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Irregular migration and criminalization of migrants, protection of children in the migration process and the right to housing and health of migrants 2011, para. 47
- Paragraph text
- Over the last few years, there has been an upsurge of interest in the likely impact of climate change on population movements. Estimates have suggested that between 25 million and one billion people could be displaced by climate change over the next 40 years. These figures represent the number of people exposed to the risk of climate change in certain parts of the world and do not take account of the measures that could be taken to adapt to these changes. Despite the lack of precise figures, there is now little doubt that parts of the planet are now becoming less habitable due to factors such as climate change, deterioration of agricultural lands, desertification, and water pollution. The number of natural disasters has more than doubled over the last two decades, and more than 20 million people were displaced by sudden-onset climate-related natural disasters in 2008. Further climate change, with global temperatures expected to rise between 2 and 5 degrees centigrade by the end of this century, could have a major impact on the movement of people.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Irregular migration and criminalization of migrants, protection of children in the migration process and the right to housing and health of migrants 2011, para. 57
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur would also like to note that in some cases, NAPAs identify migration as an adaptation strategy in itself. This perspective appears in two contexts. First, in some countries migration is seen as a way to reduce population pressures in places with fragile ecosystems. Second, some countries recognize that resettlement of some populations may be inevitable, given the likely trends, and should be accomplished with planning. More relevant would be the second type of adaptation strategy involving migration - resettlement to mitigate the harm accompanying climate change, particularly flooding and rising sea levels. In the NAPA of Samoa, for example, it states that relocation of families is a current adaptation strategy in the village community sector. Potential adaptation activities in the NAPA include assistance for relocation of communities inland. A plan entitled Implement Coastal Infrastructure Management Plans for Highly Vulnerable Districts Project envisions incremental relocation of community and government assets outside coastal hazard zones.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Irregular migration and criminalization of migrants, protection of children in the migration process and the right to housing and health of migrants 2011, para. 56
- Paragraph text
- Concerning the strategies to manage environmental migration adopted in developing countries, the Special Rapporteur would like to mention the National Adaptation Programmes of Action (NAPAs) which are considered the principal frameworks adopted by low-income developing countries to manage environmentally induced migration. According to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), NAPAs "provide a process for Least Developed Countries (LDCs) to identify priority activities that respond to their urgent and immediate needs to adapt to climate change - those for which further delay would increase vulnerability and/or costs at a later stage". The majority of NAPAs outline the adaptation strategies described as ways to reduce migration pressures and allow people to remain in their original settlements. The strategies generally seek to adapt agricultural practices, management of pastoral lands, infrastructure such as dykes and coastal barriers, fishing patterns and other strategies to reduce pressures on fragile ecosystems, thereby allowing populations to remain in place.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The human rights of migrants on a 2035 agenda for facilitating human mobility 2017, para. 10
- Paragraph text
- Taking into consideration the current dynamics of push and pull factors and in the light of his observations on the need to facilitate mobility, the Special Rapporteur suggests that the global compact for safe, orderly and regular migration should include provisions on the development of a 2035 agenda for facilitating human mobility under the framework of the United Nations, in parallel to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (General Assembly resolution 70/1).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The human rights of migrants on a 2035 agenda for facilitating human mobility 2017, para. 22
- Paragraph text
- Against the backdrop of a poor economic climate, the rise in nationalist populist parties and the tragic terrorist attacks around the world, xenophobia and hate speech have increased, causing a significant upward trend in negative perceptions of migrants and creating a stumbling block in the development of more efficient evidence- and human rights-based policies.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Movement
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The human rights of migrants on a 2035 agenda for facilitating human mobility 2017, para. 16
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur proposes a fundamental shift in the way that migration is perceived and framed. Migration itself is a natural part of human existence; it is neither a crime nor a problem, and it has the potential to be a solution. Accordingly, migration governance is not a matter of closing off borders and keeping people out, but one of regulating mobility by opening accessible, regular, safe and affordable migration channels and promoting and celebrating diversity.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The impact of bilateral and multilateral trade agreements on the human rights of migrants 2016, para. 76
- Paragraph text
