By Tanishka Tiwari
Published on: December 18, 2023 at 13:03 IST
Illegal immigration is defined as the migration of individuals into a nation in contravention of its immigration regulations or the prolonged presence in a country without legal permission.
Illegal immigration typically moves money from impoverished to affluent nations. Illegally residing in another nation puts you in danger of incarceration, deportation, and/or other penalties.
If the home country refuses to accept the individual or new asylum evidence arises after the judgement, asylum seekers who have been denied refuge may face obstruction to removal.
In certain circumstances, these individuals are classified as illegal immigrants. In others, they may be granted a temporary residency permit, following the International Refugee Convention’s principle of non-refoulement.
Migration is increasingly seen as a global issue requiring a global perspective and coordinated actions. States are debating migration concerns bilaterally, regionally, and, more recently, globally.
A common language is required for such coordination and international collaboration to be successful. To provide a valuable tool to facilitate such international collaboration, this glossary serves as a guide through the muck of terminology and concepts in the migration sector.
Existing legal tools offer a complete legal basis for international migration regulation. Well-defined standards handle the treatment of a diverse variety of migrants, including migrant women, men, and children, refugees, stateless people, migrant labourers, and migrant victims of trafficking.
International human rights law, international labour law and standards, international refugee law, international criminal law, international humanitarian law, international consular law, and international maritime law are among the bodies of international law that serve as the foundation for national migration laws, policies, and practices, in this Article we will be comprehensively discussing on international laws available on Illegal migration.
Who is a Migrant?
There is no commonly accepted definition of a migrant, sometimes an international migrant. Some human rights organisations and experts distinguish between international migrants and internal migrants, often known as internally displaced individuals, as well as between migrants who were forced to relocate and migrants who moved freely to improve their position.
As a result, there are four categories of mobile persons to which international law may refer: people who moved voluntarily within one State to improve their situation, people who were compelled to move internally within one State, people who moved voluntarily across a border to improve their situation, and people who were compelled to move across a border.
This guide defines migrants as people who cross borders either because they are forced to or because they choose to. Migrants comprise a variety of people, including but not limited to migrant labourers, irregular migrants, victims of human trafficking, and smuggled migrants.
Migrant Worker
According to Article 1 of the International Convention on the Rights of Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (ICRMW), a migrant worker is “a person who is to be engaged, is engaged, or has been engaged in a remunerated activity in a State of which he or she is not a national.”
The ICRMW is the most comprehensive treaty on migrant workers’ rights, outlining civil and political rights and economic, social, and cultural rights. Most of the ICRMW’s rules apply to all migrant workers, including legal and undocumented workers and their families, but others expressly relate to irregular or undocumented migrants.
While the ICRMW describes the fundamental rights granted to migrant workers, the Committee on Migrant Workers (CMW) highlighted that while the ICRMW outlines the minimum rights afforded to migrant workers, States may broaden the scope of these rights, notably concerning irregular migrants.
Furthermore, the Committee emphasised that ICRMW parties must interpret their commitments to migrants in line with other human rights and international treaties they have signed. Aside from the ICRMW, many additional international instruments protect all human beings at work, including migratory workers. The ILO Migration for Employment Convention of 1949 expressly protects migratory workers, ensuring essential rights such as access to health care and non-discrimination.
Several universal human rights treaties and fundamental ILO Conventions, such as the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, International Labour Organisation Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948, and ILO Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949, provide for workers’ rights to just working conditions and equal pay, the ability to form and join trade unions, and access to social security.
Non-documented Migrant Worker
An irregular migrant worker, also known as a non-documented migrant worker, enters a nation without the authority to work. In 1975, the United Nations General Assembly suggested that non-documented and irregular migrant workers be used instead of phrases like “illegal migrant worker” by UN organisations and agencies. Since then, other international organisations have made a point of utilising similar terminology to avoid the stigma associated with terms like ‘illegal migrant.’
The International Convention on the Rights of Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (ICRMW) defines a non-documented or irregular migrant worker as one who is not “authorised to enter, stay, and engage in a remunerated activity in the State of employment…”
Irregular migrant workers enjoy the same rights as ordinary workers under the ICRMW. States may not deprive an irregular migrant worker of his rights under the ICRMW based on his irregular status. States must interpret their commitments to irregular migrant workers under the international human rights treaties that they have signed, just as they do to documented or regular migrants. The ICRMW, on the other hand, balances the state’s ability to control migrant workers’ entry and leave with migrants’ rights.
