Switzerland Swiss civil society calls for the protection of migrants

7 Sep 2011 | child exploitation child migration children on the move thb

23 and 24 August 2011, Geneva, Switzerland:The Graduate Institute hosted a symposium titled “Joint Reflections on Migration and Development” with over 100 participants including government officials, representatives from UN and intergovernmental organisations, academic subject experts and civil society to discuss current and future issues and challenges regarding migration and development, in the lead-up to the annual Global Forum on Migration Development (GFMD) to be held in Geneva at the beginning of December.

The event served as an informal platform to encourage common reflection among experts and practitioners. Issues covered included “Labour Mobility and Development”; “Gender, Family, Migration and Development”; “Irregular Migration and Development”; “Policy and Institutional Coherence” and “How governments and civil society can improve the GFMD in the years to come”.

Special attention was given to relating the global debate to the local perspective: half of each day was devoted to reflection among representatives of the Swiss civil society who, after fruitful discussions and heated debates, drafted a set of recommendations to be presented to Swiss government officials and to the GFMD Civil Society Days in late November.

Terre des hommes was active in this initiative and brought in the debate and recommendations of the Swiss society and its experience in protecting children on the move. The recommendations proposed by Tdh covered issues such as how development work should provide alternatives for children in their places of origin and how the rights of the child should be respected along the movement process and regardless of the nationality of the child.

With respect to the situation in Switzerland, authorities were called to stop detention of children due to their migration status and ensure the best interests of the child, especially in decisions regarding return or not of the migrant child to the country of origin.

The Swiss organisations participating in the event are finalising the recommendations from this meeting and deciding on how to discuss them further with the Swiss authorities at a national and local level. (from the tdh.ch website)