1st PRESS RELEASE
Mexico City (Mexico), October 20, 2011
This morning the President of Mexico, Felipe Calderón opened the Third International Forum on Migration and Peace at the Secretariat of Mexico's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This year the focus of the discussion was "Safe International Migration." At the opening ceremony, the President was accompanied by Dr. Rafael Fernandez de Castro, Head of the Department of International Studies (ITAM, Mexico) and by Father Leonir Mario Chiarello, Executive Director of the Scalabrini International Migration Network (SIMN) and Head of SIMN's Advocacy Department.
The President stressed the need to consider migration as a source of social, cultural and economic enrichment for the country of destination, focusing on the benefits of orderly migration noting that legislation restricting migration can only cause more criminal activity at an international level. Felipe Calderón pointed out that emigration is not a desirable alternative for families or for communities and that it is an ethical duty of governments to become aware of their responsibilities and to implement comprehensive policies and answers toward an orderly migration respectful of the human rights of migrants. The president's full speech can be found at: http://www.presidencia.gob.mx/2011/10/el-presidente-calderon-durante-la-inauguracion-del-tercer-foro-internacional-sobre-migracion-y-paz/
Dr. Rafael Fernandez de Castro outlined the finding of a marked decrease in migration in the analyzed regions of Mexico by 80% since 2005, with an increase in return flows and a sharp drop in transit migratory flows. In the words of Dr. Fernandez de Castro, this has implications for public policies such as the need for regional solutions (involving also the United States), finding new economic opportunities and the challenges that the return flows present (e.g. the education of children). On the causes of the decrease, he presented the lack of attraction of the U.S. economy (pull factor), lower wages (push factor) and structural improvements in Mexico's health system.
Father Leonir Chiarello, pointed out the intrinsic link between direct violence and indirect or structural violence, in an increasingly uncivil society, with a clear impact on migration. Father Chiarello stressed the need to implement more effective public policies on migration in a framework of legalization and for governments to work together and with the civil society. In the words of the SIMN Executive Director, "All this requires is the definition of a new social and cultural grammar inspired by the common good for everyone, including migrants."
Mexico City (Mexico), October 20, 2011
This morning the President of Mexico, Felipe Calderón opened the Third International Forum on Migration and Peace at the Secretariat of Mexico's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This year the focus of the discussion was "Safe International Migration." At the opening ceremony, the President was accompanied by Dr. Rafael Fernandez de Castro, Head of the Department of International Studies (ITAM, Mexico) and by Father Leonir Mario Chiarello, Executive Director of the Scalabrini International Migration Network (SIMN) and Head of SIMN's Advocacy Department.
The President stressed the need to consider migration as a source of social, cultural and economic enrichment for the country of destination, focusing on the benefits of orderly migration noting that legislation restricting migration can only cause more criminal activity at an international level. Felipe Calderón pointed out that emigration is not a desirable alternative for families or for communities and that it is an ethical duty of governments to become aware of their responsibilities and to implement comprehensive policies and answers toward an orderly migration respectful of the human rights of migrants. The president's full speech can be found at: http://www.presidencia.gob.mx/2011/10/el-presidente-calderon-durante-la-inauguracion-del-tercer-foro-internacional-sobre-migracion-y-paz/
Dr. Rafael Fernandez de Castro outlined the finding of a marked decrease in migration in the analyzed regions of Mexico by 80% since 2005, with an increase in return flows and a sharp drop in transit migratory flows. In the words of Dr. Fernandez de Castro, this has implications for public policies such as the need for regional solutions (involving also the United States), finding new economic opportunities and the challenges that the return flows present (e.g. the education of children). On the causes of the decrease, he presented the lack of attraction of the U.S. economy (pull factor), lower wages (push factor) and structural improvements in Mexico's health system.
Father Leonir Chiarello, pointed out the intrinsic link between direct violence and indirect or structural violence, in an increasingly uncivil society, with a clear impact on migration. Father Chiarello stressed the need to implement more effective public policies on migration in a framework of legalization and for governments to work together and with the civil society. In the words of the SIMN Executive Director, "All this requires is the definition of a new social and cultural grammar inspired by the common good for everyone, including migrants."
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