COMMITTEE ON PROTECTION OF RIGHTS OF MIGRANT WORKERS CONSIDERS INITIAL REPORT OF BOLIVIA

The Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families has considered the initial report of Bolivia on its implementation of the provisions of the International Convention on the Protection of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families.

Presenting the report, Angelica Navarro, Permanent Representative of Bolivia to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said that as a result of globalization, over the past years Bolivia had become a country of destination, transit and origin of migrants. Whereas Bolivia did not yet have a legal norm to protect the rights set out in the Convention, the current legal order defined rights and commitments that covered the rights and interests of the populations targeted by it. Moreover, Bolivia, with the assistance of civil society organizations, was constantly undertaking efforts to disseminate the Convention and to promote its provisions so as to create a space for reflection and analysis that would lead to a draft bill on migration in both the national and international contexts.

Between 20 and 25 per cent of Bolivians lived outside of the national borders, mainly in Spain, the United States and Argentina, Ms. Navarro noted. The major cause of that flux was the high rate of unemployment, a legacy of the neo-liberal economic policies of the previous Government that had impoverished the country. To reverse that trend the current Government had put in place a National Development Policy that sought to support microenterprises, increase industrialization, and subsequently create new jobs. Of those who had emigrated from Bolivia, unfortunately, the great majority were living in irregular situations and were vulnerable to human rights violations. Among efforts to help those populations, Bolivia was launching innovative steps at its consulates in Argentine, United States and Spanish cities to bring services closer to its citizens abroad, such as mobile consulates, modernization of procedures in those consulates, the creation of solidarity networks between residents and consulates, and using new forms of communications technologies to inform Bolivians abroad about issues of interest to them.

Among issues raised by Experts were the lack of updated detailed information and statistics, in particular on migratory flows, in the report, and mismatches with regard to key figures. The number of Bolivians working abroad was cited as 1.2 million in the report; but had been put at 2 million by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and at 3 million by one non-governmental organization. Those figures also did not jibe with the low figure established in the report for remittances to Bolivia, $800 million. Moreover, Experts said it was essential that Bolivia work on a migration act. The text on migration in place was not a migration law, but simply an administrative decree. Concerned about reports of indigenous persons being trafficked for forced labour and sexual exploitation to Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Spain, and the United States, Experts asked what preventive measures were being taken by the Government in that regard. Experts also asked if Bolivia had any specific plan in place to institute the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR) Plan Patria Grande, which sought to extend the free movement of goods between MERCOSUR countries to include the free flow of persons as well.

The Bolivian delegation also included other members of the Permanent Mission of Bolivia to the United Nations Office at Geneva.

When the Committee next meets in public, at 10 a.m., on Friday, 18 April, it will celebrate the fifth anniversary of the entry into force of the Convention with a round-table discussion with the International Labour Organization, the International Organization for Migration, academia, non-governmental organizations and States on the importance of human rights in the context of today’s migration debate.

Report of Bolivia

The initial report of Bolivia (CMW/C/BOL/1) notes that the entry into and exit from Bolivian territory of migrant persons is governed by Supreme Decree No. 24423 of November 1993, for the purpose of which operational State organizations and National Migration Service support units have been set up. The operational organizations include the Department for Aliens; the Department of Legal Affairs; the Department of Inspections and Settlement; and the Departmental Migration Authorities. The Bolivian State recognizes that immigration represents an important asset for the country, promoting demographic growth and potentially strengthening social and economic development through real investment and effective work. All aliens living in Bolivian territory enjoy the same protection as nationals under the Constitution and must comply with the Constitution and the legal migration provisions. Moreover, the Constitution guarantees migrant workers and their families protection against any form of violence, physical injury, threats and intimidation by public officials or by private individuals, groups or institutions. As for Bolivians working outside the country, Bolivian embassies and consulates abroad provide assistance to Bolivians working abroad, ensuring respect for their rights and providing legal assistance to those who have been detained. In cases of expulsion, the consular authorities may prevent the departure of the persons concerned, provided that the Bolivian nationals can provide proof that their expulsion is unlawful and that they are protected by the law of the host country. When an expulsion order is issued, the consulates have the duty to issue safe-conduct passes, and to provide personal facilities and guarantees for the persons’ return to their country.

