”
Then, in the Plan of Action of the Second Summit of the Americas,
held in Santiago, Chile, in April 1998, the Heads of State and Government
expressed their resolve to “protect the rights of migrant workers and
their families” and, in that regard, they established that governments
would:
“Comply
with the applicable international human rights instruments and, consistent
with the legal framework of each country, guarantee the human rights of
all migrants, including migrant workers and their families.
“Seek
full compliance with, and protection of, the human rights of all migrants,
including migrant workers, and their families, and adopt effective
measures, including the strengthening of public awareness, to prevent and
eradicate violations of human rights and eliminate all forms of
discrimination against them, particularly racial discrimination,
xenophobia, and related intolerance.
“Reaffirm
the sovereign right of each State to formulate and apply its own legal
framework and policies for migration, including the granting of permission
to migrants to enter, stay, or exercise economic activity, in full
conformity with applicable international instruments relating to human
rights and in a spirit of cooperation.
“Seek
full respect for, and compliance with, the 1963 Vienna Convention on
Consular Relations, especially as it relates to the right of nationals,
regardless of their immigration status, to communicate with a consular
officer of their own State in case of detention.
“Protect
the rights of all migrant workers and their families, consistent with each
country’s internal legal framework, by taking steps, in case they do not
exist, to:
-
provide, with respect to working conditions, the same legal
protection as for national
workers;
-
facilitate, as appropriate, the payment of full wages owed
when the worker has returned to
his/her country, and allow them to arrange the transfer of
their personal effects;
-
recognize the rights of citizenship and nationality of the
children of all migrant workers who
may be entitled to such rights, and any other rights they may
have in each country;
-
encourage the negotiation of bilateral or multilateral
agreements, regarding the remission of
social security benefits accrued by migrant workers;
-
protect all migrant workers and their families, through law
enforcement and information
campaigns, from becoming victims of exploitation and abuse
from alien smuggling;
-
prevent abuse and mistreatment of all migrant workers by
employers or any authorities
entrusted with the enforcement of migration policies and
border control; and
-
encourage and promote respect for the cultural identity of
all migrants.
”Support
the activities of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights with
regard to the protection of the rights of migrant workers and their
families, particularly through the Special Rapporteur for Migrant
Workers.”
It should be pointed out that the Heads of State and Government
also referred to the topic in the Declaration of the Second Summit of the
Americas of Santiago, Chile in the following terms: “We will make a
special effort to guarantee the human rights of all migrants, including
migrant workers and their families.”
Likewise, in the Declaration of the Third Summit of the Americas of
Quebec City, they said: “We recognize the cultural and economic
contributions made by migrants to receiving societies as well as to their
communities of origin. We are
committed to ensuring dignified, humane treatment with appropriate legal
protections, defense of human rights, and safe and healthy labor
conditions for migrants. We
will strengthen mechanisms for hemispheric cooperation to address the
legitimate needs of migrants and take effective measures against
trafficking in human beings.”
In the Plan of Action of the Third Summit of the Americas adopted in
Quebec City, the Heads of State and Government of the Americas,
reaffirming the commitments made in 1998 at the Santiago Summit concerning
the protection of the human rights of migrants, including migrant workers
and their families, established that their governments would:
”Strengthen
cooperation among states to address, with a comprehensive, objective and
long-term focus, the manifestations, origins and effects of migration in
the region;
“Promote
recognition of the value of close cooperation among countries of origin,
transit and destination in order to ensure protection of the human rights
of migrants;
“Establish
an inter-American program within the OAS for the promotion and protection
of the human rights of migrants, including migrant workers and their
families, taking into account the activities of the IACHR and supporting
the work of the IACHR Special Rapporteur on Migrant Workers and the UN
Special Rapporteur on Migration;
“Commit
to undertake the widest possible cooperation and exchange of information
among states concerning illegal trafficking networks, including developing
preventative campaigns on the dangers and risks faced by migrants,
particularly women and children who often can be victims of such
trafficking, with a view to eradicating this crime;
“Establish
linkages with sub-regional processes, such as the Regional Conference on
Migration and the South American Conference on Migration, which are
dialogue for a, in order to exchange information on the migration
phenomenon, as well as promote cooperation with specialized international
organizations, such as the International Organization of Migration (IOM),
in order to advance and coordinate implementation efforts of Summit
mandates.”
