The text of the Articles of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Their Families which the Working Group Provisionally Agreed during the First Reading

This preamble documents the 91 Articles of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrants and Their Families. This defines and covers the rights of all migrant workers and their families which can be ratified by as many countries as possible. The status and fundamental rights of migrant workers and their families have not been sufficiently recognized everywhere and therefore require appropriate international protection. The 8 parts are: 1) scope and definitions, 2) fundamental human rights of all migrant workers and members of their families, 3) additional rights of migrant workers and members of their families in a regular situation, 4) provisions applicable to particular categories of migrant workers and members of their families, 5) promotion of sound, equitable and humane conditions in connection with lawful international migration of workers and their families, 6) application of the Convention, 7) general provisions, and 8) final provisions.     

Drafting an International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Their Families

The open-ended Working Group (WG) completed its 3rd session of the 2nd reading on the Elaboration of an International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Their Families during September 24-October 3, 1986 in New York. In this session, the WG elaborated a "dictionary" of terms related to the migrant worker and members of the family of the migrant worker that, when ratified, will be viewed as international standards. The WG also approved 8 articles primarily relating to civil and political rights. These included articles regarding the rights of migrant workers and their families to 1) leave any State, including their State of origin; 2) life; 3) be excluded from forced or compulsory labor except under specific conditions; 4) the freedom of thought, conscience, and religion; 5) hold opinions without interference and the freedom of expression, subject only to certain restrictions; and 6) liberty and security of person. The Convention's intention was to ensure the application of human rights to migrant workers. There were nearly 60 participating states in attendance, with 1/3 of them from African states. African and Arab states played a very active role in the discussions. The number of women delegates has increased with each session. Future issues include 1) economic and cultural rights, and 2) the additional rights of migrant workers and their families in a regular situation of lawful status.     

Setting norms in the United Nations system: the draft convention on the protection of the rights of all migrant workers and their families in relation to ILO in standards on migrant workers

The author reviews the U.N.'s draft proposal concerning the rights of migrant workers and their families. "This article examines the nature and scope of obligations under the United Nations Convention and contrasts them with existing international standards. In the light of the elaboration of the U.N. Convention, the conditions of future normative activities to limit negative consequences of a proliferation of instruments and supervisory mechanisms are outlined." Consideration is given to human and trade union rights, employment, social security, living and working conditions, workers' families, expulsion, and conditions of international migration. (SUMMARY IN FRE AND SPA)     

International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families. [Excepts

This excerpt focuses on the laws concerning the protection of the rights of all migrant workers and members of their families. The excerpt takes into account the principles contained in the basic instruments of the UN about human rights; particularly, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination; the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women; and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Emphasized is the law stating that migrant workers and members of their families shall have the right to receive medical care that is required for the preservation of their life or the avoidance of irreparable harm to their health on the basis of equality of treatment, along with nationals. It also grants migrant workers equality of treatment, along with nationals, with regard to access to social and health services, provided that the requirements for participation in the respective schemes are met.     

The ILO's Domestic Workers Convention and Recommendation: A window of opportunity for social justice

Domestic workers are a predominantly female workforce whose social and labour rights remained largely unattended for decades. Addressing this has become more urgent, as demand for household and personal care services is increasing. Convention No. 189 and Recommendation No. 201 set out global minimum standards for domestic work. The author first describes international labour and human rights law on domestic work prior to 2011. He then examines the instruments' definitions and scope and problems of particular groups; their provisions on working time, pay, work environment and living conditions; social security; and implementation and enforcement.     