Supreme Decree No. 25902 of September 2002 extends coverage to foreign workers who enter and leave the country, and specifies the requirements they must fulfil in order to access long-term benefits. There is therefore no provision in domestic social security legislation for migrant workers and their families. Several meetings have been held on that issue. At the Third Meeting of the Andean Committee of Social Security Authorities in January 2005, the Ministry of Health and Sport, through the Department of Social Security and Health Insurance, reached agreements, among others, regarding the possibility of providing benefits under both short- and long-term insurance schemes to migrant workers and their beneficiaries, within the framework of Andean Pact Countries. The Department of Social Security and Health Insurance also cooperated with authorities of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ibero-American Social Security Organization to develop a model social security convention for potential implementation under agreements with countries that are not members of the Andean Community. Moreover, the Universal Health Insurance for Mothers and Children provides universal, comprehensive protection free of charge for pregnant women from the start of pregnancy up to six months after giving birth, and to children from birth to 5 years of age. Looking to the future, a ministerial resolution is being drafted to provide migrants with equal care under all programmes and in all areas.

Presentation of Report

ANGELICA NAVARRO, Permanent Representative of Bolivia to the United Nations Office at Geneva, introducing the initial report of Bolivia, observed that Bolivia was currently experiencing social, political and economic changes on a grand scale. Quite recently, since 2006 and the inception of the new Government led by the first indigenous President, Bolivia had been working to regain dignity for the Bolivian people. That life in dignity for all Bolivians was based on the enjoyment of all their indivisible human rights. It was a very difficult challenge, but rather than being discouraged they were moving ahead slowly but surely, and were constantly strengthening their efforts.

In terms of human rights, Bolivia had been working to update its commitments with regard to the human rights treaties to which it was a party and submitting its reports to them. Moreover, this past year, Bolivia had received visits by a number of Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council, including the Special Rapporteur on the human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous peoples, and the Special Rapporteur on the right to food. Both Special Rapporteurs had submitted very encouraging reports about the changes going on in Bolivia. Also in 2007, Bolivia had received a visit from the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Louise Arbour, during which the High Commissioner and the Bolivian Government had signed an agreement for the opening of an office of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in La Paz.

Turning specifically to the issues under consideration today, Ms. Navarro noted that, with growing globalization and increasing migration, Bolivia had over the past years become a country of destination, transit and origin of migrants. That had given Bolivia the impetus to sign and ratify the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families. Whereas Bolivia did not yet have a legal norm to protect the rights set out in the Convention, the current legal order defined rights and commitments that covered the rights and interests of the populations targeted by the Convention. Moreover, Bolivia, with the assistance of civil society organizations, was constantly undertaking efforts to disseminate the Convention and to promote its provisions so as to create a space for reflection and analysis that would lead to a draft bill on migration in both the national and international contexts.

In accordance with information contained in a report by the Human Rights Ombudsman's Office, between 20 and 25 per cent of Bolivians lived outside of the national borders, mainly in Spain, the United States and Argentina. The major cause of that flux was the high rate of unemployment, a legacy of the neo-liberal economic policies of the previous Government that had impoverished the country. To reverse that trend the current Government had put in place a National Development Policy which sought to support microenterprises, increase industrialization, and subsequently create new jobs. Of course, all of those efforts would need time to reach fruition.

Of those who had emigrated from Bolivia, unfortunately, the great majority were living in irregular situations and were therefore vulnerable to human rights violations, Ms. Navarro said. The Bolivian Government was currently reviewing their situation, giving priority to two areas: the inclusion of the aspect of respect for international human rights commitments within the framework of bilateral and multilateral agreements; and an overhaul of the services provided by Bolivian consulates to Bolivian citizens throughout the world.