Refugee
A refugee is defined by the 1951 Refugee Convention as an individual who is subject to a “well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality, and is unable to, or owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country.”
Refugee rights and obligations are outlined in the 1951 Refugee Convention, its 1967 Protocol, and other international and regional conventions. States’ duties include following the principle of non-refoulment (not returning people to situations where their lives would be endangered), giving access to fair and efficient asylum processes, and ensuring fundamental human rights are respected.
Smuggled Person
Smuggling is defined as the “acquisition, to obtain, directly or indirectly, a financial or other material benefit, of the illegal entry of a person into a State Party of which the person is not a national or a permanent resident” in Article 3(a) of the UN Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea, and Air. Smuggling, unlike human trafficking, does not need exploitation or compulsion and necessitates the crossing of a boundary.
States that have signed the Protocol are required to safeguard and assist smuggled individuals, including by upholding a person’s right to life and the right not to be subjected to torture or other cruel, brutal, or degrading treatment or punishment.
In line with the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, states must also advise individuals of their right to notify and interact with consular officers. States must consider whether migrants’ lives are in danger, as well as the unique requirements of women and children, while giving aid. See Protocol to the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organised Crime to Combat Migrant Smuggling by Land, Sea, and Air.
Stateless Person
Article 1 of the United Nations Convention on the Status of Stateless Persons (Statelessness Convention) defines a stateless person as “a person who is not considered a national by any State under the operation of its law.”
The Statelessness Convention is the only international treaty that governs how stateless people are treated. States parties to the Statelessness Convention are required to provide certain rights to stateless people, including but not limited to the right to non-discrimination (Article 3), the right to a personal status (Article 12), the right to identity papers (Article 27) and travel documents (Article 28), and the right to due process, particularly in expulsion proceedings (Article 31).
The United Nations Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness explains how a state might bestow “its nationality on a person born on its territory who would otherwise be stateless.”
Trafficked Person
The UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women, and Children, defines trafficking in persons as the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring, or receipt of persons through the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, abduction, fraud, deception, the abuse of power or a position of vulnerability, or the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to obtain the consent of a person.
The Protocol defines exploitation as encompassing, but not limited to, prostitution of others, forced labour, slavery, similar acts, or organ removal. Person trafficking is a crime that can occur within a state’s borders or across borders, affecting migrants and internally displaced people. States that have signed the Protocol are obligated to aid and protect victims of human trafficking.
States shall explore adopting measures to provide medical and psychological help, job, education, training opportunities, housing, and legal rights guidance under the Protocol. Furthermore, States Parties are required to make efforts to safeguard the physical safety of trafficking victims and to provide victims with access to remedies to recompense them for their injuries. If necessary, states must also preserve the victim’s privacy and identity.
International human rights law
International human rights legislation (IHRL) establishes duties that states must uphold. In contrast to other systems of legislation that may only apply to specific groups or situations, international human rights law applies to all individuals at all times.
This encompasses not only a state’s residents but everyone under the authority or effective control of the state. This means that, regardless of their status, all migrants have the same international human rights as everyone else.
States, like all other rights holders, owe a duty to migrants to respect, defend, and realise their human rights.
- Respecting human rights entails abstaining from human rights breaches, which, in the context of migration, involves abstaining from arbitrary arrest, torture, or mass deportation of migrants.
- States are required by the commitment to defend human rights to prevent human rights abuses by other parties. In terms of immigration, this means that states should, for example, regulate recruiting agencies, discipline abusive employers, protect migrants from smugglers’ violence and abuse, and combat bigotry and hatred.
- Fulfilling human rights necessitates taking proactive steps to assure their realisation, such as providing alternatives to migrant incarceration and ensuring access to healthcare, education, and other social services.
