Panama

June 2nd – SAN JOSÉ, COSTA RICA. Civil society organizations from Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Panama and the United States that provide human rights assistance and support to migrant workers signed a document consisting of 15 agreements to promote the principles of ethical recruitment. This declaration affirms their commitment to the migrant worker population and their rights in countries of origin, transit and destination.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has developed a series of training processes focused on providing tools for ethical coverage of migration based on international law and evidence. A total of 162 professionals from national and local print media, television, radio and digital media, as well as communicators from public institutions in Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Costa Rica and Panama were trained.

In response to the need to strengthen the capacities of relevant government and regional agency personnel in aspects related to migration driven by climate change and other environmental factors, the Regional Workshop on Migration Crises and Migration in Contexts of Disasters and Climate Change was organized by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) with the support of the Coordination Center for Disaster Prevention in Central America and the Dominican Republic (CEPREDENAC).

Officials from 7 countries were trained on protection and assistance for migrants vulnerable to violence, exploitation and abuse. The activity was attended by representatives of migration institutes or directorates, consulates and entities responsible for the shelter and protection systems of Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, the Dominican Republic, Panama and Costa Rica.

An IOM study found 57 active regularization initiatives in Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama and the Dominican Republic. Of these, 24 had been created explicitly for people in irregular status, while the rest benefited them tangentially by allowing them to present their documentation. Despite these advances, the study identified four major challenges that must be addressed in the coming years to ensure better migration management in the region.

Under the principle that collectively built campaigns can help generate behavioral changes, 12 communities in 6 countries designed and now disseminate information campaigns that were adapted to the local context according to their particularities and needs. These campaigns are not satisfied with simply launching messages in mass media or social networks but have implemented community activities as a key element to trigger action. 

Desde 2014 se han registrado 5.755 muertes durante viajes migratorios en Centroamérica, Norteamérica y el Caribe, dejando a decenas de miles de familiares en busca de respuestas. Esta crisis humanitaria en curso se pone de manifiesto en una serie de informes sobre migrantes desaparecidos en la región, publicados hoy por el Proyecto Migrantes Desaparecidos de la Organización Internacional para las Migraciones (OIM).