On 18 December 1990, the General Assembly adopted a
resolution on the
International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families.
Each year on December 18, the United Nations, through the UN-related agency
International Organization for Migration
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) is a United Nations agency that provides services and advice concerning migration to governments and migrants, including internally displaced persons, refugees, and migrant workers.
The IOM w ...
(IOM), uses International Migrants Day to highlight the contributions made by the roughly 272 million migrants, including more than 41 million internally displaced persons,
and the challenges they face.
This global event, supported by events organized by IOM's nearly 500 country offices and sub-offices as well as governmental, international and domestic civil society partners examines a wide range of migration themes,
Social Cohesion
Group cohesiveness (also called group cohesion and social cohesion) arises when bonds link members of a social group to one another and to the group as a whole. Although cohesion is a multi-faceted process, it can be broken down into four main co ...
,
Dignity
Dignity is the right of a person to be valued and respected for their own sake, and to be treated ethically. It is of significance in morality, ethics, law and politics as an extension of the Enlightenment-era concepts of inherent, inalienable ...
, Exploitation,
Solidarity to advocate for migration guided by the principle that humane and orderly migration benefits migrants and society.
Reasons for the Day
In 1997,
Filipino
Filipino may refer to:
* Something from or related to the Philippines
** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines.
** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...
and other Asian migrant organizations began
celebrating and promoting
18 December
Events Pre-1600
* 1271 – Kublai Khan renames his empire "Yuan" (元 yuán), officially marking the start of the Yuan dynasty of Mongolia and China.
*1499 – A rebellion breaks out in Alpujarras in response to the forced conversion ...
as the International Day of Solidarity with Migrants. This date was chosen because it was on 18 December 1990 that the UN adopted the
International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families.
Building on this initiative, 18 December with support from Migrant Rights International and the Steering Committee for the Global Campaign for Ratification of the International Convention on Migrants' Rights and many other organizations – began late 1999 campaigning online for the official UN designation of an International Migrant's Day, which was finally proclaimed on 4 December 2000.
The United Nations proclamation of the International Migrants Day is an important step, offering a rallying point for all those concerned with the protection of migrants. The UN invited all UN member states, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations to observe this day by disseminating information on human rights and
fundamental freedoms
Fundamental rights are a group of rights that have been recognized by a high degree of protection from encroachment. These rights are specifically identified in a constitution, or have been found under due process of law. The United Nations' Susta ...
of migrants, sharing experiences, and undertaking action to ensure the protection of migrants.
International Migrants Day is seen as an opportunity to recognize the contributions made by millions of migrants to the economies of their host and home countries promotes
respect for their basic human rights.
Global actions to celebrate International Migrants Day
Making migrants' voices heard is the common thread throughout International Migrants Day events.
Since 2016, International Migrants Day has also served as the platform for the gala final event of IOM's three-week-long Global Migration Film Festival (GMFF) which in 2019 featured more than 620 screenings of migration-themed movies and panel discussions about IMD2019's theme of Social Cohesion in 107 countries around the world.
See also
*
Global Compact for Migration
The Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM) is an intergovernmentally negotiated agreement, prepared under the auspices of the United Nations, that describes itself as covering "all dimensions of international migration in ...
*
World Refugee Day
World Refugee Day is an international day organised every year on 20 June by the United Nations. It is designed to celebrate and honour refugees from around the world. The day was first established on 20 June 2001, in recognition of the 50th anniv ...
References
External links
* {{Official website, https://www.un.org/en/observances/migrants-day
Global Migration Film Festival
United Nations days
December observances