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.

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