Europe, it’s time to ratify the Migrant Workers Convention

21/06/2010
Press release
en es fr

20 years ago, the UN General Assembly adopted the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, also known as the Migrant Workers Convention. We believe that the 20th anniversary provides an excellent opportunity for the European Union to live up to its core values and stand firm on the rights of migrant workers.

The Convention constitutes the broadest framework in international law for the protection of the rights of migrant workers and members of their families and provides guidance to States on how to respect the rights of migrants while developing and implementing labour migration policies.

The Migrant Workers Convention is one of the nine core United Nations human rights instruments. It has now been ratified by 42 states and a further 16 have signed up and are in the process of ratification.

Yet, to date, no EU Member State has signed or ratified the Convention. Non-ratification brings the core values of the EU into question. The Member States of the European Union can no longer fall behind but must demonstrate in concrete terms their willingness to be held accountable for migrants as they have done for decades in relation to international treaties protecting other vulnerable groups, such as women and children.

The Member States of the European Union must ensure that the fundamental rights of migrant workers and their family members are guaranteed. We call on the 27 EU Member States to ratify this international Convention.

Sign the Petition Asking EU Member States to Ratify the Migrant Workers Convention

This initiative is supported by:

Souhayr Belhassen, President, FIDH, Tunisia

Abdelhamid El Jamri, Chair UN Committee on Migrant Workers

Jane Birkin, Artist, FIDH Patron, United Kingdom

Isabelle Autissier, Navigator, FIDH Patron, France

Agnès Jaoui, Actress-Director, FIDH Patron, France

Guy Ryder, Secretary General ITUC, Belgium

Irene Fernandez, 2005 Right Livelihood Award Laureate, Malaysia

Rev. Arlington Trotman, Moderator CCME, U. K.

Roberto Bissio, Head Secretariat, Social Watch, Uruguay

John Monks, General Secretary ETUC, Belgium

François Houtart, Centre Tri-Continental (Cetri) Belgium

Mario Sepi, President EESC, Belgium

Lorena Escudero, Secretaria nacional del Migrante, Ecuador

Jos Geysels, Chair 11.11.11, Belgium

Jacques Debatty, Vice-Chair CNCD, Belgium

Marien Faure, Secrétaire général, Commission belge francophone et germanophone pour l’UNESCO

Mohammed Abdul Aziz, Chair ENAR, Belgium

Sonia Alfano, MEP - ALDE, Italy

Rui Tavares, MEP - GUE-NGL, Portugal

Judith Sargentini, MEP - Greens/EFA, Netherlands

Rita Borsellino, MEP - S&D, Italy

Helene Flautre, MEP - Greens/EFA, France

Isabelle Durant, MEP - Greens/EFA, Belgium

Marie Christine Vergiat, MEP - GUE-NGL, France

Cornelia Ernst, MEP - GUE-NGL, Germany

Kyriacos Triantaphyllides, MEP - GUE-NGL, Cyprus

Kathleen Van Brempt, MEP - S&D, Belgium

Jean-Luc Mélenchon, MEP - GUE-NGL, France

Claude Moraes, MEP - S&D, U.K.

Mariette Grange, Board Member, D18, Belgium

Farah Karimi, Director, Oxfam-Novib, NL

Don Flynn, Director, Migrant Rights Network, U.K.

Sioban O’Donaghue, Director, MRCI, Ireland

Michele LeVoy, Director, PICUM, Belgium

Doris Peschke, Sec-General, CCME, Belgium

Cynthia Gabriel, CARAM-Asia, Malaysia

A.I. International Secretariat,U.K.

Santo Deng, President, DFD, Netherlands

Moawia Ahmed, Platform of Migrants, Greece

Bogdan Vanden Berghe, 11.11.11, Belgium

William Gois, Migrant Forum Asia, Philippines

Michael Schöpf, Regional Director, JRS-Europe, Belgium

Pierre Barge, President AEDH, France

FIDH member leagues who signed the petition:

Latvian Human Rights Committee, Lettonie

LIPRODHOR, Rwanda

Observatoire congolais des droits de l’Homme (OCDH), Congo Brazzaville

Asamblea Permanente De Derechos Humanos, Bolivie

Zinvori Mair, Armenie

Association Rwandaise pour la défense des droits de l’Homme, Rwanda

Liga Mexicana por la Defensa de los Derechos Humanos, Mexique

Organisation Nationale des Droits de l’Homme, Senegal

Unione forense per la tutela dei diritti dell’uomo, Italie

National Democratic Institue, Togo

Damascus Center for Human Rights studies, Syrie

Vietnam Committee on Human Rights, Vietnam

Action for Democracy in Vietnam, Vietnam

Conseil National pour les Libertés en Tunisie, Tunisie

Liga Argentina Por los Derechos del Hombre, Argentine

Human Rights Foundation of Turkey, Turquie

HRC Citizens against corruption, Kyrgyzstan

Read more