As an example of efforts within the first area of action, Ms. Navarro noted that, as a member of the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR), Bolivia benefited from the "Plan Patria Grande", which had allowed for Bolivian migration documents to be regularized in Argentina – the first country to adopt the plan. They were now working on a similar regularization of migration documentation with the other members of MERCOSUR.

Concerning the second area of priority, Bolivia was launching innovative efforts at its consulates in Argentine, United States and Spanish cities – where most Bolivians working abroad resided – to bring services closer to its citizens abroad, such as mobile consulates, modernization of procedures in those consulates, establishing solidarity networks between residents and consulates, and using new forms of communications technologies to inform Bolivians abroad about information of use to them, for example via web pages of foreign consulates. In that context, the Ministry for Foreign Relations had created a unit "Care for Bolivians Abroad" under the direction of the General Consular Directorate.

In addition, the Government, in cooperation with the Ministry for Foreign Relations, had created the National Council on Migration, which differed substantially from the Council established by Supreme Decree 24423, in that it was based on a shared space between government and civil society to work principally on the following issues: promotion and awareness-raising on the rights of migrants as set out in the Convention; support for the individuals claiming to be victims of violations of those rights, both inside and outside the country; and finally, contributing to the preparation of a draft law on migration to the Congress. Unfortunately, that Council had not been able to be fully established, despite major information campaigns carried out within the framework of the promotion of the Convention. Frankly, Ms. Navarro said, there was opposition from certain circles to dealing with issues touching on migration and this process was taking longer than planned.

Ms. Navarro said that, according to the National Statistics Institute, approximately 1 per cent of the Bolivian population was made up of foreigners, the majority coming from neighbouring countries. That represented less than 100,000 persons, a number which swelled during harvest seasons.

While the law prohibited discrimination between citizens and non-citizens with regard to access to State services, Ms. Navarro said that the Government recognized the existence of certain discriminatory attitudes by some government officials, in particular towards those migrants coming from the neighbouring country of Peru. The Government encouraged individuals that suffered from such discrimination to apply to the Human Rights Ombudsman – which had a special team of professionals to respond to complaints by migrants, refugees and asylum-seekers – for redress.

As for documentation provided to migrants, Bolivia recognized that the bureaucratic State mechanisms that the current Government had inherited led to delays in processing of immigration documents. But they were working to correct that, with the help of IOM, which was financing a project for the installation of new hardware and software in the offices of the National Migration Service.

Turning to the problem of trafficking and smuggling of human persons, Bolivia had implemented law 3325 which defined the crime of trafficking or smuggling of human persons and set out penalties; higher penalties were set out in cases involving children or juveniles.

There was a need to set up shelters for victims of trafficking, Ms. Navarro said. That was an outstanding task that had not been addressed largely for a lack of funds. Nevertheless, the Government was working, with the assistance of civil society organizations, to try and provide training and to raise awareness among government officials so that adequate treatment could be provided to such victims and so that they would not themselves be treated as offenders.

Multilateral cooperation was extremely important to protect the rights of migrants, Ms. Navarro concluded. Bolivia was therefore looking forward to cooperating with the Committee with that goal in mind.

Questions by Experts

ANAMARÍA DIEGUEZ, the Committee Expert acting as Rapporteur for the Report of Bolivia, welcomed Bolivia’s procedure for consular registration, which had facilitated the registration of migrants. She also took note of the existence of a number of meetings and seminars held by Bolivia on the subject of migration, as well as the establishment of the inter-institutional body and a national plan for the eradication of child labour. On the latter issue, whereas it appeared that it was an issue of Bolivian children working in the sugar cane industry and in the mines, and not migrant children, she would appreciate more detailed information. Also welcome were the law on remittances and the technical board on smuggling and trafficking.

Moving on to some concerns, Ms. Dieguez regretted a lack of updated detailed information and statistics, in particular on migratory flows, in the report. There were also mismatches with regard to key figures, such as the number of Bolivians working abroad. The report of Bolivia had put that figure at 1.2 million, but the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said 2 million and one non-governmental organization had cited the number as 3 million. Those figures also did not jibe with the low figure established in the report for remittances to Bolivia, $ 800 million.

