WUNRN
COMBATING TRAFFICKING BY PROTECTING MIGRANTS’
HUMAN RIGHTS
La
Strada Statement on the Occasion of EU Anti-Trafficking Day,
18
October 2008
La Strada
International, a network of nine independent human rights organisations active
in the field of counter-trafficking in Europe, has published a statement on the
occasion of the 2nd EU Anti-Trafficking Day, 18 October 2008 on combating
trafficking by protecting migrant’s human rights.
La Strada
International welcomes this second EU anti-trafficking day, which will again
focus the public’s and policy-makers’ attention on this severe form of a human
rights violation. Last year, the theme of the anti-trafficking day was ‘time
for action’. This year we think it is time for reflection.
Although
there have been advances in the Member States’ and the EU approach to
trafficking towards a human rights-based approach, La Strada
International is concerned about recent developments in EU policies on
migration, in particular the EU Returns Directive, the EU Employer
Sanction Directive, the lack of protection of the rights of women migrants and
the proposal to stop regularisation programs.
In order to
improve the protection of migrants’ rights and to prevent trafficking, La
Strada calls upon Member States, the European Council and the European
Commission to:
· Monitor all immigration legislation
for its impact on the human rights of (irregular) migrant workers and trafficked
persons.
· Increase
the opportunities for legal, gainful and non-exploitative labour migration for
workers of all skill levels, and strengthen regulatory and supervisory
mechanisms to protect the rights of migrant workers.
· Ratify
and implement the UN Convention on the Rights of Migrant Workers and their
Families, in order to protect the basic human rights of migrants, coupled with
the implementation of gender-sensitive national programmes based on these
international standards.
· Pay
special attention to the vulnerable position of migrant women, and devise
specific protective measures in all EU policies concerning migrants and
trafficked persons.
· Examine
the option of regularisation programmes to ensure human rights protection on
its territory as one part of an overall policy strategy dealing with irregular
migration.
· Focus
more closely on the root causes of trafficking, such as poverty, gender discrimination,
inequality and armed conflict, both in the international counter-trafficking
debate and in research, action plans and policy measures.
The
statement is published at: http://www.lastradainternational.org/
In order to download the statement directly, please click on this
link :
For
further information please get in touch with Marieke van Doorninck: mvd@lastradainternational.org
or +31 6 50 62 63 40
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