Lastly, in the Declaration of Nuevo León, the Heads of State and
Government, assembled in the Special Summit of the Americas in Monterrey,
Mexico, in January 2004, said the following:
“We
underscore the importance of cooperation between countries of origin,
transit, and destination, to ensure the full protection of human rights of
all migrants, including migratory workers and their families, and the
observance of labor laws applicable to them, in accordance with the
commitments agreed to in the Santiago and Quebec City Summits.
We support the adoption of programs for orderly migration as a
factor of economic and social development; and we will cooperate in the
fight against trafficking in persons, which especially affects women and
children.”
“We
recognize that remittances are an important source of capital in many
countries of the Hemisphere. We commit to take concrete actions to promote
the establishment, as soon as possible, of necessary conditions, in order
to achieve the goal of reducing by at least half the regional average cost
of these transfers no later than 2008 and report on progress achieved at
the next Summit of the Americas in Argentina in 2005. We will adopt, as
needed or appropriate, measures such as: the promotion of competition
between the providers of these services, the elimination of regulatory
obstacles and other restrictive measures that affect the cost of these
transfers, as well as the use of new technologies, while maintaining
effective financial oversight.”
2.
General Assembly of the Organization of American States (OAS)
For its part, the General Assembly adopted resolutions AG/RES. 1928
(XXXIII-O/03) “The Human Rights of All Migrant Workers and Their
Families,” and AG/RES. 2027 (XXXIV-O/04), also entitled “The Human
Rights of All Migrant Workers and Their Families.” This last resolution
instructed the Permanent Council to renew the mandate of the Working Group
of the Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs to Prepare an
Inter-American Program so that, as soon as possible, it may draft the
proposed Inter-American Program, on the basis of the draft presented by
the IACHR and the proposals of member states, specialized organizations,
and other bodies, in accordance with the mandate of the Third Summit of
the Americas.
II.
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
Due to the increased scope and significance of migration in the
last decade, virtually every state has become a sending, receiving, and
transit country of migrants. As a result, migration has taken a prominent
place on the political and diplomatic agenda of many countries and of the
Heads of State and Government in the Summits of the Americas. Violence
and growing disparity in standards of living and social and labor benefits
among countries in the region, to cite but two factors, have spurred a
sharp upturn in the number of people migrating. Studies have shown that in
the last four decades the annual migration rate has easily surpassed
population growth rate in the Americas./
As would be expected, the increase in migratory flows has had
social, political and economic consequences for countries of origin,
destination and, to a lesser degree, transit.
The countries of our region have become more and more interested in
tackling the matter as related phenomena have made themselves felt.
These include the influence of migrant workers on local labor
markets, the demands associated with absorbing migrant populations,
migrant smuggling and trafficking in human beings, the repercussions of
migration on the communities of origin, transit and destination,
violations of human rights, the impact of remittances, and crime rates in
border areas. Countries of
the region are also interested in greater cooperation in order to maximize
the benefits of migration. The
Program recognizes that orderly migration contributes to economic and
social development. In this
regard, the Program promotes an environment of respect for the human
rights of migrants and their families.
The goals of promoting and protecting the human rights of migrants
are compatible with each OAS Member State’s sovereign rights to control
its borders and enforce its laws. The
Program therefore acknowledges the right of Member States to regulate the
entry and stay of foreigners in their territories and to determine the
status of migrants and the effect of that status within the domestic
political, legal, economic and educational systems of receiving countries,
as well as access to government services and benefits, in accordance with
the legal framework of each country.
The States’ power to regulate
the entry and stay of foreigners in their territories and to determine the
status of migrants must be executed and consistent with applicable
international human rights and refugee law.
At the same time, the rights of each person are limited by the
rights of others, by the security of all, and by the just demands of the
general welfare in a democratic society.
This Program seeks to integrate migrants and their families’
human rights considerations into the work of the organs, agencies, and
entities of the OAS. The
program links the work of the organs, agencies and entities of the
Organization of American States (OAS) and that of Member States,
multilateral organizations and civil society.
It comprises a two-pronged approach:
a) activities to be carried out by the organs, agencies and
entities of the OAS; and b) proposed optional activities to be carried by
Member States, multilateral organizations, and/or civil society
organizations.
This Program is structured on the basis of general and specific
objectives. Also identified
are activities for fulfilling those objectives.