Ms. Dieguez emphasized that it was essential that Bolivia work on a migration act. Supreme Decree 24423 was not a migration law, but simply an administrative decree. Moreover, a number of its provisions had been declared unconstitutional.

Furthermore, Ms. Dieguez expressed concern that non-governmental organizations were reportedly not involved in the preparation of Bolivia's report.

Ms. Dieguez had read in the press that children of migrant mothers tended to suffer greater abuses. There had been no mention of that phenomenon in the report, and she asked for a comment.

JOSÉ BRILLANTES, the Committee Expert serving as co-Rapporteur for the Report of Bolivia, commented that, according to a report by the United States Department of State, Bolivian indigenous persons were being trafficked for forced labour and sexual exploitation into other countries, including to Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Spain, and the United States. What preventive measures was the Government taking in that regard, he asked.

Mr. Brillantes then posed a string of questions: what problems did Peruvians pose for Bolivia; what was the role of non-governmental organizations in the preparation of the current report; what did Bolivia intend to do to address the lack of statistics on migrants; and what plans did Bolivia have to align its legislation and policies with the Convention?

Could the delegation outline what were the major challenges to implementation of the Convention in Bolivia; whether Bolivians outside of Bolivia voted in national elections; and how had migration benefited Bolivia.

Other Experts asked, among other things, for more information on migrants residing in Bolivia; whether migrants were treated as offenders; whether irregular migrants were held separately from criminal offenders; how human rights were respected in the repatriation process; what the legal status of the Convention was in Bolivian law; whether remittances from Bolivians living abroad were taxed; and whether there were any restrictions on migrants within Bolivia sending remittances out of the country. An Expert also asked about the practical implications of some of the statements in Bolivia's report, such as "all immigration must take into account the demographic requirements of the State and must foster economic, social and cultural integration." Also, with regard to the assertion that "The Bolivian State, within its immigration programmes, may allocate land and grant assistance, facilities and liberties to immigrants entering the country", how was that carried out in practice?

Response by Delegation

Responding to questions, the delegation recalled that Bolivia was in the process of adopting a new Constitution which would entail substantive changes in norms at the national level, and would certainly have a profound effect on migration issues, land and other subjects. The Constitutional Assembly that was drafting the Constitution for the first time included members of indigenous populations and women. Why was this information important? Because the new Constitution would substantively change the situation on the ground.

For example, Article 27 of the new Constitution would provide the right to vote to Bolivians living abroad, as well as the right to stand for the highest offices of the land, the delegation said.

On land ownership, it should be realized that the majority of land in Bolivia had been seized by a few, with 90 per cent of the population in the rural areas having access to only 10 per cent of the land. That had led to impoverishment of the population, which, in turn, was one of the main reasons for emigration. The Government was working to re-establish justice in those areas. The Government was also working to release "captive" indigenous peoples from the working conditions in which they laboured, which amounted to modern conditions of slavery.

There were temporary measures taken to tax capital flows, that is, speculative capital that entered Bolivia in order to take advantage of the markets. However, those had specifically been devised as temporary, targeted measures so as not to prejudice remittances sent by migrants back home, the delegation explained.

As to the figure of $ 800 million in remittances being sent back home to Bolivia, it should be understood that that figure came from the National Bank, the delegation said, so it represented only official remittances. Most Bolivians distrusted banks.

The Supreme Decree on migration, 24423, clearly had shortcomings, the delegation acknowledged. The Government recognized that, and for that reason some of its provisions had been declared unconstitutional. The Government wished to get started on drafting a new migration bill, but certain elements in Government, in particular within the National Migration Service, remained faithful to the previous regime and were holding up the process. The "Plan Patria Grande" was the model that the current Government had wished to pursue, and still wanted to implement. So far, only Argentina had implemented the plan. The elements in the Government who opposed that model said it posed a security threat. Negotiations were ongoing.

