Plight of migrants and indigenous people taken up by UN rights commission

The chief United Nations human rights body today turned its attention to the plight of migrants and indigenous people, hearing reports on violence suffered by millions of migrants and abuses against the civil liberties of native populations in many countries.

Gabriela Rodriguez Pizarro, the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, told the Commission on Human Rights, meeting in Geneva for its 60th session, that among the concerns she raised in her annual report were cases of illegal detention and lack of access to lawyers by migrants. She also highlighted the situation of labour exploitation of migrants, saying that in several cases she had examined, the conditions were analogous to slavery.

Ms. Pizarro called on States, which had not already done so, to ratify international mechanisms that provided measures to support victims of trafficking and abuses. The fact that they were women and often undocumented added to the seriousness of the situation, she pointed out.

The Commission's Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous people, Rodolfo Stavenhagen, said this year he had devoted his work to the administration of justice. In many instances, indigenous people did not enjoy equal access to the justice system, which explained the persistence of discrimination they faced within society.

Another issue of concern was the practice of criminalizing social and political protests by indigenous people and their overrepresentation in the criminal justice system, Mr. Stavenhagen said. During their detention, indigenous people have been physically and psychologically abused. He suggested that Governments undertake reform at the judicial level so that indigenous peoples could enjoy an effective functioning of the justice system. That reform, he added, should respect the cultures and traditions of the indigenous peoples.