The Program’s main implementers are the organs, agencies, and
entities of the OAS. Other
potential implementers of the Program include member States, multilateral
organizations, and civil society organizations, including migrants
themselves and migrant workers and their families. The beneficiaries of the Program are migrants, including
migrant workers and their families, temporary residents/ and the States.
The activities assigned to the organs, agencies, and entities of
the OAS stem from existing programs and activities. Subsequently, others
will be added when those organizations identify them.
The activities to be recommended to multilateral organizations and
civil society organizations derive from their usual field of work.
Finally, the optional specific activities that are suggested to
States emerge from their proposals.
In the case of the OAS, activities are assigned in keeping with the
primary responsibility of the system’s different organs, agencies, and
entities. In the case of the
States, the Program suggests specific optional activities for their
consideration, and in the case of multilateral organizations and civil
society organizations, the Program takes into account the activities
developed by such organizations in accordance with their mandate.
The activities of this Program may be developed in the long term,
progressively, and with flexibility, in such a manner, that they may be
reviewed periodically.
The Program envisages a series of measures to facilitate its
follow-up, in order to measure progress, facilitate the exchange of best
practices, and take advantage of updates and new developments that may
occur at the regional and international level, according to section
“Follow Up Activities of the Program.”
The Program will incorporate a gender perspective as a crosscutting
theme.
A specific voluntary fund will be established to contribute to
funding of the activities assigned to the organs, agencies and entities of
the OAS, in support of this Program, in addition to the existing resources
in the Regular Fund of the Budget Program of the organization, which will
be administered by the Secretariat of the Summits of the Americas.
The Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs (CAJP) will
determine the use of such funds. This
notwithstanding, the implementers of the Program may allocate and obtain
funds in order to develop the specific optional activities.
Lastly, a document cross-referencing the objectives and the
activities to facilitate the document’s comprehension is included as
Appendix I, while a general description of the existing international
instruments and other reference documents is included as Appendix II.
III. DESCRIPTION
OF THE IMPLEMENTERS OF THIS PROGRAM
Program implementers are listed, without prejudice to the ability
to include others in a subsequent revision if necessary.
A. Organs,
agencies, and entities of the OAS
-
Inter-American Commission for Human
Rights (IACHR) and the Special Rapporteurship on Migrant Workers
and Their Families
-
Inter-American Commission of Women
(CIM)
-
Inter-American Children’s
Institute (IIN)
-
Inter-American Agency for
Cooperation and Development (IACD)
-
Office of Education, Science and
Technology
-
Office for the Summit Process
-
Office for the Promotion of
Democracy (OPD)
-
Department of Legal Affairs and
Services
-
Pan American Health Organization
(PAHO)
B. Other
Actors that are not organs, entities and agencies of the OAS
1. OAS
Member States
Specific optional activities that may be undertaken by States are
listed below under subheading V. B.1.
These may be unilateral or bilateral or multilateral and can even
use inter-governmental fora on migration, such as:
-
Regional Conference on Migration
(RCM)
-
South-American Conference on
Migrations
-
Central-American Commission of
Directors of Migration (OCAM)
-
Mercado Comun del Sur, in particular, MERCOSUR Policy Consultation Forum
-
Andean Community
-
CARICOM’s Council for Human and
Social Development
-
Ibero-American Federation of
Ombudsman.
2. Multilateral Organizations
-
International Organization for
Migration (IOM)
-
Office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the Special Rapporteur
on the Human Rights of Migrants
-
Office of the United Nations High
Commission for Refugees (UNHCR)
-
International Labour Organization
(ILO)
3.
Other Actors
This Program recommends activities that may be undertaken by civil
society organizations involved in the field of human rights, migration,
and development, as well as by migrant organizations. It also includes the activities being carried out by the IIHR
in accordance with its mandate.
IV.
PROGRAM OBJECTIVES
A.
General Objectives
-
Promotion and protection of the
human rights of migrants, including migrant workers and their
families, inter alia through the identification and development of
cooperative actions and the exchange of best practices.
-
Integration of considerations of the
human rights of migrants and their families into the work of the
organs, agencies and entities of the OAS, taking into
consideration a gender perspective.
-
Linkage of the work of the organs,
agencies, and entities of the OAS to that developed by States,
multilateral organizations, and civil society, including the
migrants themselves.
B.
Specific Objectives
-
Promotion
of the exchange of best practices and cooperation between sending,
transit, and receiving countries in order to fully respect and protect
the human rights of all migrants, including migrant workers and their
families.
