Download Conclusions of the RCGM - Regional Conference on Migration

MEETING OF THE REGIONAL CONSULTATION GROUP ON MIGRATION (RCGM)
OF THE REGIONAL CONFERENCE ON MIGRATION
San Salvador, El Salvador, December 2-3, 2003
The Regional Consultation Group on Migration, in its Meeting held on December 2-3,
2003, in San Salvador, El Salvador, with the participation of representatives from
Canada, Costa Rica, El Salvador, United States, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico,
Nicaragua, Panama, and the Dominican Republic, adopted the following:
Conclusions
1) Thank El Salvador for its organization and hosting of the Workshop on the Dignified, Safe,
and Orderly Return of Migrants, held in San Salvador on December 1st, 2003.
2) Thank the Presidency Pro-Tempore for the presentation of its Progress Report, and thank
the Technical Secretariat for its Operations and Financial Report covering the period from
June 2003 through December 2003.
3) Thank the United States and Mexico for making in advance their financial contributions to
the Technical Secretariat corresponding to the period from June 1, 2003, through December
31, 2004, and encourage those Member Countries who have not already done so to make
their respective contributions.
4) Express satisfaction for the decision on the part of the Mexican government to form part of
the Statistical Information System for Central American Migration (SIEMCA) Project, thus
transforming it into the Statistical Information System for Mesoamerican Migration
(SIEMMES).
5) Thank Mexico and Canada for presenting a draft of the document entitled "Achievements
and Challenges of the Regional Conference on Migration Seven Years After Its Creation. "
Make note of the observations made by the Member Countries, and ask said countries to
forward same in writing.
6) Accept the offer made by El Salvador to review the functions of the Technical Secretariat
(TS), for purposes of strengthening its coordinating role with the Pro-Tempore Presidency.
7) Thank Mexico and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) for their preparation of
proposals for execution of the Conference´s Project for the Return of Extra-Regional
Migrants, as well as the Program for the Return of Regional Migrants.
8) Take note of the announcement by Mexico concerning the signing of a Letter of Intent
between the Commissioner of the National Migration Institute and the General Director of
the IOM, in which they expressed their willingness to sign, during the first quarter of 2004, a
Memorandum of Understanding on the voluntary and assisted return of extra-regional
migrants.
9) Thank Canada for its presentation on the Multiple Border Strategy, and the United States for
its presentation on inspection systems (SENTRI and USVISIT).
10) Thank the members of the Regional Network of Civil Society Organizations for Migration
(RNCOM) for their favorably received presentation before the Regional Consultation Group
on Migration. Accept the proposal made by the RNCOM to hold a meeting with the Liaison
Officers Network for Consular Protection prior to the upcoming IX Meeting of the Regional
Conference on Migration, in accordance with the mandate of the Vice Ministers adopted at
the VI RCM Meeting held in San José, Costa Rica, in 2001
11) Approve the Regional Work Plan for Combatting Migrant Smuggling and Trafficking in
Persons, with activities to be carried out in the short term, as drawn up by the Liaison
Officers Network to Combat Trafficking in Persons and Migrant Smuggling in December of
2003, and agree to:
a) Request that the United States, Mexico, and Canada schedule joint training exercises,
incorporating therein the topics suggested by the Canadian delegation, especially
concerning the treatment of victims of trafficking.
b) Request that the IOM prepare a proposal for a training module on ethical professional
integrity for migration officials and institutions related to migration matters.
12) Thank Canada, the United States, and Mexico for the joint training sessions on the detection
of fraudulent documents given to Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica, and Guatemala. Thank
the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) for the module on refugee
protection given in Nicaragua to personnel from Nicaragua and Honduras.
Take note of the training topics presented by El Salvador and Panama within the framework
of the Liaison Officers Network on Consular Protection.
13) Make note of the interest and willingness of UNHCR to continue supporting the regional
training initiatives carried out in the RCM Member Countries, through the incorporation of
specific modules on the protection of refugees.
14) Thank Canada for informing the RCGM of the seminar on remittances to be held in
Guatemala City on February 11-12, 2004, to be organized by the Canadian Foundation for
the Americas and the Canadian Embassy, and offering to consider potential participation by
interested parties.
15) Make note of Canada´s offer to organize a Workshop on Migration and Health, and of
Mexico´s intention to co-host said event, as well as of the interest expressed by El Salvador,
Panama, and the IOM to share their experiences in the subject matter area.
16) Note Mexico´s offer to share its experience for purposes of workshops on the human rights
of migrants, for migration officials from RCM Member Countries, with the collaboration of the
Special Rapporteur on the Protection of Migrants´ Rights, and of the IOM.
17) Note that the seminar on "The Role of the Private Sector in the Face of the Challenges and
Opportunities of the Phenomenon of Migration" will be held during the first semester of 2004
in El Salvador.
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18) Include as topics of discussion on the agenda for the next RCGM Meeting, a review of the
Plan of Action and the suggestions offered by the Member Countries of the Conference for
the use of the Technical Secretariat´s Reserve Fund. To that end, the Presidency ProTempore of Panama shall receive such input as the Member Countries may wish to make.
19) Thank the government of Mexico for holding the Meeting of the Regional Consultation
Group on Migration, and also the government of El Salvador for its hospitality and
cooperation in hosting said Meeting.
Final Version: 03 DEC 2003 – 16:10 PM
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