- The European Union systematically conducts sustainability impact assessments (economic, social and environmental impact assessments) of all major multilateral and bilateral trade negotiations. The assessments offer projections for migration flows and specific considerations, depending on the trade partner, relating to skills, sector, visa provisions, wages, labour conditions and vulnerable social groups.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Environment
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Developing the Global Compact on Migration 2016, para. 25
- Paragraph text
- All the human rights concerns discussed above are signs of stress within global border management and migration systems. They are clear indications that the status quo is simply not sustainable. Ignoring these warning signs and pouring further resources into ineffective and paradoxical closure systems will lead to further human suffering, as well as wasted resources and lost opportunities, owing to a failure to take advantage of the rewards to be gained from regulated mobility.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Banking on mobility over a generation: follow-up to the regional study on the management of the external borders of the European Union and its impact on the human rights of migrants 2015, para. 24
- Paragraph text
- The current European Union border management system is buckling under the pressure of increased irregular migration, despite the relatively small proportion of those displaced by crisis seeking refuge in the Union.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Climate change and migration 2012, para. 86
- Paragraph text
- Migratory strategies should, as far as possible, be decided locally by affected individuals and communities, with the support of their civil society organizations, and forced relocation or immobility should not be imposed arbitrarily. Central Governments can play a pivotal role by bringing together local actors and promoting consensus and by arbitrating between different local interests.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Climate change and migration 2012, para. 62
- Paragraph text
- Yet, the Special Rapporteur is aware that the vast majority of expected climate-change-induced migrants will not be moving as a result of persecution. Some commentators have thus argued for the creation of a new category of protection: the "environmental refugee". The Special Rapporteur acknowledges that with regard to migration induced by climate change, the established law and practice around refugee status will not, and perhaps should not, necessarily apply to most. Although disturbances owing to climate change may increase movements of refugees, it may be impractical, not to mention undesirable, to expand the definition of international refugee law. First, many climate-change-induced migrants are most often displaced within the borders of their State. Moreover, the refugee paradigm neglects the major differences between temporary, permanent or circular climate-change-induced migration. It is also questionable whether a distinction between refugees fleeing events induced by climate change and other refugees would be useful. Furthermore, simply expanding the category of refugee law has the potential to weaken the important system put in place for the protection of refugees and asylum seekers. Thus, the present international refugee protection regime may not be the most appropriate vehicle to accommodate the vast majority of climate-change-induced migrants.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Climate change and migration 2012, para. 50
- Paragraph text
- Those scenarios demonstrate that laissez-faire policies that respond to the needs of climate-change-induced migrants on an ad hoc basis are insufficient. Policies should organize environmentally induced migration in order to minimize impacts on the human rights of those affected and ensure they are not made more vulnerable by the migration process.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Climate change and migration 2012, para. 47
- Paragraph text
- Be it within or beyond borders, where migration is a spontaneous and unplanned event there is a risk that a large number of environmentally induced migrants will move towards other more exposed places, such as low-lying areas or to cities that themselves face threats from environmental change. Furthermore, environmentally induced migrants will travel only as far as their resources allow them to go, often towards slums in already overcrowded megacities, thus exacerbating poverty.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Climate change and migration 2012, para. 31
- Paragraph text
- Environmentally induced migration is commonly presented as a new, or emerging, issue. Yet, changes in environmental conditions have always influenced migration patterns. It is a core feature of our human condition: since mankind has existed, people have been moving in response to changes in their environment, often seasonally. In the context of climate change, however, the rate and scale of this migration could be multiplied. Precise numbers regarding environmental migrants vary considerably, with estimates of the number of people likely to be displaced by climate change ranging from 50 to 250 million by the year 2050. The Special Rapporteur remains aware, however, that accurate data on this issue is not readily available. Furthermore, he recognizes that statistical exercises will be controversial, not only in view of the difficulty in predicting the rate of sea level rise and its impact on persons, but also with regard to a key conceptual hurdle: the difficulty of identifying those migrants who can be said to have moved solely for reasons related to climate change. For example, it is difficult to isolate the effects of climate change that may contribute to population movements from other environmental factors, such as land degradation, which may be linked to other stresses on the environment, including the impact of an increasing global population consuming ever more natural resources.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Climate change and migration 2012, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- Of course, the Special Rapporteur recognizes the contributions of numerous non-governmental organizations, as well as Governments themselves, to the development of this field. As more research continues to be carried out at both the scientific and policy levels, the understanding of the issues continues to evolve. Building on this, the Special Rapporteur will further explore the human rights aspects of migration relating to climate change.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Climate change and migration 2012, para. 28
