Statement made by Sue Le Mesurier, Manager Migration Unit, on behalf of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC)
Dear RCRC Movement friends and colleagues,
On behalf of the SG Bekele Gelata I thank CCM for the invitation to be here today in Barcelona and represent the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).
Over the past twelve months since the last Mediterranean Meeting in Rome we have been actively engaged with many of you in addressing the multidimensional nature of international migration along the various global migration routes in the face of increasing challenges and a fast-changing political, economic and social environment.
As CCM highlighted at their Mediterranean Conference in 2010 migration is becoming one of the major challenges of the 21st Century, for Governments, migrants and the communities to where they settle. This third meeting on the Humanitarian Situation in the Mediterranean is therefore a timely reminder of our commitment on this issue.
Going forward it is therefore up to us as a RCRC Movement to draw on our collective capacity to bring a ‘Mediterranean perspective’ in the search for concrete measures to raise awareness of these challenges, ensure the humanitarian imperative is upheld and increase the benefits of international migration for all.
As highlighted in the 2012 World Disaster Report, we recognize that forward thinking and decisive action are needed to tackle the enormous human costs and global impacts of escalating numbers of those caught up in situations of crisis and those forced to migrate for complex reasons.
Of the many challenges I briefly want to highlight four which impact on the dignity and human rights of migrants.
1) The increasing frequency and intensity of disasters (natural or man made) on population movements present new legal and protection challenges. This trend is exacerbated by factors such as population growth, rapid urbanisation, climate change and increasing poverty and inequality.
2) The plight of unaccompanied children and youth requires particular focus. An increasing number of migrants are unaccompanied children and youth separated from their families. With worldwide trafficking on the increase these young people are of special concern to the Movement and require our targeted and coordinated interventions.
3) Stranded migrants often do not receive the immediate assistance and protection provided by Governments and other relief agencies. National Societies need to do more to highlight the plight of an often invisible minority.
4) Finally, I believe we need to do more to empower migrants by involving them as active participants in our work. As long as migrants continue to face discrimination, violence and exclusion, ensuring migrants voices, are heard will be critical.
I am honoured to be part of this important dialogue and assure you that the IFRC will remain committed to developing and strengthening our partnerships across the Mediterranean region, to strengthen the link between humanitarian, protection and development responses and allow us to jointly better harness the positive contribution we can make to the lives of the most vulnerable migrants in our communities.
Thank you.