COMMITTEE ON PROTECTION OF RIGHTS OF MIGRANT WORKERS OPENS NINTH SESSION
The Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, which reviews the implementation of the provisions of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families by its 39 States parties, this morning opened its eighth session, adopting its agenda and hearing an update on the human rights treaty body system by Paulo David, representing the High Commissioner for Human Rights. It also held a dialogue with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and a representative of the Office of the Human Rights Prosecutor of El Salvador, in preparation for its consideration of the report of El Salvador this afternoon.
In opening remarks, Paulo David, Coordinator with the Treaties and Council Branch of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, noted that High Commissioner Navi Pillay would be meeting with the Committee later in the week, on Thursday. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights had continued to engage in activities to promote the rights of migrants, as reflected in a number of meetings organized since the Committee's last session. Among others, in May, the Office had co-organized with the African Parliamentary Union, the International Labour Organization and the International Organization for Migration a conference for African parliamentarians on migration. Representatives of the Committee had contributed actively in all of those meetings.
With regard to membership, since the Committee last met, Jamaica and Paraguay had ratified the Convention, and Congo had become a signatory. Growth might not be as fast as they might wish, but it was steady and they hoped soon to reach the 41 ratifications needed to allow the Committee to expand its membership to 14. Turning to the present session, this afternoon, the Committee would begin its examination of the initial report of El Salvador. Mr. David also highlighted that the Committee would be meeting with the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on Wednesday afternoon.
Also this morning the Committee heard from the Human Rights Prosecutor of El Salvador and from non-governmental organizations in relation to its consideration of the report of El Salvador, in which progress made and continuing challenges facing El Salvador in the area of migration were outlined, including the situation of irregular migrants in detention and the need to guarantee the right to vote of El Salvadoran migrants abroad.
Committee Members also made statements on the activities they had undertaken since the Committee's last session to promote the Convention and on emerging issues in the area of migration. Highlights included a need to discuss what was happening in the European Union with regard to migration phenomenon, in particular in the context of its new Directive on Return and the Pact on Immigration and Asylum and their impact on other countries; and the need to target promotion activities for the Convention, given the lack of awareness among parliamentarians, in particular in Africa.
When the Committee convenes at 3 p.m. this afternoon it will begin its review of the initial report of El Salvador (CMW/C/SLV/1).
Statement by Representative of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
PAULO DAVID, Coordinator of Unit IV of the Treaties and Council Branch of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, began by presenting the excuses of High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay, who was unable to open the Committee's session in person. Since she started on 1 September 2008, the new High Commissioner had not missed a chance to underscore the importance she accorded to the work of the eight human rights treaty bodies in promoting and protecting human rights. In that connection, it was noted that Ms. Pillay would be meeting with the Committee later in the week, on Thursday.
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) had continued to engage in activities to promote the human rights of migrants, as reflected in a number of meetings organized since the Committee's last session, Mr. David underscored. Among others, in May, the Office had co-organized with the African Parliamentary Union, the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) a conference for African parliamentarians on migration. In September, OHCHR had organized together with the Government of Mexico an international meeting on children and migration. Representatives of the Committee had contributed actively in all of those meetings.
Mr. David also wished to draw attention to the report by the Global Migration Group entitled "International Migration and Human Rights, challenges and opportunities on the threshold of the sixtieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights". That was the first time that the Group had produced a joint report, and OHCHR's contribution had been considerable.
With regard to membership, since the Committee had last met, Jamaica and Paraguay had ratified the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, and Congo had become a signatory. Growth might not be as fast as they might wish, but it was steady and they hoped soon to reach the 41 ratifications needed to allow the Committee to expand its membership from 10 to 14. Mr. David identified as positive signs the calls for ratification made during meetings on this topic, in particular at the Manila Global Forum on Migration and Development.
Mr. David noted that this year had also been marked by the first meetings of the recently established Universal Periodic Review under the Human Rights Council. It was still too early to assess that new international human rights mechanism, but it was evident so far that the rights of migrants were systematically addressed in that high profile context. So far, 32 countries had been reviewed and another 18 were scheduled next month.
Turning to the Committee's present session, it would be a short but very intense session. This afternoon, the Committee would begin its examination of the initial report of El Salvador. Among the various activities, Mr. David highlighted in particular the meeting scheduled with the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Population of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on Wednesday afternoon, in order to exchange views and to promote the rights of migrants.
