At the IMRF on 17–20 May, global civil society will stress its key role in future successful implementation of the Global Compact on Migration as representatives highlight issues arising from direct work with migrants.
At the Civil Society Preparatory Day (CSPD) to the IMRF on 15 May in New York, representatives from a diverse range of civil society organizations readied themselves to bring a unified voice to the first-ever IMRF, the primary State-led global platform to review how objectives of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration* (GCM) are being put into action. The IMRF is scheduled to be held every four years, with each edition resulting in a Progress Declaration.
As well as looking back to identify gaps in implementation, CSPD participants determined to approach the IMRF looking forward, outlining future actions that are needed. “We’re coming as civil society to say where we want to go. We want to give a blueprint for UN Member States and the UN Network on Migration with [our] priorities, the priorities of migrants and their communities,” said William Gois of Migrant Forum in Asia.
Participants at the meeting organized by the Civil Society Action Committee stressed that civil society’s priorities reflect the reality of migrants’ lives and the need for implementation of the GCM at the grassroots, and thus bring a crucial perspective that needs to be engaged more fully by governments in the four years leading up to the next IMRF.
“Migrant voice and participation matter, civil society engagement and participation matter. They are foundational to success of GCM,” stated Kate Barth of the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law. Michele LeVoy of the Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants added that engagement with civil society was a non-negotiable for governments. “If States want to make progress, they have to have us.”
Concluding plenary moderator M. Gois urged participants to remember their identity as members of civil society as they went into the IMRF. “We work with migrants, together with migrants on the ground. We are stakeholders that are key to the implementation of the Global Compact.”
Ms. LeVoy encouraged civil society representatives to think about what the absence of success in implementing the GCM would look like. “What don’t we want to see in four years?” she asked those participating in the CSPD in person in New York and worldwide via Zoom. Rather than needing to point out the same implementation shortfalls at the next IMRF, civil society should make a collective advocacy push now using more evidence from its work on the ground, she said.
Looking at the “12 Key Ways for States to Get Back on Track,” Victor Genina of the Scalabrini International Migration Network highlighted a main purpose of this position paper developed by the Civil Society Action Committee for the IMRF—to change governments’ approach to immigration policy from a current focus on national sovereignty to an anchoring in respect for migrant rights. He said civil society must advocate for meaningful migrant participation, accountability mechanisms for governments and a return to adherence to international law to move away from non-democratic, top-to-bottom policymaking.
As well as advocating to UN Member States, Elana Wong of the Migration Youth and Children Platform (MYCP)/Major Group for Children and Youth asked CSPD participants to consider points for action within civil society to ensure successful GCM implementation in the future. She urged participants to explore ways to make civil society more welcoming for migrants and more inclusive of voices across the spectrum of civil society coalitions.
M. Gois closed the final plenary by noting that the CSPD, with its “witnessing from the ground,” had generated energizing ideas for civil society advocacy in the IMRF and beyond. He lifted up the need for GCM implementation processes that civil society organizes itself; a return to international standards as foundational principles; a clearly articulated vision by civil society around key issues such as racism, regularization and the new social contract; and meaningful participation of migrants, especially women, youth and children.
“It is important that we carry this energy, these ideas forward. Let us remember that [GCM] implementation starts with us pushing the agenda, with us holding the line on this,” he concluded.
*The Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration is an international agreement adopted by 152 States in December 2018. As the first-ever global framework for migration governance, it aims to increase international collaboration on all aspects related to migration, including human rights, humanitarian needs, and development.