The ILO and the new UN convention on migrant workers: the past and future

Migrant workers are less protected than nationals against the actions of states and employers. These workers therefore require special global protection of their rights while employed in countries other than their own. Accordingly, the UN International Labor Organization (ILO) is constitutionally charged with developing international measures to protect the interests of migrant workers from developing countries. The ILO, however, had little involvement in molding the International Convention on the protection of the Rights of All Migrants Workers and Members of their Families, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1990. Instead, final adoption of the Convention stems largely from developing state dissatisfaction with the former 1975 ILO Migrant Workers Convention No. 143, and Mexican and Moroccan government machinations outside of the ILO in support of modifications. Convention No. 143 threatened to sever employment opportunities and hard foreign exchange remittances in North America and western Europe from illegally employed immigrant workers from developing countries. By working in the UN outside of the ILO, developing nations would enjoy automatic majority, and greater potential for success in reforming the Convention. Soon, developing nations squelched a delay tactic proffered by the Swedes, and succeeded in bringing the UN General Assembly to adopt resolution 34/172 in December 1979, which led to the establishment of an Open-Ended Working Group. This group then elaborated the 1990 Convention over 19 sessions. At the expense of the ILO and more developed nations, developing nations successfully challenged and changed the international order to benefit their peoples and national economies. Finally, the paper considers the interests of immigrant businesspeople and asylum seekers during or immediately upon entry to a foreign country, who are not specifically covered by the Convention. While the university of international humanitarian law suggests that businesspeople be included in the Convention, changes to the Convention will probably not be forthcoming. As for asylum seekers waiting for either refugee status or an interim-term engagement for work, the sensitive nature of this topic in certain countries precludes the adoption of inclusive documentation.     

The convention on the rights of the child: A young legal regime for the world's youngest citizens

In November, 1989 the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child. This international resolution seeks to safeguard the physical, social, cultural, and religious rights of children, and to establish a new legal regime for the protection of children's rights. This paper examines the legal foundations of the Convention relative to international law, the legal effect of a United Nations Convention upon nations, describes the main provisions of the Convention, and discusses the ratification and enforcement of the Convention.     

The local diffusion of international human rights norms – understanding the cities for CEDAW campaign

While the international human rights norm literature has revolved mainly around the diffusion and implementation of human rights at the national and global level, less is known how international human rights norms are adopted on the local level. To fill this gap, this article will focus on the Cities for Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) campaign which encourages cities in the United States to adopt ordinances incorporating principles set forth by UN CEDAW. This article will analyze how the Cities for CEDAW campaign frames international gender norms to make them relevant in local contexts. Drawing on original interviews with Cities for CEDAW activists, this article will further our understanding how local human rights activists can utilize international human rights treaties to integrate human rights norms on the local level.     

Human Rights,Income and International Migration

This study contributes to the literature of migration studies by addressing the question: why does international migration persist despite welfare improvements in migrant‐sending countries? We propose that the human rights condition of the origin countries is an important determinant of global migration. Although the human rights issue is not new to researchers in migration studies, the concern is primarily about the rights of migrants, refugees, asylum seekers or migrant workers in a host country. We undertake a bilateral panel data analysis to examine the pattern of global bilateral migration between 1995 and 2010. We find that international migration is positively associated with human rights conditions and income. Similar results are also obtained when we control for multilateral resistance and possible sample selection biases in a panel context. Our study implies that efforts to promote human rights may also be assessed in relation to their contribution to migration flows.     

The right to stay: challenging the policy of detention and deportation

The aim of this article is to shed light on the situation of refugees (formally designated as asylum seekers) and undocumented migrant workers, who are among the most vulnerable inhabitants of Europe. Both groups face the threat of detention and deportation. The normative framework, which consists of legal standards and residential institutions, will be critically examined. Despite international standards for respecting the human rights of refugees and undocumented workers, policies of detention and deportation and the mass rejection of asylum claims leave little hope for the empowerment, autonomy and social inclusion of these persons. Instead of a straight-forward argument for closing down all detention centres and putting an end to forcible deportations, the article investigates small scale structural possibilities for inclusive – non-selective – responses to these non-citizens.     

Migrant Rights: International Law and National Action

Migrant rights were put squarely on the agenda of the Global Forum on Migration and Development when it met in Manila in 2008, as the principal theme of the governmental and civil society discussions. The Forum proceeded with the assumption that migrant rights are a development issue, as well as a fundamental human rights issue. This article begins with a review of the normative framework for protecting migrant rights. While norms by themselves will not prevent abuses, they can serve as a basis for advocating implementation of policies and programs to achieve these goals. We argue that there is ample international law setting out the basic rights of migrants even though the principal migrant‐centric instruments are not widely ratified. Failures in protecting migrant rights arise from the lack of implementation of these standards at the national level. The article then discusses a range of programs, mostly implemented by or in destination countries, which hold potential for overcoming barriers to the protection of the rights of migrants. These practical steps can be found in a wide array of countries, most of which have not become party to the Migrant Workers Convention. The article concludes that these initiatives have been implemented in an ad hoc manner, necessitating a more systematic approach at the national level to the protection of migrant rights.     

