On the 2nd of March 2021, the Global Research Forum on Diaspora and Transnationalism, together with the Migrant Forum in Asia, the Cross Regional Center for Refugees and Migrants, and the Civil Society Action Committee, organized an online webinar on the Global Compact for Migration (GCM) Objective 23. Various experts on migration discussed the topic, “Strengthen international cooperation and global partnership for safe, orderly and regular migration”.
Diminishing Space for Civil Society Engagements
The moderator of the webinar was William Gois, Regional Coordinator of the Migrant Forum in Asia. He started the webinar by thanking everyone who participated in theGCM webinars this season. Right after, he moved to the first speaker, Colin Rajah, Coordinator of the Civil Society Action Committee. Gois asked him to describe the main challenges and opportunities that global societies are currently facing. According to Colin Rajah, one of the biggest challenges is the shrinking formal intergovernmental space. By shrinking space, he meant the ability to advance critical engagement and push things forward, while being able to sustain main principles. Civil society has played a crucial role over the last twenty years in different topics related to migration. For example, civil societies significantly participated in contemplations and negotiations about the Global Compact for Migration.
“I saw it (formulation of the GCM) as a critical moment when the civil society came together to ensure that we got the best possible compact”: Colin Rajah.
He concluded his speech by expressing concerns related to their shrinking space in formal migration discourses. Based on the insights of Rajah, the biggest challenge in the future can be stated as an inability to reclaim the main idea of civil society.
Consequences of COVID-19 Pandemic on Implementing GCM Policies
Poem Mudyawabikwa, Minister Counselor of Zimbabwe Permanent Mission to the United Nations Office, was the second speaker of the webinar. In his speech, he mentioned the aftermaths of the COVID-19 pandemic on the implementation of GCM policies. He was of the opinion that member states of GCM have not completely enforced negotiated migration policies, laws, and practices in 2020. The effective implementation did not happen despite the fact that not all GCM principles are new. Some of them are continuations of previous policies that are supposed to be updated to deal with the current challenges.
“It was deemed desirable to have all aspects of international migration in one framework as a basis for member states to recommit themselves to address international migration challenges triggered by large movements of migrants”:
Poem Mudyawabikwa.
The Importance of GCM Objective 23 for the Migrant Workers
The importance of implementation of GCM Objective 23 was presented by Sumaiya Islam, Executive Director of the Bangladesh Nari Sramik Kendra. According to her, enforcement of GCM Objective 23 requires cooperation at the grassroots level, national level, and regional level. She insisted that only such cooperation would be able to assist migrant workers efficiently. Many of them are facing a multitude of difficulties due to the COVID-19 pandemic. During times like this, migrant workers are in need of support. Islam stressed the importance of international organizations in ensuring the provision of assistance to migrant workers.
“To implement GCM Objective 23, it is more important to support the migrant workers”: Sumaiya Islam.
The GCM Objective 23 as aFoundation for Post-COVID-19 Recovery
An obvious movement forward was visible toJohn K. Bingham, Geneva Representative of the NGO Committee on Migration in New York, which he explained to be the implementation of GCM Objectives. He stressed the fact that the GCM is not only the product of international cooperation. The GCM was negotiated by states, along with the civil societies, and stakeholders at the grassroots level,among others. Even more, the GCM Objective 23 on cooperation and partnership is the final and integrating Objective.
“It is the mortar; it is the mortar for the other twenty-two Objectives. Even though it was added last, cooperation runs through it all and should carry it forward and faster”: John K. Bingham.
The GCM Objective 23 calls precisely for regional and multilateral action. He also saw possible positive changes during the COVID-19 pandemic, such as the appreciation of essential workers and employers. The importance of migrants and migration for recovery has become more obvious.
The Future of the GCM
Nicoletta Giordano, Head of the International Partnership Division of the International Organization of Migration was the last speaker at the webinar. She agreed with the previous speaker, John K. Bingham, and labeled the GCM Objective 23 as the mortar of cooperation. Even more, she believes in partnership as a base for further cooperation.
“If there is no partnership, if there is no cooperation, there is nothing we can do together”:Nicoletta Giordano.
The GCM Objective 23 is a result of such a partnership. Different actors should think of a way to strengthen the cooperation. She assumed that the COVID-19 pandemic has given us an opportunity to think about this cooperation from a different perspective. Later, she also mentioned the importance of regional bodies that are beneficial for inter-state consultations. She finished her speech by asking questions from a theoretical perspective, whether are partnerships better pursued from the intermediate or national level?
Further Partnership as a Base for Cooperation
After the speech of the last speaker, the webinar moved into the discussions, as participants elaborated on various issues related to the GCM Objective 23. All speakers agreed on the importance of cooperation and civil societies for regular migration. Even more, they pointed out that there exists a detachment between what is happening at the global, regional, and national levels. In order to connect all these levels, further partnerships are crucial. Different actors should come together and think about the best possible strategy.
Michal Tengeri, PhD Candidate in Asia-Pacific Studies at National Chengchi University. Twitter: @Michal8810