Human rights realisation in migration policy also entails implementing some cross-cutting human rights concepts, such as
- Non-discrimination and equality: Non-discrimination prohibits discrimination, exclusion, restriction, or preference based on a non-exhaustive list of grounds such as race, colour, descent, ethnic origin, sex, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, religion or belief, nationality, migration or residence status, or another status. States must address direct and indirect discrimination and uneven treatment of persons in their laws, policies, and practices, particularly by paying particular attention to the needs of vulnerable migrants.
- Participation and inclusion: Everyone has the right to actively, freely, and meaningfully participate in choices that influence their ability to exercise their rights. Everyone has the right to know about the decisions that influence their life and well-being in a language and format they understand. This implies that migrants should be consulted and included in formulating relevant public policies.
- Accountability and the rule of law: Everyone can assert and exercise their rights. States must provide openness in the formulation and execution of their policies, as well as access to grievance procedures and adequate remedies when human rights violations occur. The migration system should provide migrants full access to justice, including restitution and remedies if they are subjected to human rights breaches.
What rights do migrants have?
According to international human rights principles, which are founded on every person’s inherent dignity, migrants have the same fundamental rights as everyone else, regardless of their legal position in a state. Except for Article 25 of the ICCPR, which refers to political participation, the Human Rights Committee has ruled explicitly that all of the rights provided in the ICCPR apply to migrants.
- Right to Life
All migrants have the right to life, and states must guarantee that this right is not arbitrarily denied. States shall punish violations of the right to life, including extrajudicial executions, that occur during a migrant’s route from country of origin to country of destination and vice versa. States are also obligated to reduce fatalities at land and marine border crossings.
Under international human rights law and international maritime law, the State has to safeguard and secure the right to life of anyone at sea inside the State’s territory or who comes into contact with a ship under the State’s authority.
The international law of the sea, in particular, has evolved measures to rescue and protect those lost at sea, especially migrants. For example, Article 98 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) requires shipmasters to assist any person found at sea who is in danger of becoming lost and to rescue persons in distress if informed of their need for assistance, as long as such actions do not endanger the ship, crew, or passengers.
According to UNCLOS Article 98(2), coastal states are responsible for collaborating with neighbouring states to develop effective search and rescue services.
Furthermore, Chapter 2.1.10 of the 1979 International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue (SAR) states that people in trouble at sea shall be aided regardless of country, status, or the circumstances under which they are discovered.
- Equality and Non-Discrimination
International human rights legislation assures all persons, including migrants, are free from discrimination in exercising their human rights. Article 2(2) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, for example, states that “the States Parties to the present Covenant undertake to guarantee that the rights enunciated in the present Covenant will be exercised without discrimination of any kind based on race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinions, national or social origin, property, birth, or another status.”
When migrants belong to a protected group under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), or the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD), the equality and non-discrimination provisions apply to them as well. Regional human rights treaties in the Inter-American, European, African, and other regional human rights systems also guarantee the right to non-discrimination.
A migrant’s right to nondiscrimination in the workplace is also protected. In addition to other rights, the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work calls for non-discrimination. Article 2 states: All Members, even if they have not ratified the [ILO] Conventions in question, have an obligation arising from the fact of membership in the Organisation to respect, promote, and realise, in good faith and in accordance with the Constitution, the principles concerning the fundamental rights which are the subject of those Conventions, namely:
- freedom of association and the effective recognition of the right to collective bargaining;
- the right to collective bargaining;
- the right to collective
- Protection against Arbitrary Arrest and Detention
Individuals, especially migrants, shall not be arrested or detained arbitrarily under international human rights law. According to Article 9 of the ICCPR, a state may not arbitrarily arrest and detain an individual.
The state must demonstrate that other less invasive means besides detention have been explored and judged insufficiently to demonstrate that detention is not arbitrary. When reporting responsibilities or other requirements would be less invasive procedures to ensure that the migrant’s status conforms with local law, extended detention of a migrant is not warranted.
Article 16(4) of the ICRMW specifically safeguards migrant workers and their families from arbitrary arrest or imprisonment, whether individual or collective. According to the Committee on Migrant Workers, for an arrest or detention to be arbitrary, it must be “prescribed by law,” “pursue a legitimate aim under the ICRMW,” “necessary in the specific circumstances,” and “proportionate to the legitimate aim.”