-
The
effective and efficient management of migration, through the exchange
of best practices, with a view to achieving organized, fair, and
controlled migration processes, which constitutes a factor of economic
and social development, and that takes into account the family
interests including family reunification.
-
Promotion
of international cooperation to deal with the diverse causes of
migration, as well as its effects and impact on the sending, transit
and receiving societies.
-
Attention
to the special needs of vulnerable groups of migrants, including
children, women, indigenous persons, afro-descendents and handicapped,
among others.
-
Attention
to the needs of persons in transit and receiving countries who may be
vulnerable, such as low-income families and individuals, and persons
living in regions, or working in economic sectors, with high
proportions of migrants.
-
Prevention
and technical cooperation in the fight against trafficking in persons,
investigation and criminal prosecution of traffickers in persons, and
protection and assistance to victims of trafficking.
-
Prevention
and technical cooperation in the fight against the smuggling of
migrants, and investigation and criminal prosecution of migrant
smugglers.
-
Promotion
of orderly migration and support for migrant programs that permit
their social inclusion in the receiving countries consistent with each
state’s domestic legal framework and applicable international human
rights law.
-
Promotion
of a more effective exchange of information on legislation and
migratory policies.
-
Education
and dissemination of information on human rights, migrants’ rights
and responsibilities, and legal channels for migration and access to
social services.
-
Promotion
of activities against manifestations or acts of racism, racial
discrimination, xenophobia and related forms of intolerance against
migrants and recognition of the cultural and economic contributions
made by migrants to receiving societies as well as to their
communities of origin.
-
Strengthening
or participation, as applicable, in transnational networks and fora
for dialogue among migrant organizations, and support for the work of
multilateral entities, and civil society organizations.
-
Inclusion
of the human rights of migrants as a crosscutting issue in all the
relevant activities undertaken by the OAS.
-
Promotion
of public policies, facilitation of practices, and, when requested,
advice on legislative issues aimed at the inclusion of migrants in the
societies of transit and destination,
consistent with each state’s domestic legal framework and
applicable international human rights law, with special emphasis on
the rights related to: health,
education, labor, culture, non-discrimination, and against violence,
intolerance, racism, and xenophobia.
-
Develop
and support programs for the re-integration for migrants and their
families in the countries of origin.
-
Protection
of the rights of migrants and their families under immigration
proceedings, consistent with each state’s domestic legal framework
and applicable international human rights law,
including the rights to: a
fair trial, protection from arbitrary arrest, due process of law, and
equality before the law.
-
Information,
notification, communication, and consular assistance in accordance
with the obligations of the States party to the Vienna Convention on
Consular Relations of 1963.
-
Facilitation
of political participation by migrants and their families in their
countries of origin.
-
Promotion
of measures aimed at fulfilling the objectives to reduce the transfer
costs of remittances.
-
Promotion
and protection by States of origin of the human rights of the families
of migrant workers who stay in their country of origin, paying special
attention to children whose parents have emigrated.
V.
SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES
A.
Instruct the Secretary General to provide a work plan to undertake
the specific activities listed in this Section, including the specific
organ and/or entity of the OAS to carry them out, pursuant to Article 113
of the Charter of the Organization of American States, and commission the
organs, agencies, and entities of the OAS to undertake the following
actions:
To the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR):
-
Develop
actions to promote the Inter-American human rights system with
emphasis on the human rights of migrants, including the use of the
Commission’s web site for that purpose.
-
Facilitate
the exchange of information and technical assistance on human rights
and migratory legislation with State agencies, government officials,
organs, agencies and entities of the OAS, multilateral organizations
and civil society organizations.
-
Offer
training on guarantees of due process of migration proceedings and
on the use of the Inter-American system of human rights for
organizations that make free legal aid programs available to
migrants.
-
Offer
training to government officials from sending, transit and receiving
countries on consular protection to migrants in accordance with the
Vienna Convention on Consular Relations taking into account
information, notification, communication, and consular assistance
for migrants.
To the Inter-American Commission of Women (CIM):
-
Conduct
research on female migration and its impact on family structure, the
labor market, and migratory control.
-
Develop
policies and programs designed to protect migrant women, in
particular women heads of households, and to combat violence against
women.
-
Promote
the implementation of Resolutions of the CIM and of the General
Assembly of the OAS on trafficking in persons.
