ICMC Council: Church leaders reaffirm their joint commitment to protecting migrants

On the eve of the 60th anniversary of the International Catholic Migration Commission, church leaders hailing from across Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe the Middle East and Oceania reiterated the urgency of the challenges faced by migrants and their families and recommitted to addressing them on both regional and international levels.

The 55th meeting of the ICMC Council gathered church leaders with an in-depth knowledge of migration from more than 57 countries, as well as representatives of the Vatican Secretariat of State, the Pontifical Council for Migrants and Itinerant People, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the “Ministero del Lavoro e delle Politiche Sociali” in Italy. Distinguished representatives included H.B. Patriarch Gregorios III, H.E. John Cardinal Njue, H.E. George Cardinal Pell, H.E. Polycarp Cardinal Pengo and H.E. Odilo Pedro Cardinal Scherrer.

Over the course of the three-day meeting, participants provided regional perspectives and input towards forging a joint plan of action between ICMC and the Bishops’ Conferences.

“Our mutual fundament”, noted ICMC President John M. Klink in his opening address, “is based on the recognition that the dignity of the human person is paramount in all migration discussions, and in the shared efforts of all who are engaged in bettering the plight of migrants, refugees and trafficked persons”.

“What is vital is the growing relationship with [ICMC] members—the Episcopal Conferences worldwide—who are all involved in, and confronted with, migration issues on a daily basis”.

Priority issues raised by ICMC members included strengthening joint efforts to address human trafficking, enhancing the regional voice in international advocacy fora, promoting migrant safety and dignity within labour migration, facilitating resettlement and community integration and reducing xenophobia and racism.

Throughout each of these areas, the centrality of the family and the human person was underscored as a fundamental focus, including by H.E. Archbishop Emilio Berlie of Yucatan, Mexico who insisted that harmonious developed it “difficult to expect” if the immigrant family is not ensure a “real possibility” of inclusion and participation. At the close of the meeting, H.E. Berlie was elected to the ICMC Governing Committee to represent Bishops‘ Conferences in the Americas, together with H.E. Oscar Andres Cardinal Rodriquez Maradiaga of Honduras.

Input provided over the course of the meeting will be used to finalize the forthcoming 2011-2015 ICMC Strategic Plan, which includes a focus on increasing regional and international partnerships and engagement, and emphasizes “the need for concerted action in the migration field, for greater collaboration at the inter-governmental level and, above all, for developing a more pro-active attitude towards restoring dignity and inspiring change”.