Regarding the Government's relationship with non-governmental organizations, the delegation considered that relationship to be very important and there was close collaboration between non-governmental organizations and the Government. While it was true that non-governmental organizations had submitted a shadow report because they had not been included in the drafting of the Government's written responses to questions, that had only been owing to time constraints. Indeed, the Bolivian mission often helped non-governmental organizations to write their reports on the situation in Bolivia, as the Government's position was that non-governmental organizations provided constructive criticism, which was an important function.

Mobile consulates meant that diplomats from consulates would get in their cars and go out to the neighbourhoods were Bolivian migrants lived, the delegation explained. They would offer assistance in regularizing their status and obtaining work permits and residence documents. There had been tangible benefits, with the number of Bolivians living in Buenos Aires who had regularized their situation increasing daily, for example.

There were no cases of migrants being detained, held, put in prison or expelled for lack of documentation, the delegation said. That policy was something that would certainly be spelled out in any new migration bill.

Regarding an Expert's query about an alternative report on migration rejected by the Ministry of the Interior, the delegation had not heard about such a report.

It was true that the report had not sufficiently highlighted the work that was being done in Bolivia to combat smuggling and trafficking, particularly in the highlands. The police were constantly carrying out sweeps in El Alto to try and uncover smuggling networks.

The work done by the Ombudsman's Office to counter discrimination of all kinds was enormous, the delegation affirmed. Every couple of hours a public service message appeared on television from the Ombudsman's Office to raise awareness about the need to eliminate discrimination. Those spots, which were in the form of short, two-minute dramatic situations, had had an enormous impact on society.

Peruvian migration did not pose any problems for Bolivia. Bolivia had a fairly large contingent of Peruvians and other nationals from countries of the region living in Bolivia, the delegation said. Foreigners had always been treated as well as or better than Bolivians themselves.

Responding to the query as to how migration had benefited Bolivia, the delegation said that the immigration history of Bolivia had been quite varied. Following the Second World War, many Japanese had come to the country. Members of that community owned the biggest cheese factory in the country. There were also a lot of Yugoslavians who had come to the country. Those groups had completely integrated into society without any problems.

The delegation provided some background on Bolivia in order to explain the difficulties it was having in collecting migration statistics. The national territory of Bolivia covered 1.9 million square kilometres, and had some 670,000 kilometres of borders with five countries. The fact of those long borders meant that it was virtually impossible to completely track all those crossing the national borders. There were seven main border-crossing points, and there were statistics available on crossings at those points, as well there were migration officials that handled migration control. However, when people crossed the border along the Amazon jungle with Brazil, for example, those crossings went unrecorded. It was more like crossing the street than crossing a national border.

As for the impact on those left behind, in particular children and adolescents, the delegation recognized that most mothers working in other countries left their children behind and it was clear that had an impact on them. The Ombudsman's Office was currently undertaking studies to measure this impact.

In terms of statistics in the report, and their coherence, the delegation clarified that the number cited of 10,000 to 12,000 foreigners coming into Bolivia daily included migrants, as well as temporary migrants coming in for just a day or two, as well as tourists.

Responding on the question of whether foreigners in Bolivia could join workers unions, the delegation said there was certainly no law preventing them from doing so, and therefore such foreigners who felt it was in their interest were free do so.

Only those who worked full-time had access to social service in Bolivia, the delegation said. As not all Bolivians therefore had access to social security, foreigners entering the country shared those problems as well. The current Government was aware of the problem, and there were plans afoot to extend social security to include everyone, including those who were unemployed. But that was still in the future.

On health services, universal mother and child health care had been instituted by the Government, and was available free of charge to mothers and children under five. That service was available to all whether foreigners or not. In the future it was hoped to extend that service to everyone, the delegation said.

There were no restrictions on foreigners working in Bolivia. The problem was that there was a general shortage of work in the country. For that reason, the Government was working to provide more employment opportunities for everyone through the implementation of the National Development Plan, the delegation explained.

Public universities in Bolivia were open to all, regardless of their nationality. It was true that, owing to lack of resources, the administration was at times forced to limit enrolment by establishing an entrance exam. But that exam could be sat by foreigners or nationals, without distinction.

