27 May 2010
PROGRESS IN THE PROTECTION OF MIGRANT DOMESTIC WORKERS AND THEIR FAMILIES
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the adoption of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of all Migrant Workers and Members of their families.
The Convention sets out legal standards and provides guidance for national laws and policies that recognise the specific vulnerabilities of migrants and promote humane and lawful working and living conditions.
Following its April meeting the UN Committee on Migrant Workers committed to a timetable for working together with NGOs and international organizations to adopt a final text as the first General Comment under the Migrant Workers Convention at its next session in November.
The purpose of a General Comment is to draw upon the experience of the Committee and other interested parties to make recommendations in order to assist States in the implementation of the provisions of the Convention.
This step was welcomed by the International Catholic Migration Commission as a step towards providing greater protection for migrant domestic workers.
In a separate development Edmund Rice International has made a submission regarding the US guest-worker program as part of the Universal Periodic Review of the United States due to take place in November.
The submission and its recommendations were based on the 'Close to Slavery' report prepared by the Southern Poverty Law Center.