Annual ReportInter-American Program for the Promotion and Protection of the Human Rights of Migrants, Including Migrant Workers and Their

Families

Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs - CAJPSpecial Committee on Migration Issues - CEAM

February 16, 2012

• The principal aim is to promote the development of government policies, legislation, and best practices for protecting the human rights of migrants.

• The Program also promotes cooperation and best practices by integrating specific measures into the work of the organs, agencies, and entities of the OAS, and by linking these activities with advances made by member states, multilateral organizations, and civil society organizations.

• The Program establishes a number of activities, guidelines, and best practices for execution by the OAS, member states, international organizations, and civil society in general.

• The Program provides that, as a means of following up on its implementation, a report on its activities in the course of a year is to be presented by the Program’s actors.

Background

• Rapporteurship on the Rights of Migrant Workers and Their Families. IACHR

• Preparation of the report on inter-American standards for the human rights of migrants: standards and jurisprudence of the inter-American human rights system;

• • Preparation of the report on the situation of migrants and their families in Mexico;

• Executive Secretariat for Integral Development:

I. Office of Education and Culture• In May, officials and experts from Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Costa Rica, and Mexico,

along with a representative from the International Organization for Migration, met at OAS headquarters to discuss the educational situation of migrant children and youth;

• Publication of the report on education for immigrant children and youth of the Americas

II. Department of Social Development and Employment Work concerning the labor rights of migrant workers and migrant labor force management policies in the context of the Inter-American Network for Labor Administration.

Annual report on OAS activities

III. Migration and Development Program of the Department of Social Development and Employment

• Release of the first report of the Continuous Reporting System on International Migration for the Americas (SICREMI), the aim of which is to develop a system for gathering statistics on migration flows, which is to generate continuous, up-to-date reports on migration in the Hemisphere; and beginning of the second phase, involving 18 countries in the project.

• Development and presentation of the Database of Migration Legislation in the Americas (MILEX) and incorporation of the 17 remaining countries into the database.

• Workshop of the Special Committee on Migration Issues (CEAM) “Learning from Experience: Bilateral Cooperation in Migration Management” in April 2011, and publication of the minutes from that workshop.

• Construction of the Continuous Reporting System on International Migration for the Americas (SICREMI) and publication of the first report.

• As for promoting and raising awareness of human rights, the monthly bulletin containing the most important news on migration in the Hemisphere continues to be published (Migration en l@s Americas).

• Support of, follow-up on, and participation in the project to strengthen the Statistical Information System on Migration of the Andean Community (CAN).

Annual report on OAS activities

IV. Trust for the Americas

• Participation in activities of the project to promote a culture of respecting the labor rights of migrants: building awareness, developing capacity, and technical assistance for Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, and El Salvador, of the TRUST for the Americas

V. Secretariat for Multidimensional Security

• Establishment of awareness and training programs for migration personnel and other authorities to strengthen the fight against human trafficking;

VI. Summit of the Americas

• The migration issue cuts across all the themes of the Sixth Summit (natural disasters, poverty and inequality, access to technology, citizen security, and infrastructure) and is a special focus of the citizen security topic (smuggling of migrants as an aspect of transnational organized crime).

Annual report on OAS activities

Information tools

Database of Migration Legislation in the Americas – MILEX

Interactive Map of Temporary Employment Programs for Migrant Workers (MINPET)

Release of the first report and beginning of the secondphase of the SICREMI (Continuous Reporting System on International Migration for the Americas) project

Reports and publications

Reports and publications

Education for immigrant childrenand youth in the Americas

Forums, workshops, and seminars: In the CEAM framework

• Temporary Employment Programs for Migrant Workers

• Migration Law

• Workshop “Learning from Experience: Bilateral Cooperation in Migration Management”

• “Education for Migrant Children and Youth”

• “Development of the Inter-American Cooperation Network for Migration (RICOMI)”

• Participation in activities of the project to promote a culture of respecting the labor rights of migrants: building awareness, developing capacity, and technical assistance for Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, and El Salvador, of the TRUST for the Americas

• Participation in the project to Promote Gender-Sensitive Labor Migration Policies in Costa Rica, Haiti, Nicaragua, Panama, and the Dominican Republic, led by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and executed in conjunction with Spain’s Trade Union Institute for Development Cooperation (ISCOD).

• Technical support in developing the Statistical Information System on Migration of the Andean Community (CAN).

Participation in projects and technical supportfor policy development and institution-building

INTER-AMERICAN NETWORK FOR LABOR ADMINISTRATION

Topic: Labor rights of migrant workers / labor-force migration management policies

- The RIAL workshop “Decentralized Public Employment Services and Their Linkage with the Business World” was held in Mexico City from March 16 to 18, 2011. It brought together PES directors of the Americas and Europe to discuss experiences in decentralizing these services and strategies for achieving closer ties with the business world. The document containing the workshop’s conclusions tells of the fertile exchange and points to various lessons learned that will help to improve PES administration in the region.

– During 2011, six direct cooperation and technical assistance activities among ministries took place, involving the following countries: Saint Lucia, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, the United States, Colombia, Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, and The Bahamas. Four activities were focused on workplace inspection and occupation health and safety conditions, one on labor statistics, and one on programs for employment abroad (between Saint Lucia and Jamaica).

Participation in projects and technical support for policy development and institution-building

TOPIC: HUMAN TRAFFICKING AND SMUGGLING OF MIGRANTS

Program N ° 1• Strengthening the capacity of police, prosecutors, and judges to prevent and fight human trafficking• Promoting information exchange among participating countries• Increased cooperation between the Caribbean and Central America and law enforcement agencies • Inclusion of OAS training materials in instructional programs of police academies and other education centers

Countries : Saint Kitts and Nevis, The Bahamas, Antigua and Barbuda, and the Dominican Republic

Program N ° 2• Building awareness of the vulnerability of certain populations to becoming victims of human trafficking• Consular training of diplomatic and government personnel on preventing human trafficking and identifying its

victims'• Promoting the inclusion of OAS material on human trafficking in the study plans of institutes of diplomacy

Countries : Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Program N ° 3• Training of immigrations and customs personnel and police on illicit trafficking in drugs and persons and acts

of terrorismCountries: Costa Rica, Jamaica, Mexico, and Saint Lucia

Participation in projects and technical supportfor policy development and institution-building

The migration issue cuts across all the themes of the Sixth Summit (natural disasters, poverty and inequality, access to technology, citizen security, and infrastructure) and is a special focus of the citizen security topic (smuggling of migrants as an aspect of

transnational organized crime).