FM Alert, Vol. I, No. 60 & No. 61
Date: Wed, 24 Dec 97 10:34:30 -0500
From: MINELRES moderator <[email protected]>
Message-Id: <[email protected]>
To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>
Subject: FM Alert, Vol. I, No. 60 & No. 61
From: MINELRES moderator <[email protected]>
Original sender: Allison Mindel <[email protected]>
FM Alert, Vol. I, No. 60 & No. 61
(From the moderator: two pieces of most interest to NGOs are sent in full
length, and exceprts from the others. Boris)
FM Alert, No. 60
22 December 1997
MEETING FOCUSES ON IMMIGRATION DETAINEE ACCESS TO LEGAL COUNSEL
Philip Anderson, President-Elect of the American Bar Association (ABA),
criticized the status determination mechanism for detained non-citizens in
the United States, saying a lack of access to legal representation is
"unacceptable for a civilized society."...
FMP QUESTIONS UNTAES WITHDRAWAL FROM EASTERN SLAVONIA
The Forced Migration Projects (FMP) have appealed to William Walker, head of
the United Nations Transitional Administration for Eastern Slavonia, Baranja
and Western Sirium (UNTAES), calling for the expansion and prolongation of
the organization's mission...
NGOS UNDERREPRESENTED AT CIS CONFERENCE FOLLOW-UP MEETING IN KYIV
About 80 persons, mainly representatives from CIS and other governments,
discussed residency permit procedures during a meeting, sponsored by UNHCR
and OSCE/ODIHR, in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv on December 8-10. In
addition the International Organization for Migration was represented. The
meeting did not adopt any resolutions or declarations concerning residency
permit issues. Human rights advocates are critical of the residency permit
regime, known as "propiska," saying it inhibits freedom of movement,
especially for newcomers. Virtually absent from the discussion were NGOs
involved in the follow-up to the May 1996 CIS Conference on migration-
related issues. Among NGO representatives invited were those from the Red
Cross of Belarus, the Georgian Young Lawyers Association and Ukrainian Legal
Foundation. A large contingent of UNHCR representatives
participated in the discussions. "This was an experts meeting," said ODIHR's
Vladimir Shkolnikov. "We were not looking to shut anyone out." Talks
focused on ways to gradually replace the propiska system with a simplified
registration process. Participants examined developments in Georgia and
Moldova, two states that are considering lifting residency permit
requirements. Many officials from other CIS governments expressed concern
that the immediate abolition of propiska rules could cause disorder. The
participants agreed on the need for further discussions on propiska reform,
but no date for a follow-up meeting was set.
FM Alert, No. 61
23 December 1997
UNHCR AND IOM HELP RUSSIAN NGO CAPACITY BUILDING
UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) spent a
combined $90,000 in 1997 on capacity building initiativesfor nongovernmental
organizations (NGOs) in Russia that assist refugees and displaced persons.
About $40,000 in UNHCR funds, drawn from a special NGO Fund established as
part of the follow-up process to the May 1996 CIS Conference on migration-
related issues, was spent on office equipment for forced migrant
associations in the Voronezh, Rostov, Lipetsk and Yekaterinburg regions of
Russia. About $50,000 in IOM resources went towards the purchase of
computers, printers and other equipment for 12 NGOs in and around St.
Petersburg, Moscow, Lipetsk and Penza. The 1997 joint appeal of UNHCR and
IOM for CIS migration conference follow up, including NGO capacity building
was under funded. UNHCR and IOM were planning to significantly scale back
their appeals for 1998. (For background information consult FM Alert of
November 20, 1997).
SWISS GOVERNMENT RESPONDS TO FMP APPEAL ON FORCED RETURNS
Swiss authorities are taking a firm stance on the issue of forced returns to
Bosnia. Outgoing Swiss President, Arnold Koller, responded to an FMP appeal,
which urged restraint on the forced return of Bosnians from Switzerland, by
reaffirming the government's determination to proceed with current plans...
US ENVOY RESPONDS TO FMP APPEAL ON BOSNIA
The United States remains committed to encouraging changes in Bosnia and
Herzegovina's wartime legislation that would promote repatriation, an aide
to Special Envoy Richard Gelbard wrote in a letter to the Forced Migration
Projects (FMP)...
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For more information contact:
Forced Migration Projects
Open Society Institute
400 West 59th Street, 4th floor
New York, NY 10019
tel: (212) 548-0655
fax: (212) 548-4676
[email protected]
www.soros.org/migrate.html
--
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