Tragically, the year also saw the highest death toll of migrants in transit. “These challenges are made worse by the rising tide of mis- and disinformation and hate speech which sows division and distorts the valuable contributions migrants are making each and every day,” said Secretary-General António Guterres. The potential...
“The scale of this tragedy, its impact on survivors, families and communities and the frequency with which we witness deaths in transit constitute an intolerable and utterly soluble, humanitarian crisis,” said Pär Liljert, director of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) Office to the UN, referring to one of the...
Speaking to reporters in Geneva on her first official day as head of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), Amy Pope said that migrants were “people first” who should not be seen as a problem. That distinction was more critical than ever today, the IOM Director-General added, noting that it...
IOM Regional Director Christopher Gascon told reporters in Geneva that 4,800 migrants were hosted by IOM at seven transit centres in the country, awaiting voluntary return. They were primarily from western Africa: Mali, Guinea, Senegal and Nigeria, he said. Charter flights Mr. Gascon said airport access was crucial to “organise...
Cities and towns have become the drivers of economic growth and now account for more than 80 per cent of global GDP. Yet, in 2020, over one billion inhabitants of urban areas were still living in slums or informal settlements, predominantly in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. As urban populations grow,...
A Venezuelan girl waits at a reception centre in northern Brazil. More than 800,000 Venezuelans have come to Brazil in recent years, seeking medical attention, food, and new opportunities. When they cross the northern border, they are offered overnight accommodation, food, protection, and hygiene services at the International Organization for...
The Regional Migrant Response Plan, launched this week, will address the dire needs and protection risks facing people along the treacherous Eastern Route towards the Arabian Peninsula. Other objectives include scaling-up delivery of lifesaving and resilience-building initiatives and implementing long-term sustainable solutions for both migrants and host communities. Dangerous journeys ...
The hearing involving 24 volunteers and activists began on Tuesday on the Greek island of Lesvos, prompting OHCHR to warn of the “chilling effect” that it has had on other rights defenders, who’ve now halted their work in Greece and other European Union countries. Those on trial were all associated with Emergency...
UNHCR issued a statement explaining that two groups of survivors had been brought to shore off the coast of north-west Indonesia. Believed to have been at sea for more than a month, the UN agency expressed relief that they are now safe in Indonesia. After highlighting their plight, Ann Maymann,...
The report, We wanted workers, but human beings came, published just ahead of International Migrants Day, zeroes-in on schemes in operation across the Asia-Pacific region – the largest single migrant-producing region in the world. “Migrant workers are often dehumanized”, said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk, reminding that...
Secretary-General António Guterres credited the more than 80 per cent of those who cross borders in a safe and orderly fashion as powerful drivers of “economic growth, dynamism, and understanding”. “But unregulated migration along increasingly perilous routes – the cruel realm of traffickers – continues to extract a terrible cost”,...
The tragic milestone was confirmed in a new report from the International Organization for Migration’s Missing Migrants Project, which also maintains that little action had been taken by any country of origin, transit or arrival. “While thousands of deaths have been documented across migration routes each year, very little has...