CMW/C/GC/3-CRC/C/GC/22
46.
The Committees are concerned that some States parties choose to recognize a
narrow definition of the non-refoulement principle. The Committees have already pointed
out17 that States shall not reject a child at a border or return him or her to a country where
there are substantial grounds for believing that he or she is at real risk of irreparable harm,
such as, but by no means limited to, those contemplated under articles 6 (1) and 37 of the
Convention on the Rights of the Child, either in the country to which removal is to be
effected or in any country to which the child may subsequently be removed. Such nonrefoulement obligations apply irrespective of whether serious violations of those rights
guaranteed under the Convention originate from non-State actors or whether such violations
are directly intended or are the indirect consequence of States parties’ action or inaction.
47.
The Committees recall that article 22 (1) of the International Convention on the
Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families and other
international and regional human rights instruments forbid collective expulsions and require
that each case that could eventually become an expulsion be examined and decided
individually, ensuring the effective fulfilment of all the due process guarantees and the right
to access to justice. States parties should adopt all measures necessary in order to prevent
collective expulsions of migrant children and families.
IV. International cooperation
48.
The Committees stress that a comprehensive interpretation of the Conventions
should lead States parties to develop bilateral, regional and global cooperation in order to
ensure the rights of all children in the context of international migration, taking into
consideration the guidance developed in the present joint general comment.
49.
The Committees recognize the importance of coordinating efforts among countries
of origin, transit, destination and return, and their roles and responsibilities in addressing
the needs of children in the context of international migration and in safeguarding their
rights, with the best interests of the child being a primary consideration.
50.
The Committees reaffirm that, in all international, regional or bilateral cooperation
agreements on border management and migration governance, the impacts of such
initiatives on children’s rights should be duly considered and adaptations made as necessary
to uphold the rights of the child. The Committees are concerned by the increase in bilateral
or multilateral cooperation agreements that focus on restricting migration, which have
demonstrably negative impacts on children’s rights, and instead urge cooperation that
facilitates safe, orderly and regular migration with full respect for human rights.
51.
States parties should also avail themselves of technical cooperation from the
international community, including from the United Nations agencies and entities and
regional organizations for the implementation of migration policies in respect of children in
line with the present joint general comment.
V. Dissemination and use of the joint general comment and
reporting
52.
States parties should disseminate widely the present joint general comment to all
stakeholders, in particular parliaments, governmental authorities, including child protection
and migration authorities and personnel, and the judiciary, at all national, regional and local
levels. It should be made known to all children and all relevant professionals and
stakeholders, including those working for and with children (i.e., judges, lawyers, police
and other law enforcement entities, teachers, guardians, social workers, staff of public or
private welfare institutions and shelters, and health-care providers), the media and civil
society at large.
17
12
See Committee on the Rights of the Child, general comment No. 6, para. 27, and Committee on the
Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, general comment
No. 2 (2013) on the rights of migrant workers in an irregular situation and members of their families,
para. 50.