COMMITTEE ON PROTECTION OF RIGHTS OF MIGRANTS CONCLUDES FOURTH SESSION

The Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families today concluded its week-long fourth session during which it considered the initial periodic report of Mali, the first country report to be considered by the Committee. It also adopted a written contribution to the General Assembly's high-level dialogue on migration and development, to be held in September 2006.

With regard to Mali, the Committee was pleased to note the promulgation of Act No. 04-058 of 25 November 2005, regarding conditions of entry, stay and establishment of foreigners in Mali, replacing legislation that was not in conformity with the Convention. The Committee acknowledged the difficulty the State party said it had encountered in controlling illegal and clandestine movements of migrant workers and members of their families, and principally the difficulties it encountered in managing its long frontiers with seven neighbouring countries. The Committee strongly urged the State party to request the necessary technical assistance to create a gender disaggregated database that would allow it to understand the patterns of migration and the situation of migrant workers in the country, including those who were not officially recognized, as well as oversee the implementation of each of the rights provided for in the Convention, so that such information could be provided to the Committee. The Committee also recommended that Mali intensify its efforts to combat trafficking in children.

In its contribution to the General's Assembly's high-level dialogue on migration and development, the Committee stated that migration had an impact on the development of countries of origin, of transit and of employment. It was the shared responsibility of all States to guarantee the human rights of migrant workers and members of their families. The Committee recommended that States shall as appropriate consult and cooperate with a view to promoting sound, equitable and humane conditions in connection with international migration of workers and members of their families.

At its next session, to be held from 30 October to 3 November 2006 in Geneva, the Committee will examine the initial report of Mexico.

Concluding Observations and Recommendations on Mali

After considering the initial report of Mali, the Committee welcomed the creation of a Ministry for Malians Abroad and for African Unification and that the Ministry made information available to Malians via its website on the conditions for entry and stay in a number of countries with large Malian populations. It also was pleased to note the promulgation of Act No. 04-058 of 25 November 2005, regarding conditions of entry, stay and establishment of foreigners in Mali, replacing legislation that was not in conformity with the Convention. The Committee noted with satisfaction that many Malians abroad were able to participate in presidential elections through mechanisms established in several countries and recommended that that right be extended to a greater number of Malians working abroad. The Committee acknowledged the difficulty the State party said it had encountered in controlling illegal and clandestine movements of migrant workers and members of their families, and principally the difficulties it encountered in managing its long frontiers with seven neighbouring countries.

The Committee encouraged Mali to consider the possibility of making declarations under articles 76 and 77 of the Convention, recognizing the Committee's competence to hear complaints from groups and individuals. The Committee also invited Mali to consider becoming a State party to ILO Conventions Nos. 97 and 143 concerning migrant workers as soon as possible. While pleased that the Constitution provided that international treaties, including the Convention, enjoyed precedence over national legislation, the Committee remained concerned that the Convention could not be applied by the courts until it had been incorporated into national legislation and the Committee requested the State party to immediately take the legislative measures necessary to do so. The Committee was also concerned by the lack of statistics on migratory flows that affected Mali, as well as on other issues surrounding migration. The Committee strongly urged the State party to request the necessary technical assistance to create a gender disaggregated database that would allow it to understand the patterns of migration and the situation of migrant workers in the country, including those who were not officially recognized, as well as oversee the implementation of each of the rights provided for in the Convention, so that such information could be furnished to the Committee.

The Committee invited Mali to provide training to government officials working in the area of migration and noted with concern the apparent absence of coordination among institutions and services that dealt with different aspects of migration. The Committee remained concerned by the fact that, as the State party itself recognized, trafficking in children remained a serious problem in the country. It was particularly concerned by the traffic of Malian children to other countries of the region and their submission to practices such as enslavement and forced labour, as well as the situation of immigrant girls, who according to certain sources were exploited. It therefore recommended that Mali intensify its efforts to combat trafficking in children in cooperation with international governmental and non-governmental organizations, and to implement the recommendations of the Committee on Human Rights and the Committee on the Rights of the Child on this subject.

Contribution to the General Assembly's High-Level Dialogue on Migration and Development

In its contribution to the General's Assembly's high-level dialogue on migration and development, the Committee notes that migrants are above all human beings with rights, but also active agents of development. The question of migration should thus be approached from a human rights perspective, in conformity with the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and State obligations under core international human rights treaties, bearing in mind that development is not just economic development, but also entails cultural, social and political development. In this context, the Committee observes that migration stimulates cultural and economic exchanges among nations, which in turn promote peace and understanding in keeping with the goals of the United Nations.

In its conclusion, the Committee states that migration has an impact on the development of countries of origin, of transit and of employment. It is the shared responsibility of all States to guarantee the human rights of migrant workers and members of their families. The Committee therefore recommends that States shall as appropriate consult and cooperate with a view to promoting sound, equitable and humane conditions in connection with international migration of workers and members of their families. The Committee also calls upon all States parties to take effective measures to implement the rights contained in the Convention. It equally calls upon States that are not yet parties to the Convention, to consider adhering to the Convention without delay.


Members of the Committee

The members of the Committee are Francisco Alba (Mexico); Francisco Carrion-Mena (Ecuador); Ana Elizabeth Cubias Medina (El Salvador); Anamaria Dieguez Arevalo (Guatemala); Ahmed Hassan El-Borai (Egypt); Abdelhamid El Jamari (Morocco); Prasad Kariyawasam (Sri Lanka); Jose Serrano Brillantes (Philippines); Mehmet Sevim (Turkey); and Azad Taghizade (Azerbaijan).

Mr. Kariyawasam is the Chairperson. The Vice-Chairpersons are Mr. Brillantes, Ms. Cubias Medina and Mr. El Jamri. The Rapporteur is Mr. Alba.


For use of the information media; not an official record

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