Phl calls for affirmation of migrants’ human rights

The Philippines called for the affirmation of human rights of all migrants regardless of their immigration status.

Labor Undersecretary Bernard Olalia made the call in the general statement of the Philippines on the first day of the three-day Asia-Pacific Regional Preparatory Meeting (RPM) for the Global Compact on Safe, Regular and Orderly Migration (GCM) in Bangkok that opened on Monday.

The RPM is organized by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP).

Olalia, co-leader of the Philippine delegation to the meeting, stressed that the “GCM should contain the affirmation of the human rights of all migrants, regardless of their immigration status.”

“Migrants should be empowered and seen as agents of development,” he added.

Migration, he said, has been a primordial concern of the Philippines for the past 40 years and the protection of the rights and promotion of the welfare and interest of its migrants has been deeply embedded in its foreign policy.

“Migrants should be recognized and acknowledged for their positive contribution to the development of countries of origin and destination. The GCM should facilitate greater labor mobility and social and financial inclusion of migrants,” he said.

The Asia Pacific region accounts for 102 million international migrants.

According to UNESCAP, migrants’ remittances in the region are estimated to reach $276 billion this year. One fourth of the GDP of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Nepal are derived from remittances of their international migrants.

UNESCAP is the regional development arm of the UN for the Asia-Pacific region.

Established in 1947, it has 53 member states and nine associate members. Its geographical scope stretches from Turkey in the west to the Pacific island nation of Kiribati in the east, and from the Russian Federation in the north to New Zealand in the south. It is the largest UN body serving the AsiaPacific. Its headquarters is in Bangkok, Thailand.