The protection of migrant workers and international labour standards

International labor standards take the form of Conventions and Recommendations that embody the agreements reached by a 2/3 majority of the representatives of Governments, Employers, and Workers of International Labour Office (ILO) member states. Originally designed to guard against the danger that 1 country or other would keep down wages and working conditions to gain competitive advantage and thereby undermine advances elsewhere, international labor standards have also been inspired by humanitarian concerns--the visible plight of workers and the physical dangers of industrialization and by the notion of social justice, which embraces wellbeing and dignity, security, and equality as well as a measure of participation in economic and social matters. ILO standards apply to workers generally and therefore also to migrant workers, irrespective of the fact that the general standards are complemented by standards especially for migrant workers. The social security protection of migrant workers has been dealt with in ILO instruments primarily from the angle of equality of treatment but also from that of the maintenance of acquired rights and rights in course of acquisition, including the payment of benefits to entitled persons resident abroad. The ILO Conventions on migrant workers and the Recommendations which supplement them deal with practically all aspects of the work and life of non-nationals such as recruitment matters, information to be made available, contract conditions, medical examination and attention, customs, exemption for personal effects, assistance in settling into their new environment, vocational training, promotion at work, job security and alternative employment, liberty of movement, participation in the cultural life of the state as well as maintenance of their own culture, transfer of earnings and savings, family reunification and visits, appeal against unjustified termination of employment or expulsion, and return assistance. ILO's supervisory mechanism consists basically of a dialogue between the ILO and the Government that is responsible for a law, regulation, or practice alleged to be in contravention of principles it voluntarily accepted. The control machinery is often set in motion by workers' organizations. The UN General Assembly is currently elaborating a new instrument designed to cover both regular and irregular migrant workers and their families.     

Racial Discrimination and Human Rights in the Global Context: The International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination

This essay will discuss racism and racial discrimination by locating them within a context of international human rights. It is argued that conceptually racism and racial discrimination within an international human rights paradigm sharpens our understanding of these concepts from both a global and regional vantage point. The main idea is to provide a thematic and procedural overview of key international human rights instruments that address racial discrimination. It will situate racial discrimination in the context of international human rights and provide a critical discussion focused on the International Convention on the Elimination of All forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) and other human rights instruments that address racial discrimination.     

进一步完善来沪人员服务和管理,推进城乡统筹发展——上海解决“新二元结构”的途径、前景及举措

国家＂十二五＂规划明确提出,特大型城市要合理控制人口规模,同时要坚持因地制宜、分步推进,把有稳定劳动关系并在城镇居住一定年限的农民工及其家属逐步转为城镇居民;对暂时不具备在城镇落户的农民工,要改善公共服务,加强权益保护。上海作为外来人口规模庞大的特大型城市,必须高度重视解决＂新二元结构＂,既要积极改善来沪人员的公共服务,促进符合条件的来沪人员不断融入上海,又要合理控制人口规模,防止＂城市病＂。     

Internationalizing Anti-Racism Efforts

Abstract

Racial discrimination continues to haunt our societies, calling for sustained and new solutions. In 1994, the US government signed the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. Three years later, it ratified this international agreement. This article reviews the effectiveness of this United Nations Convention and discusses its main provisions: national reporting and the individual communications procedure. It finds that the treaty contains comprehensive and legally effective provisions to combat racial discrimination and argues that social workers, along with other professionals, should engage with the international legal regime to assist their clientele to combat racial discrimination. Social workers have a number of roles: advocate, educator, service provider and broker. Their involvement in such an international legal regime would have an added significance; it has the potential to expand the domain of international social work as well as overcome the limits of domestic action against racial discrimination.     