- Paragraph text
- Individual United Nations agencies have also focused specifically on the link between migration and climate change. IOM has a thematic focus on this issue and has developed numerous publications on the topic. Similarly, UNHCR has recognized the important impact that climate change will have on its work. The World Bank also recently commissioned a study on human rights and climate change.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Climate change and migration 2012, para. 25
- Paragraph text
- Each of those reports contains important definitions, including basic concepts and terminology, especially on mitigation and adaptation, upon which the Special Rapporteur will rely in the present report. Furthermore, the Special Rapporteur will use the term "climate-change-induced migrant" to refer to persons who may migrate in connection with the environmental impacts of climate change.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Climate change and migration 2012, para. 24
- Paragraph text
- In 2009, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) submitted a report to the Human Rights Council in response to its resolution 7/23 on the relationship between climate change and human rights. The report also contained a detailed section focused on the impact of climate change on migration (see A/HRC/10/61, paras. 55-60).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Climate change and migration 2012, para. 22
- Paragraph text
- In the context of the work of Special Procedures, the former Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, Jorge Bustamante, in his final report to the Human Rights Council in 2011, noted the increasing relevance of climate change and its impact on the movement of peoples and recommended that further study be made on the impacts of environmental and climate change on human mobility (see A/HRC/17/33, paras. 47-62).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Irregular migration and criminalization of migrants, protection of children in the migration process and the right to housing and health of migrants 2011, para. 50
- Paragraph text
- All regions of the globe are projected to be adversely effected by climate change, but less developed regions and countries are disproportionally affected because of their geographic location, their dependency on climate-sensitive sectors such as agriculture and natural resources, and a low adaptive capacity due to low levels of human, financial and natural resources, as well as limited institutional and technological capability. From a biophysical perspective, these countries are geographically disadvantaged since more are located in lower latitudes where predicted temperature increases, longer dry seasons, and water scarcity will greatly restrict their capacity to grow food and raise livestock. The humanitarian crises that could result from food scarcity would be further exacerbated by the lack of clean water, spread of diseases, and potential conflicts. In the light of the predicted environmental, economic and social impacts, populations are likely to be displaced or to migrate in order to survive. How temporary or permanent this displacement of migration will be and where populations will go is still uncertain, although much of the movements, at least initially, are likely to be internal.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Irregular migration and criminalization of migrants, protection of children in the migration process and the right to housing and health of migrants 2011, para. 48
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur would like to remind that the movement of people as a result of changes in the environment is not a new phenomenon. People have been moving in response to changes in their environment, often seasonally, for centuries. However, the link between migration and the environment and its wider interlinkages had been largely ignored by migration experts and policy makers until recently. For example, in the 2005 report of the Global Commission on International Migration, there is barely a mention of the topic. Part of the reason may be the fact that there has been little consensus over the years among researchers as to whether environmental migration is a distinct form of migration worthy of special study. Nevertheless, pursuant to several high-level conferences, expert meetings, and new research published over the last few years, the Special Rapporteur noticed that this issue has taken hold. Experts have been increasingly raising awareness of the linkages between the environment and human mobility and the importance of unifying these issues at all levels of policy dialogue and cooperation - local, regional, national and global.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Banking on mobility over a generation: follow-up to the regional study on the management of the external borders of the European Union and its impact on the human rights of migrants 2015, para. 25
- Paragraph text
- As migrants continue to die at sea, and large-scale suffering is experienced at each stage of migration, it is clear that the European Union does not control migration. This lack of control manifests itself in a number of different ways, raising a wide range of human rights concerns, many of which have persisted since 2013 and have gained increasing impetus and urgency over the past two years.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Banking on mobility over a generation: follow-up to the regional study on the management of the external borders of the European Union and its impact on the human rights of migrants 2015, para. 11