-
Recommend
ratification by the States of the UN Convention against
Transnational Organized Crime and its Protocols, and of the UN
Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on
the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography.
-
Promote
mechanisms for the safe return and reintegration of trafficking
victims and special procedures to protect juvenile victims of
trafficking.
To the Inter-American Children’s Institute (IIN):
-
Include
within its activities the situation of migrant children traveling
unaccompanied.
-
Include
in its activities the protection of children victims of trafficking
in persons.
To the Inter-American Agency for Cooperation and Development
when requested by Member States:
-
Promote
the formulation and funding of projects within the existing
resources aimed at: a) facilitating appropriate[1]/
access to the job market and improving the working conditions of
migrant workers, with emphasis on aspects such as safety and health;
b) strengthening the democratic institutions; c) providing education
for democracy and human rights, aimed at government officials and
the private sector.
-
Promote
and support the management of bilateral agreements on seasonal or
temporary migrant workers.
-
Develop
joint initiatives with the private sector to foster economic
development and protect the labor rights of migrants, consistent
with each state’s domestic legal framework and applicable
international human rights law.
-
Promote,
through specialized regional fora, discussions on the promotion and
protection of the human rights of migrants with the participation of
governments, international agencies, private sector representatives,
and community leaders.
To the Office of Education, Science and Technology:
-
Promote
cooperation between education institutes in different States to
facilitate the incorporation of migrant children in schools and
promote exchange and training for teachers working in the field of
bilingual and intercultural education.
-
Foster
the modernization of curricular standards to introduce standards on
job related skills.
-
Include
human rights education for migrants within the activities of the
Inter-American Program on Education for Democratic Values and
Practices. In
particular, consider including education for migrants in the
activities of the electronic observatory, organizing discussion
forums on the topic, and gathering information on State education
programs for migrants in sending, transit and receiving countries.
-
Consider
the possibility of periodically organizing a hemispheric seminar for
the training of public officials in immigration policies and human
rights, as well as detection of false documents, with the support
and participation of specialists, international organizations and
civil society.
To the Summits of the Americas Secretariat:
-
Assist
the Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs (CAJP) and
participate in the follow up and coordination process of this
Program and submit the obtained results to the Summit Process.
-
Administer,
under the supervision of CAJP, the Specific Voluntary Contributions
Fund to be established for the execution of the activities of the
Program commissioned to the organs, agencies, and entities of the
OAS.
To the Office for the Promotion of Democracy (OPD), when
requested by Member States:
-
Further
studies on comparative legislation related to the political
participation of migrants in the democratic systems of their home
and host countries.
-
Generate,
promote and disseminate knowledge regarding the legal, political and
practical implications of the political participation of migrants in
their home countries for governments, migrant organizations, and
electoral administration, among others.
-
Offer
technical assistance to strengthen the institutional aspect of the
electoral branches and civil electoral registries on institutional
modernization processes, updating the electoral rolls and technical
support for issuing documents necessary for the participation of
migrants in the electoral processes of their countries of origin.
-
Offer
technical assistance to legislatures that so request along with
advice to the parliamentary commissions on migration matters,
including advice to States interested in the harmonization of
migration legislation.
-
Provide
training to migrants in order to promote their participation in
democratic processes.
-
Promote
democratic culture through formal and non-formal education,
stressing the need for tolerance and mutual assistance and
cooperation, in accordance with the characteristics of each country.
-
Facilitate
multi-party and multi-sector discussions within political parties on
the human rights of migrants.
To the Department of Legal Affairs and Services:
-
Compile
and disseminate on its website current national legislation,
policies, and migratory requirements.
To all the organs, agencies, and entities of the OAS mentioned
in this Program:
-
Exchange
best practices among the different implementers of this Program.
-
Enter
into cooperation agreements in order to contribute to the
development of this Program’s specific optional objectives and
activities.
-
Incorporate
in assistance and technical cooperation activities, the condition of
migrant vulnerability and the elimination of discrimination without
distinction as to race, sex, language, creed or any other factor,
consistent with each state’s domestic legal framework and
applicable international human rights law.
B.
Other Actors that are not organs, entities and agencies of the OAS
1.
OAS MEMBER STATES
Suggest, among others, to OAS member states for possible
implementation the following specific optional activities:
-
Exchange
information on the migratory phenomenon, its characteristics,
dimension, statistics and implications. Improve statistical
information systems and foster the exchange of information and best
practices through the use of information and communication
technologies.
