To listmembers for information,

The Convention on the Protection of the Human Rights of All Migrant Workers
and Members of their Families  goes into force.

On December 10th, the 20th State delivered its ratification to the United
Nations thus achieving the minimum number of ratifications required for the
treaty to go into effect.   On April 1, 2003 the treaty will be binding on
the following state parties, who have thus far ratified the treaty ­
Azerbaijan, Belize, Bolivia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Cape Verde, Colombia, East
Timor, Ecuador, Egypt, Ghana, Guinea, Mexico, Morocco, Philippines, Senegal,
Seychelles,  Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Uganda and Uruguay.  At least seven
other States have signed the treaty and their ratification is pending. The
treaty is open to all States for signature and ratification.   With a total
of 93 articles, it is the most in depth United Nations Treaty to date.

You can read the Convention at:
http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu3/b/m_mwctoc.htm

A message from the UN Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Migrants at:
http://www.unhchr.ch/huricane/huricane.nsf/view01/98BB5F5D0C62F876C1256C8C00
365FE9?opendocument reads as follows:

"On 10 December, Human Rights Day, the National Parliament of Timor Leste
adopted the United Nations Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All
Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families. Timor Leste's ratification
will be the twentieth, finally bringing the Convention into force. This is a
great success for all those who have voiced the suffering of migrants and
who have campaigned for the establishment of an international legal
framework for the protection of the human rights of migrants.

The Convention offers a holistic approach to the human rights of migrants
and summarizes in a single instrument a brad gamut of rights, including
civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. The Convention also
takes into account all the aspects of the migration process so as to protect
effectively the victims of abuses in countries of origins, transit and
destination, be they regular or irregular, documented or undocumented. The
Convention also plays an important role in preventing and eradicating
exploitation, trafficking and smuggling of migrants.

The Convention, besides establishing some obligations for States party vis a
vis migrants as individuals, also provides that States will cooperate in the
formulation of migration policies and in combating irregular migration; will
provide information to employers, workers and their organizations about
policies, laws and regulations relating to migration; and will provide
assistance to migrant workers and their families. This is of crucial
importance as I believe that the protection of the human rights of migrants
is closely linked to migration management and must be addressed in such
context. Migration is a dynamic phenomenon involving a great number of
actors. States of origin, transit and destinations have a shared
responsibility to ensure a comprehensive and dignified response to the
problems faced by migrants and social, cultural, economic and other
challenges related to migration.

As human rights are at the heart of migration, human rights must also be at
the heart of any migration management debate. As there is a growing
recognition of the fact that contemporary migration is a process to be
managed in a comprehensive manner, I would like to stress that such process
must also be based on the wealth of existing international human rights
norms, principles and standards, including the Convention.

Today we celebrate an important achievement in the struggle for the human
rights of migrants. The entry into force of the Convention is a strong
signal that the human dimension of migration can no longer be overlooked. I
trust that today will mark a renewed commitment of Governments, NGOs,
international organizations and the civil society at large to make the human
rights of migrants a reality. "

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