Furthermore, the CMW emphasises that criminalising irregular migration is not a legitimate objective in controlling irregular migration. Furthermore, the CMW emphasises that legal administrative detention might become arbitrary if it surpasses the period for which a State can legitimately justify the custody.
- Protection against Torture or Inhuman Treatment
Torture is a jus cogens or peremptory rule of international law, which implies that states must implement the prohibition of torture even if they have not signed a relevant treaty. Furthermore, Article 2(2) of the Convention against Torture specifies that a State may never use extraordinary circumstances, such as war or a national emergency, to justify torture. Torture and cruel, brutal, or degrading treatment are also prohibited by the ICCPR and regional human rights treaties.
The prohibition on torture and inhuman treatment is expanded in Article 7 of the ICCPR to include non-consensual medical or scientific experimentation. Under Article 10, the ICRMW generally provides migrant workers the right to be free from torture and cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment.
In contrast, Article 17(1) expressly guarantees imprisoned migrant workers the right to humane treatment while held. States parties are obligated to provide adequate conditions following international human rights standards, including providing adequate food and drinking water, allowing communication with family and friends, providing access to qualified medical personnel, and protecting them from inhumane treatment, including sexual abuse, to ensure the latter provision. Furthermore, accused migrants should not be housed with convicted individuals.
- Non-Refoulement
Non-refoulement is a fundamental principle of refugee law that requires states not to refoule, or return, a refugee to “the frontiers of territories where his life or freedom would be threatened on account of his race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion.”
Art. 33(1) of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. Non-refoulement is a generally recognised human right. Article 3 of the Convention Against Torture and Article 22(8) of the American Convention on Human Rights mention this. Non-refoulement is also applicable to people who do not have refugee status and can be construed more widely than under the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees.
Non-refoulement includes the obligation not to return a migrant to a state where he or she would face a real risk of persecution or other serious human rights violations, including torture and cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment; would be denied necessary medical treatment; or would be threatened with onward refoulement.
States’ non-refoulement responsibilities extend extraterritorially wherever they operate and retain persons overseas, whether in armed conflict, offshore detention, or refugee processing centers. Non-refoulement in the Convention against Torture framework applies independent of refugee status, as opposed to the 1951 Refugee Convention, which rests the principle on the individual’s refugee status.
- Prohibition against Collective Expulsion
Because the ban on collective expulsion of immigrants is part of customary international law, every State, regardless of which international treaties it has signed, is nonetheless obligated to enforce the prohibition. Furthermore, several main human rights treaties restrict the collective removal of foreigners.
Article 22(1) of the ICRMW further forbids collective deportation of migrants and requires States to consider each migrant worker’s case individually. While the ICCPR lacks an express provision prohibiting collective expulsion of foreigners, the Human Rights Committee has determined that the ban may be read into the provisions of the ICCPR and that collective expulsion may constitute a crime against humanity.
The Human Rights Committee determined that collective or mass expulsions are prohibited under Article 13, which governs the procedural element of expulsion. The Committee went on to say that the “deportation or forcible transfer of population without grounds permitted under international law [under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court], in the form of forced displacement by expulsion or other coercive means from the area in which the persons concerned are lawfully present, constitutes a crime against humanity.”
Moreover, the Committee stated that a State’s authority to deviate from Article 12, which provides freedom of movement, does not allow the use of collective expulsion procedures. The restriction on collective deportation extends to migrants apprehended at sea. The Committee on Migrant Workers states that this requirement applies to all locations over which a State has effective authority, including ships at sea.
- Procedural Safeguards in Individual Expulsion Proceedings
States should offer adequate, appropriate, and effective remedies to victims of violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law as part of their duty to uphold and guarantee international human rights law.
The Human Rights Committee determined that where a substantive human right may be infringed during an individual expulsion, additional processes are required to ensure the right to an effective remedy, and the expulsion action must be subjected to a harsher form of stringent scrutiny.
Article 22 of the ICRMW requires states to put in place procedural protections to protect migrants during individual expulsion processes.
These safeguards include, but are not limited to, communicating the decision to expel a migrant in a language they understand; providing the decision and reasoning in writing, unless doing so would jeopardise national security; allowing a migrant to explain why they should not be expelled; and ensuring that the decision to remove is reviewed by a competent authority, during which time the individual may seek a stay of removal.