-
Facilitate
the access of migrants to public information, in accordance with
domestic legislation.
-
Empower
migrants to make informed decisions by disseminating information on
the legal avenues for migration and on the dangers associated with
the smuggling of migrants and trafficking in persons.
-
Develop
an institutional capacity to manage and deal with migration by
training officials, reviewing legislation and setting up organized
and fair migration management systems.
-
Consider
the signing, ratification, or accession to all universal and
inter-American human rights instruments, and take specific measures
at the national level to strengthen respect for the human rights and
fundamental freedoms of all persons, including those of women,
children, senior citizens, indigenous peoples, migrants, repatriated
and disabled persons, and anyone who belongs to any other vulnerable
group, among others.
-
Consider
signing, ratifying or acceding to the UN Convention against
Organized Transnational Crime and its Protocols.
-
Review
their laws to ensure that those laws are consistent with their
obligation to respect the human rights of migrants as set forth in
international instruments on human rights and migration–including
instruments relevant to migration for employment and the protection
of migrant workers–to which they are parties, recognizing
States’ sovereign right to regulate the entry and stay of foreign
nationals in their respective territories.
-
Review
State’s migratory practices regarding the entry and stay of
foreign nationals to ensure that they are carried out in a manner
consistent with applicable international human rights and refugee
law.
-
Train
government officials involved in migratory functions, on migratory
legislation, protection of the human rights of migrants, conditions
of vulnerability of migrants, identification and protection of
refugees and potential asylum seekers, the modus operandi of
networks involved in smuggling of migrants and human trafficking,
and the identification and assistance of the victims.
-
Develop
efforts towards the harmonization of migratory requirements between
interested States of the Americas and within the scope of sub
regional groups.
-
Develop
programs to promote authorized migration and migrant worker
agreements.
-
Promote
and implement voluntary repatriation programs as an alternative to
deportation or expulsion.
-
Develop
information and assistance programs aimed at migrants who return to
their countries of origin.
-
Foster
policies and actions that guarantee the application of standards of
due process in migration proceedings.
-
Promote
and facilitate public policies, legislation, and practices aimed at
the protection of the rights of migrants and their families under
immigration proceedings, consistent with each state’s domestic
legal framework and applicable human rights law, including the
rights to: a fair
trial, protection from arbitrary arrest, due process of law, and
equality before the law.
-
Issuance
of identity documents to migrants by the States of origin at their
consular representations.
-
Promote
consular protection in accordance with the obligations of the States
Parties derived from the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations,
taking into account information on consular assistance, notification
and communication, and consular assistance for migrants, and sign
and implement cooperation agreements between the States on this
matter, for instance networks of liaison officials.
-
Offer
broad public information campaigns and basic and secondary education
programs and campaigns on non-discrimination to encourage the
understanding and appreciation of the contribution of migrants to
the home and host societies.
-
Cooperate
and exchange information among States regarding individual and
collective migrant smuggling networks and develop individual and
collective strategies in order to prevent these acts, investigate
and prosecute smugglers, and, when appropriate protect and assist
migrants.
-
Cooperate
and exchange information among States regarding individual and
collective trafficking in persons networks and develop individual
and collective strategies in order to prevent these acts,
investigate and prosecute traffickers, and protect and assist the
victims.
-
Provide
suitable mechanisms for reporting and filing complaints made by
migrants and civil society organizations of violence and alleged
violations of human rights, without prejudice to their right to
access to the applicable protection mechanisms of the Inter-American
and universal systems.
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With
respect to sending of remittances, take concrete actions to promote
the establishment, as soon as possible, of necessary conditions, in
order to achieve the goal of reducing by at least half the regional
average cost of these transfers, if possible, no later than 2008.
Also, adopt as needed or appropriate, measures such as the
promotion of competition between the providers of these services,
the elimination of regulatory obstacles and other restrictive
measures that affect the cost of this transfers, as well as the use
of new technologies, while maintaining effective financial
oversight.
-
Support
voluntary community or individual initiatives on the use of
investment funds and productive projects to promote the general
welfare and development of the communities of origin.
-
Promote
bilateral agreements on the social security benefits of migrants, so
that the social security contributions made by the State can be
claimed or transferred to the state in which the migrant worker
lives.
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