Statements by Committee Members
ABDELHAMID EL JAMRI, Committee Chairperson, said that, since April, Committee Members had participated in various events in which they had talked about the Convention to promote it. The Chairperson therefore opened the floor for Experts to discuss what activities they had undertaken in the interim period in that regard – noting, however, that they would discuss the Global Forum on Migration and Development held in Manila in depth on Friday morning.
PRASAD KARIYAWASAM, Committee Member, said most of his comments would be postponed till Friday. However, he wished to draw attention to the danger that the rights-based approach to migration, while accepted by the international community, was taking diffuse forms – i.e., that was sometimes being done through highlighting other, admittedly important conventions. They had to highlight the fact that the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families was the main international instrument in this area.
ANA ELIZABETH CUBIAS MEDINA, Committee Member, touched on what was happening in the European Union with regard to migration phenomenon. In Latin America they had had a regional conference in which the EU had participated at which opposition on the part of Spain and Portugal was voiced against migration. Yet Central America was involved in an Association Agreement with the EU, and migration was a central part of that agreement. The whole issue of the EU Directive on Return and the European Pact on Immigration and Asylum and the way in which that would have an impact on migration had been the subject of intense interest, and a number of groups, including the Rio Group, the Organization of American States, MERCOSUR, and the South American Conference on Migration had also already taken a position on it. The South American Conference, for example, had taken a clear position rejecting the new Directive. A problem was also that many countries that were against the EU policy were not parties to the Convention and therefore did not have a platform from which to challenge it. This could be used as a tool to promote membership.
ANAMARÍA DIEGUEZ ARÉVALO, Committee Member, raised the issue of a lack of statistics, which was greatly hampering the assessment of whether the Convention was being implemented. This was a particularly true with regard to statistics on children.
MYRIAM POUSSI KONSIMBO, Committee Member, said she had participated in the Regional Conference on Refugee Protection and International Migration in West Africa, held in Dakar two weeks ago. Workshops that she had attended had focused on how to apply migration rules. She also noted that many of the countries had not heard of the Convention – with only one participant, Mali, having reported to the Committee – and it had been a good opportunity to promote awareness about the Convention.
Regarding the Inter-Committee Meeting held in June, Committee Member, AHMED HASSAN EL BORAI, noted that the Inter-Committee would be meeting twice a year from now on. Discussed at the meeting had been the Universal Periodic Review, the list of issues and the review of States who had not presented their reports.
AZAD TAGHIZADET, Committee Member, highlighted a meeting held by the Council of Europe in the context of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which provided an in-depth discussion of the practices and plans of countries of the EU, with a view to ratifying the United Nations Convention. That would be a good method for discussing the Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers as well. He had raised that issue during the meeting, but felt that the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights should contact the High Commissioner of the Council of Europe to discuss this.
ABDELHAMID EL JAMRI, Committee Chairperson, noted that there had been a number of calls from EU bodies and actors to ratify the Convention, including by the High Commissioner for Human Rights of the European Council and a note sent out by the Economic and Social Council of the EU. The problem was that the EU had many heads. They did not all have the same position. Often, they really waited for one country to take the first step.
Presenting his activities to promote the Convention, Mr. El Jamri mentioned a number of events he had participated in, including a seminar of the Union of African Parliaments held in Rabat, where he had given the keynote address. What had come out of that meeting was that a lot of training was necessary. African parliamentarians appeared unaware of the Convention or were unaware of whether their country was a party to it or not. They needed to be more targeted in their promotion activities. After all, it was parliamentarians who ratified the Convention. They should target that group.
A second event had been a seminar to develop a handbook to migration policy, co-organized by the International Labour Organization and the International Organization for Migration, which took into account regional particularities and legal norms, Mr. El Jamri said. There had already been two guidebooks issued so far and it was planned to publish the third on sub-Saharan Africa. A third event had been the Mediterranean Seminar, focusing on migration in the Mediterranean. With regard to his events in his own country, Morocco had set up a Council for Moroccans Abroad, of which he was a member.
Statements by Office of the Human Rights Prosecutor of El Salvador and NGOs
OSCAR HUMBERTO LUNA, the Human Rights Prosecutor (Ombudsman) of El Salvador, recalled that, in mid-April 2008, he had presented the report of his Office to the Committee in which they had discussed a number of cases. The Prosecutor's Office had started investigating many cases as a result and had been able to check on the conditions in which migrants in transit through El Salvador were being treated by State officials.
Mr. Luna then reviewed a number of ongoing cases involving violations. With respect to non-discrimination, there was the case of non-entry of a daughter of a Cuban national. In that respect his office had issued an opinion based on the principle of non-discrimination on the basis of nationality and on the right to family reunification, as set out in the Convention. Other cases involved violations of personal liberty owing to detentions of migrants in irregular legal situations in places of detention and the inability of the migrants abroad to vote, contrary to article 41 of the Convention. Those cases were all still pending.