Effects of migration on family structure

This paper examines the situation and problems of migration on family structure, with emphasis on family reunification. The study is based on conditions and practices in Western Europe and Mediterranean countries relating to temporary labor migration. Most migrant workers have no intention of settling permanently and return to their country within a few years. The International Labour Office estimated in 1974 that at least 1/2 the migrant workers in Western Europe live without their families. Generally, migrants send for their families only when they are employed, earning adequate wages, and have adequate housing. Some reasons why migrants live apart from their families include 1) the receiving country discourages family immigration because it does not coincide with the economic necessities of migration policy and 2) some sending countries discourage it to ensure that the migrant worker returns to his own country. The main danger arising from family separation is that it frequently leads to the break up of the family. The leading European authorities recognize as a fundamental right the freedom of a migrant worker and his family to lead a normal family life in the receiving country. The author outlines the conditions for admission for residence and employment of migrant spouses and children for the Federal Republic of Germany, France, Belgium, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, Austria, Luxembourg, and the United Kingdom. All countries require that the head be in regular employment for some time and be able to provide his family with suitable housing. Other problems concerning the arrival of migrant spouses and children include 1) acquiring employment and social information and counseling, 2) education of children, 3) obtaining vocational training and adaptation and 4) achieving entitlement to social security benefits. The effects of migration in the family context in sending countries include 1) providing activities for migrants to maintain cultural links with their countries of origin and 2) acquiring the nationality of the receiving countries. Countries should facilitate the admission to employment of migrant spouses and children, by maintaining provisions for the reuniting of families and imposing no limits on admission to residence; and 2) by overcome obstacles to admission to employment, by observing existing recommendations. In conclusion, governments should give family cohesion 1st priority, regardless of regulations.     

Enforcing women's rights through law

Because women have to be equal partners in development to insure its sustainability, the human rights of women must be foremost on development agendas. Ratification of and adherence to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (the Women's Convention) would be a powerful international tool in this regard. In various countries, progress towards legalizing rights for women is passing through a first stage which focusses on the protection of specific rights to a second stage in which sex is included as a prohibited ground of discrimination to a third stage which addresses the pervasive and structural nature of the violation of women's rights. It is expected that governments will renew their commitment to the Women's Convention at the Fourth World Conference on Women (WCW) and, thus, take more seriously their obligations to report progress and remove reservations. Regional initiatives, such as the Organization of American States' 1994 Convention on the Prevention, Punishment, and Eradication of Violence Against Women, can also be used to protect women's rights, and the application of national constitutions and domestic laws remains the first line of defence for women. Particular attention must be paid to laws which apply to property rights, nationality, equality within the family, reproductive and other health issues, and violence against women. The Draft Plan of Action prepared for the WCW challenges states to specify their plans to eliminate discrimination. While this Plan may prove to lack vision, women's nongovernmental organizations are playing a major role in accelerating the movement of international and domestic law towards justice for women.     

International migration in Western Europe: reflections on the past five years

Five significant developments have occurred since 1974 with regard to the European labor force: 1) growth of return migration; 2) adoption of a new ILO Convention and Recommendation on return migration; 3) the movement towards a New International Economic Order; 4) the holding of the World Employment Conference in 1976; and 5) growing support for the idea that countries of origin should be compensated for out-migration of its citizens. About 1.5-2 million migrant workers have returned to their country of origin since the early 1970's when about 6 million workers and dependents were in Western Europe. The inequity that pervades international economic relations in general and migration in particular stems from the unequal bargaining power of the partners and the absense of corrective international social policies. The developing countries' wish for a new economic order questions the distributional aspects of the old liberal order. While raw materials and trade are covered comprehensively, labor movement is neglected. The growing realization that migration is a resource drain has led many poor countries to request compensation.     

The Dark Side of Democracy: Migration, Xenophobia and Human Rights in South Africa

South Africa prides itself on having one of the most progressive constitutions in the world. The Bill of Rights guarantees a host of basic political, cultural and socio-economic rights to all who are resident in the country. Yet there have been persistent reports that citizen intolerance of non-citizens, refugees and migrants has escalated dramatically since 1994.
This article documents this process through presentation of results of national public opinion surveyed by the Southern African Migration Project (SAMP).
The surveys show that intolerance is extremely pervasive and growing in intensity and seriousness. Abuse of migrants and refugees has intensified and there is little support for the idea of migrant rights. Only one group of South Africans, a small minority with regular personal contact with non-citizens, is significantly more tolerant.
These findings do not augur well for migrant and refugee rights in this newly democratic country, or early acceptance of the UN Convention on the protection of migrant workers.