Furthermore, Article 22(6) of the ICRMW states that States allow individuals to settle pay claims within a reasonable time before or after their departure. These safeguards include submitting grounds for expulsion, having the matter reviewed, and having counsel before a competent authority. However, in the interest of public order or national security, a migrant may be deported without the chance to exercise these rights.
Family Rights
International human rights principles oblige states to consider migrants’ family lives and family members when deciding on admission, detention, or expulsion. The ICRMW, for example, requires States parties to “pay attention to the problems that may be posed for members of his or her family, particularly spouses, and minor children” when a migrant worker is detained and to “take appropriate measures to ensure the protection of the unity of the families of migrant workers.”
- Protection against Labor Exploitation
ILO agreements, the ICRMW, and other critical human rights accords protect migrants against labour exploitation. The ICRMW expressly outlaws forced labour, slavery, and servitude under Article 11. No one shall be held in slavery or servitude, according to Article 8 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
States have to prevent all types of forced or compulsory labour by migrant workers, including the use of unlawful imprisonment and withholding of travel papers as way of forcing migrants into compulsory labour.
Although states may enact laws requiring individuals to have a work permit, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) stated that “all individuals are entitled to the enjoyment of labour and employment rights, including the freedom of assembly and association, once an employment relationship has been initiated until it is terminated.”
- Right to Social Security
The right to social security is outlined in Article 27 of the ICRMW, which states that all migrant workers and their families, regardless of status, have the right to the same treatment as nationals “insofar as they fulfil the requirements provided for by that State’s applicable legislation and the applicable bilateral and multilateral treaties.” If migrants are not qualified for a particular benefit, states must decide whether it is possible to repay persons who have contributed to that benefit.
According to the Committee on Migrant Workers, states must present objective grounds for their choice in each case if payment is impossible. However, a decision not to repay contributions should not be based exclusively on nationality or immigration status. Other international and regional human rights organisations have determined that migrant workers have a right to social security.
According to the Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, “where non-nationals, including migrant workers, have contributed to a social security scheme, they should be able to benefit from that contribution or retrieve their contributions if they leave the country.”
- Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Physical and Mental Health
Article 28 of the ICRMW only compels States to provide migrant workers and their families with life-saving medical treatment on the same basis as citizens. Still, a State’s commitment to safeguard the right to health is far broader under international human rights law.
The right to the highest standard of health is established in Article 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights. The Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights concluded that “persons, regardless of nationality, residency, or immigration status, are entitled to [both] primary and emergency medical care.”
Also, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination stated that states must “ensure… the right of (undocumented) non-citizens to an adequate standard of physical and mental health by, among other things, not denying or limiting their access to preventive, curative, and palliative health services.”
According to the International Court of Justice, “when a healthcare system normally provides treatment beyond primary and emergency medical care, the exclusion of asylum-seekers, or documented or undocumented migrant workers and members of their families from the system would violate Article 12 [of the] ICESCR read together with Article 2, Article 5 [of the] ICERD, or (in cases involving children) Article 24 [of the] CRC.”
Under international human rights law, migrant children have unique safeguards in terms of their right to health. The Committee on the Rights of the Child has made it clear to the effect that “when implementing the right to enjoy the highest attainable standard of health and facilities for the treatment of illness and rehabilitation of health under article 24 of the Convention, States are obligated to ensure that unaccompanied and separated children have the same access to health care as children who are . . . nationals.”
The UNHCR Executive Committee emphasised that refugee or asylum seeker children have a right to the best possible health care. Similarly, states are required to give “medical or other special care, including rehabilitation assistance, to aid in the social reintegration of refugee children and adolescents, particularly those who are unaccompanied or orphaned.”
- Right to Primary Education
States must offer free and compulsory elementary education to all children in public institutions. Article 30 of the ICRMW extends this commitment, stating that states may not prohibit or limit a child’s admission to public preschool educational institutions or schools based on the irregular position of a parent or child.
