Formerly undocumented women address European Parliament to advocate for children’s rights
On the 30th anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, five young women, once undocumented, participated in the high-level celebration at the European Parliament on November 20. [...]
Advocates call for more humane, transparent and effective resources for asylum and migration in the EU
Last October, the EU institutions have resumed discussions on the new Asylum and Migration Fund (AMF) proposal, part of the wider negotiations on the next Multi-Annual Financial Framework (MFF [...]
Advocates call for access to justice for all victims of trafficking at Council of Europe
On European Anti-trafficking Day, 18 October, we spoke to government representatives to the Council of Europe, about key measures to ensure access to justice for all victims of trafficking, [...]
Amplifying the voices of undocumented people in Europe
This blog post was written by PICUM’s Communications Trainee Bettina Guigui. As a migrant working for a migrants’ rights organisation in Brussels, I am very aware of the need to include the [...]
That time when British and Irish youth rights campaigners met in Dublin
At PICUM, we’re happy to facilitate bilateral exchanges between our members so they can learn from each other’s work to advance the rights of undocumented people locally. In this blog [...]
Building the road to justice and equality for undocumented women
PICUM Advocacy Officer Alyna Smith recently took part in a webinar organised by the Women in Development Europe, WIDE+, to discuss why undocumented women are at risk of violence and what we can [...]
Momentum builds towards ending detention of children
By Pablo Gómez-Escolar Arias, PICUM Advocacy Trainee. The immigration detention of children is an issue that is increasingly in the public consciousness. There is growing consensus that it is an [...]
Recommendations for the EU’s post-2020 budget to fight child poverty and social exclusion
The EU Alliance for Investing in Children, of which PICUM is a partner, has published recommendations on how the EU’s post-2020 budget should be used to fight child poverty and social exclusion. [...]
BREXIT: PETITION TO ENSURE STRONGER PROTECTION OF CITIZENS’ RIGHTS
This week, the EU Rights Clinic, the European Citizen Action Service (ECAS) and 80 signatories including PICUM members submitted a petition to the European Parliament. The petition calls for [...]
New European Parliament guidelines to prevent that organisations and citizens helping migrants are criminalised
The European Parliament has adopted a resolution to end the criminalization and punishment of organisations and individuals who assist migrants in need. The new guidelines for EU member states to [...]
87 European organisations call on Hungary to withdraw proposed laws targeting groups working with migrants and refugees
04 May 2018 – The new Hungarian parliament which will first assemble on 8 May is set to vote on draconian and regressive legislation which could arbitrarily restrict fundamental rights and [...]
8 Ways to make the next EU Multiannual Financial Framework a vehicle for protection and integration of children in migration
Joint NGO Statement In the beginning of May, the European Commission will publish its Communication for the post-2020 Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF). The initial plans of the European [...]
“Firewall”: A tool for safeguarding fundamental rights of undocumented migrants
By Camille Van Durme, PICUM Intern. 19 December 2017 In December, several news outlets reported that a pregnant woman who went to the police in the UK to report having been raped was brought to a [...]
Immigration Detention and Deportation: Legal Practitioners and Civil Society Jointly Address Strategic Litigation
By Kadri Soova, PICUM Advocacy Officer and Alyna Smith, PICUM Advocacy Officer Over the past years, political pressure to detain and deport more migrants has led to more case law that challenges [...]
UN Committees Reiterate Rights of Undocumented Children
Two UN Committees have issued authoritative guidance on the need for comprehensive and rights-based policies for all children, regardless of their migration or residence status – across [...]
LET’S WORK TO END CHILD IMMIGRATION DETENTION
PICUM and other members of the Initiative for Child Rights in the Global Compacts, UN agencies and bodies, global, European and national organisations, welcome the European Commission’s [...]
New UK Campaign Demands Access to Justice and Services for All Migrant Women
Initiated by the The Latin American Women’s Rights Service (LAWRs), several migrants’ rights and women’s rights organisations in the UK have launched a new campaign to improve access [...]
Towards a migration policy that works
PICUM together with other organisations has released a statement ahead of the European Council meeting which takes place in Brussels from 22 to 23 June 2017. In the last few years, migration has [...]
Child Rights Organisations Welcome EU Commission’s Policy to Protect Child Migrants and Refugees
Commission must now transform words into action, say organisations The EU Commission’s new policy guidelines, which provide concrete actions to protect all migrant and refugee children in Europe, [...]
The Employers Sanctions Directive – a law to address exploitation of undocumented workers?
By Jan Knockaert, Director of OR.C.A. – Organisation for Undocumented Workers and a Board member of PICUM-the Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants. Adapted from [...]
Joint Statement – Court Rules in Favour of Undocumented Workers’ Rights – March 2017
The European Court of Human Rights ruled yesterday that Greece failed in its duty to protect migrant workers from labour exploitation, and to properly investigate their abuse and punish those [...]
Dealbreaker: EU migration policy causes more harm and chaos one year after EU-Turkey deal
By Michele LeVoy, PICUM Director. This was first published by Open Democracy. As we mark the first anniversary of the EU-Turkey deal, the EU’s migration policies are more contradictory than ever. [...]
Over 170 Organisations Call on EU Leaders to Manage Migration with Solidarity, Respect for Humanity, Dignity, and Responsibility
A group of more than 170 civil society organisations including PICUM has appealed to EU heads of state and government in a joint letter to adhere to European values and to manage migration [...]
New European Union Returns Policies Put Children at Risk
Joint press release by PICUM, Save the Children, IOM, UNICEF, OHCHR, End Immigration Detention of Children and the International Detention Coalition The European Commission adopted a [...]
New EU Commission Plans on Returns and Detention will Create More Harm and Suffering
90 civil society organisations address EU Commission in joint statement BRUSSELS, 3 March 2017 – Bowing down to political pressure to be “tough” on irregular migration, the European Commission [...]
Libya: Focus on Anti-Smuggling Policies and Cooperation with Libyan Authorities Will Expose People to Ill-Treatment and Arbitrary Detention
Over 70 organisations send letter to EU heads of state and EU policymakers expressing concern about proposed EU cooperation with Libya The decision to transfer the responsibility for managing [...]
Risks of statelessness for children of undocumented parents in Europe
By Lilana Keith, Advocacy Officer on Children’s Rights and Labour Rights at PICUM. A version of this article was first published in the Institute on Statelessness and [...]
Step Up to Ensure Access to Services For All Survivors of Violence, Without Discrimination
BRUSSELS, 15 December 2016 – Ahead of International Migrants Day, the Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants (PICUM) and Women Against Violence Europe (WAVE) Network join [...]