- Paragraph text
- The costs associated with attempting to sustain the status quo are huge. The human costs continue to rise as migrants die at sea and suffer on a large scale at borders, within the European Union, as well as in neighbouring countries. Furthermore, the resources lost through investing into an ineffective system and not maximizing the opportunities to benefit from organized migration are significant.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Global migration governance 2013, para. 97
- Paragraph text
- Most States recognize refugees and the principle of non-refoulement. However, many migrants also have protection needs and cannot simply be dismissed as mere "economic migrants": they may be forced to migrate to escape from poverty, widespread violence, armed conflict, or the effects of climate change (see A/67/299). Some will be at risk of torture and other serious human rights violations if returned to their countries of origin. Many migrants migrate out of a complex, and often changing, mix of voluntary and forced reasons for movement.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Humanitarian
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Banking on mobility over a generation: follow-up to the regional study on the management of the external borders of the European Union and its impact on the human rights of migrants 2015, para. 59
- Paragraph text
- All the human rights concerns discussed above are signs of stress within the European Union border management and migration systems. They are clear indications that the status quo simply is not sustainable. Ignoring these warning signs and pouring further resources into an ineffective and paradoxical closure system will lead to further avoidable human suffering, as well as wasted resources and lost opportunity costs from not reaping the rewards of organized mobility.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Banking on mobility over a generation: follow-up to the regional study on the management of the external borders of the European Union and its impact on the human rights of migrants 2015, para. 26
- Paragraph text
- The use of precarious routes into the European Union, particularly through the central Mediterranean Sea, has increased dramatically since 2013 and resulted in large-scale violations of the right to life, as well as significant human rights abuses at all stages of the migratory process. This form of migration is driven largely by conflict and poverty (push factors), as well as by unmet needs within European labour markets (pull factor). Many of these migrants are being forced to use precarious routes because of their desperate situation and a lack of regular migration opportunities.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Banking on mobility over a generation: follow-up to the regional study on the management of the external borders of the European Union and its impact on the human rights of migrants 2015, para. 19
- Paragraph text
- While a number of precarious, sea-based routes to the European Union exist, by far the most commonly used since 2013 has been the central Mediterranean route. The dramatic increase in the use of that route has tragically resulted in large-scale loss of life. UNHCR estimates that 3,000 people died or went missing at sea in 2014. Events in the first four months of 2015 suggest that the use of this route and the associated avoidable deaths of migrants continue at an alarming pace.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Humanitarian
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Human rights of migrants in the post-2015 development agenda 2014, para. 16
- Paragraph text
- Many are still migrating to find decent work and a better or safer life. Some migrants voluntarily move, live and work in conditions in which their labour and human rights are respected or their family might be reunified. Others, however, are forced to migrate as a result of poverty, discrimination, violence, conflict, political upheaval or poor governance. In the context of natural disasters, migration is increasingly seen as an adaptation measure that develops resilience through planned mobility. During migration, many face exploitation, abuse and other human rights violations.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Movement
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Climate change and migration 2012, para. 83
- Paragraph text
- Similarly, voluntary financial or organizational support, such as the international adaptation funding carried through the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, can be instrumental. While the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change programme has long focused on the increasing resilience of populations, it has recently extended to "[m]easures to enhance understanding, coordination and cooperation with regard to climate displacement, migration and planned relocation, where appropriate, at the national, regional and international levels".
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Climate change and migration 2012, para. 78
- Paragraph text
- Furthermore, courts at the regional and domestic levels can also play an important role in protecting the rights of climate-change-induced migrants. As irregular and vulnerable migrants are not part of the local polity, they largely have no voice in the political arena and rarely dare protest. In the face of increasingly strident anti-immigration political discourse, it is often the judiciary that can best protect migrants' rights. Access to justice becomes a key factor in imposing sanctions for human rights violations and reducing migrants' vulnerability.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph