ReliefWeb

Dear Presidents:

In the face of the issue of the forced migration of Venezuelans across regional borders, one of the most serious and largest-scale cases which the region has ever seen, the states of the Americas will meet today and tomorrow – 3 and 4 September – in the Ecuadorean capital of Quito, and on 5 September for the special session of the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States convened in Washington, D.C.

Given that the current situation of mass human rights violations taking place in Venezuela has led to the displacement of an unprecedented number of Venezuelan people, Amnesty International sends the states this document with its position on the situation, calling on them and on the international community to agree on the following urgent measures to guarantee the rights of Venezuelans who find themselves forced to migrate:

• Unanimously declare that Venezuela is facing a situation of mass human rights violations and that, in such circumstances, people forced to flee require an immediate response under a framework of respect for human rights. In addition, states must provide unrestricted access to international systems of protection such as refugee status and other complementary mechanisms, respecting their obligations as signatories to international agreements. They must not impose restrictions or conditions that impede access to these protection mechanisms, including the implementation of passport or visa controls.

• Implement protection measures that allow a prima facie approach and expedite access for Venezuelans to legal residency with appropriate safeguards, while strengthening their internal systems of protection.

• Ensure strict adherence to and respect for the principle of non-refoulement. For this purpose, states must guarantee minimum standards of legality and accessibility that allow Venezuelans access to public services and the exercise of their rights on an equal basis without discrimination, in particular rights to health, education, freedom of movement, the right to family unity and the right to work.

• Equally protect the human rights of the destination communities and those in need of international protection and guarantee their safety by supporting the socio-economic development of the local communities.

• Work together with other actors from the international community – including specialized UN agencies such as the High Commissioner for Refugees and the International Organization for Migration – to find solutions of shared responsibility and implement the strategies discussed in the context of the Global Compact on Refugees. In particular, they must take into account that lasting solutions require strong alliances and tangible commitments in terms of technical and economic resources. Latin America has the opportunity to advance the practice of the principle of shared responsibility that recognizes the complementarity between humanitarian aid and development funding, among other strategies, that allow refugees to actively participate in and contribute to destination countries.

We call on the states of the Americas to provide an immediate response which includes these criteria, in accordance with international standards and their obligations in terms of human rights.