MIGRANTS COMMITTEE DISCUSSES METHODS OF WORK, PROMOTION OF CONVENTION AND INTER-COMMITTEE ISSUES

The Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families this morning discussed the work of the Inter-Committee Meeting, including efforts to harmonize and streamline the work of the human rights treaty bodies; the promotion of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, including at the Manila Global Forum on Migration and Development; and the Committee's methods of work.

Briefing Members on the most recent Inter-Committee Meeting, held from 23 to 25 June 2008, Committee Expert Ahmed Hassan El-Borai highlighted the discussion with regard to the relationship between the treaty body system and the Universal Periodic Review process. It was clear that the Universal Periodic Review was a purely political process, because there were no Experts involved. For that reason, he had underscored the need to be especially vigilant that the recommendations of the Review mechanism were in harmony with the concluding observations of the human rights treaty bodies. To that end, he had suggested that each Committee send a representative to attend the country reviews undertaken by the Council under this mechanism.

Jane Connors, Coordinator, Human Rights Treaties Branch at the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), noted that at its last meeting in June, the Inter-Committee Meeting had confirmed that it would be meeting twice a year to accelerate progress in harmonizing and streamlining the practice of treaty bodies. That was ever more urgent in view of the fact that in February there would be a new treaty body, the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

In the ensuing discussion among Committee Members a point at issue was a greater empowerment of Committee representatives to make decisions or recommendations on behalf of their Committees at the Inter-Committee Meeting. It was recognized that Committee representatives only had the mandate to report back to their respective Committees. However, Ms. Connors was of the opinion that better preparation within each Committee for the issues to be discussed at the Inter-Committee Meeting facilitated clearer outcomes. An Expert noted that, following the Inter-Committee Meeting in June, the Meeting of Chairpersons of the Human Rights Treaties Bodies had adopted all of the recommendations made. He was concerned whether that made them binding on treaty body system. Ms. Connors confirmed that it did not.

Turning to the Committee's working methods, members discussed the periodicity of reports, in particular, given the late submission of reports by States parties, whether they should consider revising their guidelines – which provided that States report within one year and then every five years thereafter. Following a discussion on the merits of each option, the Committee decided that it would request that States parties' next periodic reports be submitted two years after the submission of the previous report and not to allow combined reports, as it was felt that this was the best way to prompt States to report on time. Therefore, the next report of El Salvador, whose initial report had been reviewed at this session and whose second periodic report would have be due in June 2009, would now be due on 1 December 2010.

On follow-up, it was agreed that follow-up opinions bound the entire Committee, and did not just reflect the rapporteur's views. It was therefore decided to have country rapporteurs prepare follow-up reports, for review by the whole Committee.

With regard to promotion of the Convention, Committee Member Prasad Kariyawasam presented the achievements of the Manila Global Forum on Migration and Development, held in October 2008. The Committee should be very aware that the forum was dedicated to migration and development, not migration and human rights, he underscored. However, the Manila Forum had been held under the theme "Protecting and empowering migrants for development", and the human rights issue, the protection issue and the rights-based approach to migration had been represented. In a round table on migration, development and human rights, there had been discussion of mainstreaming human rights in migration policy, and a number of delegates had advocated for ratification of the Migrants Convention. More notably, in her opening statement, Gloria Arroyo, President of the Philippines, had called for the ratification of the International Convention on Migrant Workers. However, outcome documents did not reflect those calls in strong recommendations, but merely acknowledged them.

He did not wish to be critical of the Global Forum, but Mr. Kariyawasam wished to caution that in follow up to the Global Forum the Committee should be very careful not to lose sight of its mandate: protection and promotion of human rights of migrants. Development was another concern. They needed to be careful about any calls for the Convention to be reworked in the light of Forum concerns.

John Bingham of the International Catholic Migration Commission, speaking for the civil society side, observed that he had a more positive view with regard to the rights component of the Manila Forum. He noted that "across the board" in the round tables which the non-governmental organizations had attended, many had called for the ratification of the Convention and for its better implementation. There had also been a dramatic increase in trade union delegates and a vastly increased presence of the humanitarian agencies, such as CARITAS.


For use of the information media; not an official record

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