According to the CMW, states have particular duties to guarantee that a child’s or a child’s parents’ migratory status does not prohibit the kid from getting an education. To ensure this right, the CMW states that states must remove school fees and reduce the effect of school supplies and uniforms prices.
Additionally, the CMW emphasises that, to secure access to education, states should not require schools to disclose information about a child’s or the child’s parents’ migratory status with immigration authorities or to undertake immigration enforcement operations on or near school property.
- Freedom of Movement
Migrants have the right to move freely within the territory of the state in which they are located and the ability to leave a state and return home. Restrictions to the right to leave a State or to freedom of movement in a State of residency must be established by law and are essential to achieve a legitimate goal. If a migrant chooses to return to her original State, another State cannot arbitrarily deny her the right to do so.
While the guarantee against arbitrary removal from a State provided for in Article 13 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights does not protect undocumented migrants, the Human Rights Committee has stated that if a migrant’s status is in dispute, a State must still take Article 13 rights into account.
- Right to Enjoy Culture in Community with Others
Migrants who are members of an ethnic, religious, or linguistic minority group have the right, under Article 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to enjoy, practice, and utilise their culture, religion, and language alongside other members of their community. According to the Human Rights Committee, this right applies to all persons within a territory, even those who do not have permanent resident status or are only visiting the country. Furthermore, the existence of an ethnic, religious, or linguistic minority is determined by objective circumstances rather than by the State. The State has a positive duty to defend the rights and identity of minority groups through legislative efforts, as well as to prevent third-party violations of their right.
Permissible Restrictions on Migrants’ Human Rights
While the central human rights norms apply equally to migrants and non-migrants regardless of their legal status in a country and prohibit discrimination based on national origin, there are several exceptions.
Art. 1(2) and (3) of the International Convention on Eliminating All Forms of Racial Discrimination. International human rights law permits states to treat citizens and non-citizens differently, provided the difference in treatment achieves a legitimate State goal and is proportional to its attainment.
States, in particular, may reserve the right to vote and be elected to political office by their citizens. For example, the Convention on the Rights of Migrant Workers and Their Families only protects migrants’ ability to vote in their home nations. States may also impose restrictions on non-citizens’ capacity to enter and remain in the nation, subject to the procedural and substantive constraints outlined above, including the principle of non-refoulement.
States have been less reluctant to treat migrants and non-migrants equally regarding economic and social rights, and certain documents, such as the European Social Charter, enable states to offer some public benefits solely to present migrants lawfully. This field of international law needs to be established.
Conclusion
Despite the presence of these legal frameworks, guaranteeing adequate protection of migrants’ rights remains a difficulty. One of the critical issues is the gap between international law and its national application. Many nations interpret these regulations differently or fail to appropriately incorporate them into domestic legislation.
In addition, irregular migration offers substantial issues since undocumented migrants are more exposed to exploitation, discrimination, and human rights violations. Undocumented migrants face issues such as arbitrary incarceration, a lack of access to healthcare, and restricted prospects for legal work.
The increase of xenophobia and anti-immigrant sentiment in certain regions of the world is another major concern. Hostility towards migrants frequently results in policies that limit their rights and access to crucial services, violating the spirit of international treaties designed to protect them.
Addressing the issues that migrants encounter necessitates a multifaceted approach that includes collaboration among governments, international organisations, civic society, and the commercial sector. States must connect their national laws with international norms and execute and monitor these laws effectively.
Furthermore, raising public awareness and education about migrants’ contributions to society and refuting myths and prejudices are critical steps towards establishing more inclusive and accepting cultures.
Improved collaboration and conversation among nations, regional authorities, and international organisations are required to manage migration and defend migrants’ rights properly. Creating pathways for legal migration and guaranteeing access to justice, education, healthcare, and decent jobs for all migrants, regardless of status, is critical to maintaining their rights and dignity.
To summarise, although international migration rules provide a framework for protecting migrants’ rights, tackling the issues they encounter requires all parties to collaborate. Maintaining migrants’ dignity and rights is not just a legal requirement but also a moral one that displays a dedication to equality, fairness, and human rights.
References
- Immigration & Migrants’ Rights – International Justice Resource Center
- International standards governing migration policy
- International Law and Human Rights: Trends Concerning International Migrants and Refugees on JSTOR