Some cases had now been resolved, such as the case of the Chinese citizens who had been kept in frontier facilities who had now been released, Mr. Luna noted.
In terms of further progress, Mr. Luna noted that, in July of this year a bill had been submitted for discussion to the National Assembly, the Law for the Assistance and Protection of Migrants and their Families, and it was still under discussion. In addition, a centre for migrants was being built for special care for migrants in the Capital, which provided minimum conditions, but was still insufficient. To a certain extent, however, it did resolve the question of those who had been kept in border areas or airports.
In conclusion, the implementation of the Convention in El Salvador required greater efforts by the authorities, and in particular the review and revision of domestic laws and norms to harmonize them with the Committee, Mr. Luna said.
JIMENA REYES, of the International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH), said that the Law on Aliens really needed to be revised. They were aware that a draft bill on migration was being contemplated but the need was pressing.
Concerning the situation of migrants, neither the Constitution nor the law really covered the detention of undocumented migrant workers during the expulsion process, Ms. Reyes observed. They had a lacuna in their normative laws and it was urgent that that be filled. The border area was full of undocumented migrants. The progress made was not enough and the new centre did not sufficiently provide dignified conditions of detention for migrant workers. Another complaint was that procedures for handling migrant workers were not really followed properly, and that there was little recourse for a migrant worker that the authorities had decided to expel.
MIGUEL MONTENEGRO, of the Commission on Human Rights of El Salvador NGOs, raised the situation of Nicaraguans in the San Miguel area and persecution by a local mayor who attacked them in the local media. Local people had also carried out raids on Nicaraguan vendors, with the aim of expelling those foreigners.
Another situation of concern was that of Salvadorans expelled from the United States, who had talked about inappropriate procedures used against them, including sequestration for long interrogations without due process or contact with their families or lawyers, Mr. Montenegro said.
Discussion
In the ensuing discussion, Experts raised a number of issues, including whether real progress had been made in legislative reform, in particular the need for an open and transparent expulsion process; the guarantee of rights for domestic sector and agricultural workers in the Convention and monitoring mechanisms for that; and why the new migrants centre was inadequate.
In response, addressing the issue of legislative reform, Mr. Luna noted that the major laws regulating aliens had not been revised. The only bill submitted to the Legislative Assembly was the one referred to in his update, regarding assistance and protection for migrants and their families, which had been submitted by a political party and had not yet been adopted.
Moreover, the right to vote abroad was not enshrined in the electoral code, despite many initiatives and recommendations presented to the National Assembly, Mr. Luna noted.
On the Migrants Centre, it did meet certain hygiene standards, but it lacked other equipment needed for psychological or medical care, Mr. Luna said. The comprehensive centre was also located in the capital, and there should be more centres throughout the country, in particular in the border areas.
Regarding deportation and expulsion, Mr. Luna noted a number of violations involving expulsions of foreign nationals in which judicial guarantees and due process as set out in the Convention were not carried out. The laws on migration and the Aliens Law simply did not provide sufficient guarantees. However, regardless of whether the law had set out these procedural guarantees, they should still be applied, via the Convention, as it had priority in domestic law.
Data was not precise, but about 500 persons left the country every day. They did not have a registry for the destinations of that exodus, but most of them went to the United States. Perhaps the Government had better statistics, but there was no such registry in the Prosecutor's Office.
With respect to migrants working in domestic service, the Human Rights Prosecutor's Office was monitoring institutions that might be using children for forced labour or in other jobs involving exploitation, domestic child labour, etc., but they had no specific data on the violation of the rights of migrant children.
Turning to the issue of trade union rights, Ms. Reyes said that the Labour Code provided that foreigners could not be part of trade union boards. While that was not a full prohibition against trade union membership, the barring of foreigners from high-level posts was a significant obstacle to rights set out in the Convention.
On the right to vote, the Constitution did not draw a distinction between citizens living in the country and citizens abroad. Thus, it was not clear if the lack of provision for citizens abroad to vote was a de jure or a de facto violation of the Convention, Ms. Reyes concluded.
Concerning statistics, they had figures, but the Government would have more complete ones. There were about 500 to 600 Salvadorans leaving the country every day, and about 2.8 million, or 29 per cent of the population, lived abroad. Some 88 per cent went to the United States, and the rest to neighbouring countries, but, increasingly, also to the European Union, Ms. Reyes said.
For use of the information media; not an official record
CMW08011E