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The Convention of Human Rights
Current legislation regarding the stated themes contravenes human rights in the following ways:
• Art.14(1) UNDHR. By effectively preventing migrants from travelling, the people are prevented
from seeking asylum.
• Trafficking Protocol. It has been made so difficult to enter states that migrants resort to “trafficking”.
The trafficking protocol to the UN Conventions against the transnational organised crime renders
trafficked persons victims of a grievous human rights violation-inhuman and degrading treatment.
Recommendations
• The UN should explore ways to promote open borders on a global scale to ensure
people a right to enter another country to seek asylum and escape persecution. This will
give support to the art. 14 and reduce the necessity for human trafficking.
• IDPs should be offered the same rights and security by member states as those given to
refugees under the 1951 Convention. All states should follow the UN Guiding principles on
IDPs.
• The UN should work to make the Convention of Protection of Migrant Workers a real
instrument for protecting work migrants and should emphasise not just liberties and rights
of migrant workers but also their dignity.
All refugees and IDPs have a right to return solely by voluntary means and forced repatriation should be
discouraged by member states. Financial support should not be used as an incentive for return but to enable
reintegration into economic and social stability in the home country.
At the end of the course, Patricia told us that we had been a very motivated group, we had done a good job
and that we had formed a big family during the three weeks at the UN.
Effectively, we did not only work on the final document but we also organised ourselves for a fund rising to
cover the fees of the Programme for a participant next year. Some of us produced a CD with all our pictures,
some others organised the drinks at a party, and the last day we put up for auction a T-shirt with our group
photo and all our signatures, that after a hard battle, finally went to South Korea.
We felt sad that the last day arrived so quickly; we really had a feeling that one day we will see each other
again. We exchanged our e-mails and I asked my colleagues to write me their impressions about the three
weeks, so that I could join them with my personal experience and write a more objective article. Three
months have already passed and I have not yet received any e-mails with comments about the course and
about the topic we worked on.
At this point, it seems that for the participants of the 41 st Geneva Graduate Study Programme “Proposed
New Ways and Means to Strengthen the United Nations Capability for Collective Action” is just a memory of
a unique experience, while it becomes an excellent topic for the lucky people that will be chosen for the
challenging participation in the Programme next year, which, for the first time after years, will be without the
honourable presence of Patricia Baigrie.
November 2003
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