RESULTS FROM QUESTIONNAIRES

Objective: Get specific input on key requirements in each country

• Establish topics of the seminar

Answers Received:• Belize• El Salvador• Guatemala• Mexico• Panama• Dominican Republic

• Canada – various documents

Conferencia Regional sobre Migración

Regional Conference on Migration

1. Which are the key migration policy guidelines and principles in your country?

• Capacity building, updating, effectiveness, no corruption (5/6)

• Regulation, national security, control (5/6)

• Facilitating migration flows which contribute to the country’s economic, social and cultural growth (4/6)

• Respect and protection of Human Rights of migrants (3/6)

• Combating migrant smuggling and trafficking in persons (3/6)

• Protecting migrant workers (1/6)

• Free movement of persons – regional integration (1/6)

• Regularization Plan – census, statistics (1/6)

2. Which institutions participate in policy-making and implementation?

• Migration Directorates / Council / INM (6/6)• Ministry of the Interior (6/6)• Ministry of Foreign Affairs (4/6)• Public Security, Police Forces (3/6)• Ministry of Labor (2/6)• Ministry of Health (2/6)• Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (2/6)• Attorney General’s Office (2/6)• National Tourism Institutes (2/6)• Ministry of Education (1/6)• Ministry of Public Works (1/6)• Armed Forces (1/6)• Central Election Board (1/6)

3. Which aspects of your migration policy are appropriately regulated in legislation?

• Entry, stay, and exit of foreigners (4/6)

• Rights and obligations of migrants (2/6)

• Human Rights of migrants and their families (1/6)

• Non-acceptance, expulsion, deportation (2/6)

• Labor migration – protection of migrant workers (3/6)

• Irregular migration – prevention and sanctions (2/6)

• Migration categories (2/6)

• Registration and personal details of foreigners (2/6)

• Procedures – documents (1/6)

• National return (1/6)• Control of transportation

means (1/6)• Repatriation (1/6)• Discrimination (1/6)in• Combating smuggling,

trafficking in persons and other crimes (i.e. use of false identity documents) (1/6)

• Regularization (1/6)

4. What are the limitations and obstacles in applying migration policy?

• Lack of resources (4/6) – remote locations

• Old-fashioned law (2/6) – integration proposal

• Regulation of new law (2/6)

• Lack of trained staff (1/6)• Lack of continuity of staff

(1/6)

• Lack of information media (1/6)

• Lack of advances in sharing responsibility with other nations – comprehensive focus (1/6)

• Absence of a clear migration policy. Result: lack of planning, lack of organization (1/6)

5. Do other aspects exist that have not been included which should be

regulated?

(1/6)

• Health, finance, family, education, and unaccompanied under-age persons

• Humanitarian permits• Stateless persons• Reintegration• Retention• Repatriation • Local management

• Trafficking in persons – protection and assistance of victims

• Migration documents • Marriages of convenience –

sanctions• Change of status within the

territory for persons who entered as tourists– restricted visas

• Homogenization of national legislation in view of the new global panorama

6. Is your country considering the possibility of adopting or reforming its migration

legislation?

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

YES NO

• El Salvador & Panama: Finalized projects being revised (2004, 2005)

•Belize: Revision will begin in mid-2007

• Mexico & Guatemala

• Dominican Republic: A reform 2 years ago; being implemented

7. For which specific aspects or topics would your country like to get more technical

assistance by international cooperation? Implementation: • Projects for census of foreign

populations and nationals living abroad / Collecting statistical data in border areas

• National Regularization PlanCapacity Building:• Migration Institutes/Directorates• Shelters for detained migrants and

victims of trafficking in persons • Communications and coordination

with border checkpoints and remote areas

• Effective migration control / restricted nationalities / technology support

• Information system

Training / Support: • Protecting Human Rights of

migrants• Smuggling and trafficking in

persons • Managing victims of trafficking in

persons• Revising migration legislation and

policy-making (regional migration policy)

• Integration• Security at remote points • Verifying authenticity of foreign

identity documents (Asian citizens)Others:• Repatriation / funds

8. Analysis of Migration Legislation based on the Following Topics ...

Topic NO YES Regulations

Border Management

Entry, Stay, Exit

6/6

ConstitutionMigration ActPenal Code, Labor Code, Family CodeAgreements and Programs relating to Migrant Workers Law against Smuggling and Trafficking in Persons Laws regarding Refugees

Expulsion, Rejection, and Deportation

Rights and Obligations of Migrants

Migration Categories

Topic NO YES Regulations

Categorization of Crimes

Irregular Migration 1/6 5/6 Migration Act

Smuggling and Trafficking in Persons 6/6

Penal Code; specific laws

Integration and Protection

Protecting Victims of Trafficking

3/6 3/6 Palermo Protocols; specific laws, MoE

Refugees, Political Refugees 6/6

Constitution, Migration Act, laws regarding refugees

Statistics on Refugees, Stateless Persons 2/6 4/6

National Statistics Institutes, specific laws

Gender, Age, Non-Discrimination 2/6 4/6

Constitution, specific laws, migration, international institutions

Family (Reunification) 1/6 5/6 Constitution, laws regarding refugees, migration, CTMF

Migrant Workers 6/6 Migration Act, Labor Code, specific decrees and programs

9. What type of jurisprudence has been established by your Judiciary in

migration matters ?• Irregular entry and stay of foreigners

• Expulsion / deportation of foreigners – Temporary detention of a migrant before deportation is legal – However, deportation does not tacitly involve detention of a migrant; migrants could enjoy ambulatory freedom– Specific causes within the law; facts need to be proven. NO arbitrary deportations

• Direct or indirect participation of migrant in national politics• Naturalization and nationalization processes

• Family Protection

• Constitutional jurisdiction in cases of refugees - GUA

10. Which institutions provide legal assistance to migrants?

General Migration Directorate (i.e. “Grupos Beta” – INM) Ministry of Labor Ministry of Social Development General Attorney’s Office Human Rights Ombudsman’s Office (i.e. Section for

Rootless and Migrant Populations - GUA) Ministry of Foreign Affairs (i.e. Consular Offices; Migrant

Portal (“Portal del Migrante”) - GUA Ombudsman Office to Assist Refugees NGOs Police Forces

11. Do cooperation agreements on migration matters exist with other States or

international agencies?

Other States• MoE (repatriation, regulation of

migration/labor flows, establishing offices of commercial development and mutual entry conditions for nationals from every country, mutual suppression of visas, protecting victims of smuggling and trafficking in persons)

• Free Movement of Persons – one visa, CARICOM

• Dignified, Safe, and Orderly Return

International Agencies

• UNHCR• IOM• ILO

Training:For example, use of

false identity documents, smuggling and trafficking in persons

12. How has the topic of migration been included in Free Trade Agreements?

• Special treatment of skilled labor, business persons, investors, and employees from foreign companies (temporary residence). Disadvantage of nationals abroad (SAL)

13.Should other topics be included, or would your country be interested in further

addressing any other topics?

• Facilitating migration (free movement of persons)

• Migration and national development; regularization process• Repatriation (extra-regional); Smuggling and trafficking in persons• Unfair competition of foreign labor• Temporary workers; migration office archives • Passports