Further Questions by Experts

In follow-up questions, among other issues, Ms. Dieguez, the Rapporteur for the report of Bolivia, wondered if children of migrants in an irregular situation, but born in Bolivia, had access to education.

Other Committee Experts asked, among other things, what was meant in the responses to written questions by saying that all foreign citizens were organized in "residence centres"; was it true that Bolivian consuls literally "immediately and personally" intervened in migration complaints abroad; whether all employment sectors, including the public sector, were open to foreigners; and what were the regulations governing family reunification for migrant workers, and specifically if there were waiting periods for spouses to be allowed to join workers, for the spouses to be authorized to work, or for the children of migrants to be granted access to schools. Experts also requested further information about how the activities of the various Government departments and services related to migration were coordinated; the legal distinction Bolivia drew between three categories of migrants (spontaneous; planned; and selective), how many migrants fell into each category, and what the legal consequences were of those distinctions; and whether Bolivian nationals had benefited from the massive regularization campaign launched by Spain for foreign workers living there, especially given that one third of Bolivian migrants were living in that country, generally in irregular situations.

Did Bolivia have any specific plan in place to institute MERCOSUR's Plan Patria Grande, which sought to extend the free movement of goods between MERCOSUR countries to include the free flow of persons as well, an Expert asked?

Response by Delegation

Responding to these issues and others, the delegation said that children of parents who were in an irregular situation, but who were born in Bolivia had no trouble accessing education or other services. All children born in the country immediately obtained Bolivian citizenship, and there were therefore no restrictions.

The delegation confirmed that indeed it was the Bolivian consul him or herself who usually directly intervened in migration complaints. The delegation then cited a particular example of a girl being held in Italy against her will as a domestic servant and how the consul had intervened to resolve that situation. That was a typical example.

All foreigners had access to all areas of employment, including the civil service. One of the advisers to President Morales, a communications expert, was Peruvian, for example. The opposition had specifically complained about the fact that a foreigner occupied such a high-level post in the civil service. However, access by foreigners to posts in the civil service was in conformity with law, and the official in question had obtained his post on his merits.

Regarding family reunification, for foreign spouses of Bolivian citizens, the procedure to regularize their situation only lasted two or three weeks and thereafter that person had access to jobs and all the State services on an equal footing with citizens.

On regularization of Bolivians living in Spain, the delegation noted that that had not had as wide an impact as could have been hoped. While some Bolivians had had their situation regularized, most had not. One reason had been that Bolivian migration to Spain had accelerated during a period that was not covered by the new Spanish legislation. In other words, they had not been in the country long enough to benefit from the new programme.

Regarding migratory policy in MERCOSUR, it should be noted that Bolivia was an observer country of MERCOSUR, but was a founding member of the Andean Community. As such, all citizens of Bolivia already enjoyed free movement throughout the countries of the region. What was hoped was that that free movement could be extended for work purposes. That was something that was on the verge of being established. Moreover, negotiations were currently under way to merge MERCOSUR and the Andean Community, and studies were ongoing to harmonize the various provisions of each group. This was not a pipe dream. It was on the cards, and it was one of the main pillars of the Bolivian Government to contribute to regional integration.

On the different categories of migrants – spontaneous, planned and selective – that was set out in a Supreme Decree that had never actually been implemented. That legislation dated back to the Second World War, where, indeed, there had been a planned resettlement of Japanese refugees. However, that was the only instance of such a planned migration scheme in Bolivia.

Final Remarks by the Chairperson

ABDELHAMID EL JAMRI, Committee Chairperson, thanked the Bolivian delegation for their presentation and their replies to the Experts' questions. The Committee had appreciated the reform dynamic in which Bolivia was engaged in both the national and international contexts, and its international human rights commitments, in particular with regard to human rights, as evidenced by its participation in the Human Rights Council. Also appreciated was Bolivia's recognition of the contribution migration had made and could make to Bolivian society.

However, none of that could substitute for the need for statistics and legislation on migration, Mr. El Jamri underscored. That was the Committee's dearest wish for Bolivia.


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