UN document to condemn acts of intolerance towards migrants

A document due to be presented for approval by world leaders at the UN in New York on September 19th will condemn all acts of racism, discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance against refugees and migrants.

It will also recognise the positive contribution made by migrants for inclusive growth and sustainable development and encourage host governments to consider opening their labour markets to refugees.

The document has a strong human rights focus, with clear undertakings by UN member states to protect the human rights of all refugees and migrants, regardless of status.

A draft of the the document states that “migrants are present in all countries in the world”.

In 2015 “their number surpassed 244 million, growing at a rate faster than the world’s population.”

However, “there are roughly 65 million forcibly displaced persons, including over 21 million refugees, 3 million asylum-seekers and over 40 million internally displaced persons,” the document says.

The document will commit UN members to ensuring “a people centred,sensitive, humane, dignified, gender-responsive and prompt reception for all persons arriving in our countries, and particularly those in large movements, whether refugees or migrants”.

Welcomed

Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Charlie Flanagan has welcomed the completion of negotiations, chaired by Ireland and Jordan, which led to agreement on the document which he said represents "a new global approach to addressing the issues facing refugees and migrants".

Negotiations on the document began last February and involved the UN's 193 member states. The co-chairs were Ireland's permanent representative to the UN Ambassador David Donoghue and his Jordanian counterpart Ambassador Dina Kawar.

The draft declaration on a global approach to helping refugees and migrants “will involve shared responsibility for actions aimed at saving lives and the provision of vital policy support and humanitarian and developmental assistance for those involved,” Minister Flanagan said.

It was also “a landmark achievement of Irish diplomacy, and follows our role last year in brokering the new UN sustainable development goals,” he said.

He also thanked Irishman Peter Sutherland, "the special representative of the UN secretary general for international migration, for his tireless work on behalf of migrants for many years."