International migration and protection of the human rights of all migrants

International migration
Chapter
F

Region countries have Instruments on F. International migration

Policies and instruments

International migration is a fundamental component of the demographic, social, and economic dynamics of Latin America and the Caribbean. Managing it in a safe, orderly, and regular manner, with full respect for the human rights of all migrants regardless of migratory status, is a prerequisite for advancing toward sustainable and inclusive development. This requires comprehensive migration policies with human rights, gender, and intercultural approaches that recognize the contributions of migration to development and address the challenges of the migration cycle.

Although the region has made progress in strengthening regulatory frameworks, regional cooperation, and the recognition of migrants’ rights, challenges remain due to the increase and diversification of migratory flows, irregular migration, forced displacement, human trafficking, migrant smuggling, and various forms of discrimination, racism, xenophobia, and violence that especially affect women, girls, boys, adolescents, and other groups in vulnerable situations. Overcoming these challenges requires state policies, inter-institutional coordination, international cooperation, and information systems that strengthen migration governance.

Chapter F of the Montevideo Consensus brings together ten priority measures to strengthen migration governance from a human rights perspective, development, and shared responsibility. Its commitments promote the inclusion of migration in development agendas, the protection of migrants’ rights, access to basic services, strengthened cooperation among countries of origin, transit, destination, and return, portability of social security rights, and the prevention of human trafficking and other rights violations.

Since its adoption, Chapter F has served as a reference framework for strengthening migration policies, regional cooperation, regulatory harmonization, and coordination mechanisms, contributing to the follow-up of the 2030 Agenda and the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (2018), whose principles converge with those of the Montevideo Consensus.

Priority Measures

  • F.66 - International migration

    66
    Ensure that international migration issues, including migration regularization policies are fully incorporated into global, regional and national post-2015 development agendas and strategies.

  • F.67 - Assistance and protection to migrants

    67
    Provide assistance and protection to migrants regardless of their migration status, especially vulnerable groups, with full respect for their rights and in accordance with the provisions of the International Convention on the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families and those of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, highlighting the need to afford them comprehensive attention in countries of transit and destination.

  • F.68 - Global and regional strategies for the protection of the rights of migrants

    68
    Prepare comprehensive global and regional strategies to prevent infringement of the human rights of migrants, as well as to take advantage of the benefits and face the challenges arising from migration, including those relating to remittances and skilled migration in high-demand sectors, as well as the differential participation of men and women and the transnationalization of care.

  • F.72 - Decriminalize migration

    72
    Protect decisively the human rights of all migrants, avoiding any form of criminalization of migration, and guarantee migrants access to basic social services in education and health, including sexual health and reproductive health, where appropriate, regardless of their migration status, with special attention to highly vulnerable groups, including unaccompanied minors, displaced persons in an irregular situation, women who are victims of violence, victims of trafficking, returnees and forcibly displaced asylum-seekers.

  • F.73 - Intergovernmental cooperation mechanisms for the rights of migrants

    73
    Give priority, in each country, to strengthening coordination channels between sectors and between countries, to reinforcing intergovernmental cooperation mechanisms in order to guarantee the exercise of the human rights of all migrants, regardless of their migration status, from a gender-based perspective.

  • F.75 - International Convention on Migration

    75
    Promote the adoption of an agreed outcome document at the second High-level Dialogue on International Migration and Development, to be held in New York on 3 and 4 October 2013, and, in this regard, submit for consideration the desirability of advancing the content and guidelines of an international convention on migration.

Instruments

SDG

Indicators

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