International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of all Migrant

 

Article 16

1. Migrant workers and members of their families shall have the right
to liberty and security of person.

2. Migrant workers and members of their families shall be entitled to
effective protection by the State against violence, physical injury,
threats and intimidation, whether by public officials or by private
individuals, groups or institutions.

3. Any verification by law enforcement officials of the identity of
migrant workers or members of their families shall be carried out in
accordance with procedures established by law.

4. Migrant workers and members of their families shall not be
subjected individually or collectively to arbitrary arrest or detention;
they shall not be deprived of their liberty except on such grounds and in
accordance with such procedures as are established by law.

5. Migrant workers and members of their families who are arrested
shall be informed at the time of arrest as far as possible in a language
they understand of the reasons for their arrest and they shall be
promptly informed in a language they understand of any charges against
them.

6. Migrant workers and members of their families who are arrested or
detained on a criminal charge shall be brought promptly before a judge or
other officer authorized by law to exercise judicial power and shall be
entitled to trial within a reasonable time or to release. It shall not be
the general rule that while awaiting trial they shall be detained in
custody, but release may be subject to guarantees to appear for trial, at
any other stage of the judicial proceedings and, should the occasion
arise, for the execution of the judgement.

7. When a migrant worker or a member of his or her family is arrested
or committed to prison or custody pending trial or is detained in any
other manner:

(a) The consular or diplomatic authorities of his or her State of
origin or of a State representing the interests of that State shall, if
he or she so requests, be informed without delay of his or her arrest or
detention and of the reasons therefor;

(b) The person concerned shall have the right to communicate with the
said authorities. Any communication by the person concerned to the said
authorities shall be forwarded without delay, and he or she shall also
have the right to receive communications sent by the said authorities
without delay;

(c) The person concerned shall be informed without delay of this right
and of rights deriving from relevant Treaties , if any, applicable between
the States concerned, to correspond and to meet with representatives of
the said authorities and to make arrangements with them for his or her
legal representation.

8. Migrant workers and members of their families who are deprived of
their liberty by arrest or detention shall be entitled to take
proceedings before a court, in order that that court may decide without
delay on the lawfulness of their detention and order their release if the
detention is not lawful. When they attend such proceedings, they shall
have the assistance, if necessary without cost to them, of an
interpreter, if they cannot understand or speak the language used.

9. Migrant workers and members of their families who have been
victims of unlawful arrest or detention shall have an enforceable right
to compensation.

Article 17

1. Migrant workers and members of their families who are deprived of
their liberty shall be treated with humanity and with respect for the
inherent dignity of the human person and for their cultural identity.

2. Accused migrant workers and members of their families shall, save
in exceptional circumstances, be separated from convicted persons and
shall be subject to separate treatment appropriate to their status as
unconvicted persons. Accused juvenile persons shall be separated from
adults and brought as speedily as possible for adjudication.

3. Any migrant worker or member of his or her family who is detained
in a State of transit or in a State of employment for violation of
provisions relating to migration, shall be held, in so far as
practicable, separately from convicted persons or persons detained
pending trial.

4. During any period of imprisonment in pursuance of a sentence
imposed by a court of law, the essential aim of the treatment of a
migrant worker or a member of his or her family shall be his or her
reformation and social rehabilitation. Juvenile offenders shall be
separated from adults and be accorded treatment appropriate to their age
and legal status.

5. During detention or imprisonment, migrant workers and members of
their families shall enjoy the same rights as nationals to visits by
members of their families.

6. Whenever a migrant worker is deprived of his or her liberty, the
competent authorities of the State concerned shall pay attention to the
problems that may be posed for members of his or her family, in
particular for spouses and minor children.

7. Migrant workers and members of their families who are subjected to
any form of detention or imprisonment in accordance with the law in force
in the State of employment or in the State of transit shall enjoy the
same rights as nationals of those States who are in the same situation.

8. If a migrant worker or a member of his or her family is detained
for the purpose of verifying any infraction of provisions related to
migration, he or she shall not bear any costs arising therefrom.

Article 18

1. Migrant workers and members of their families shall have the right
to equality with nationals of the State concerned before the courts and
tribunals. In the determination of any criminal charge against them or of
their rights and obligations in a suit of law, they shall be entitled to
a fair and public hearing by a competent, independent and impartial
tribunal established by law.

2. Migrant workers and members of their families who are charged with
a criminal offence shall have the right to be presumed innocent until
proven guilty according to law.

3. In the determination of any criminal charge against them, migrant
workers and members of their families shall be entitled to the following
minimum guarantees:

(a) To be informed promptly and in detail in a language they
understand of the nature and cause of the charge against them;

(b) To have adequate time and facilities for the preparation of their
defence and to communicate with counsel of their own choosing;

(c) To be tried without undue delay;

(d) To be tried in their presence and to defend themselves in person
or through legal assistance of their own choosing; to be informed, if
they do not have legal assistance, of this right; and to have legal
assistance assigned to them, in any case where the interests of justice
so require and without payment by them in any such case if they do not
have sufficient means to pay;

(e) To examine or have examined the witnesses against them and to
obtain the attendance and examination of witnesses on their behalf under
the same conditions as witnesses against them;

(f) To have the free assistance of an interpreter if they cannot
understand or speak the language used in court;

(g) Not to be compelled to testify against themselves or to confess
guilt.

4. In the case of juvenile persons, the procedure shall be such as
will take account of their age and the desirability of promoting their
rehabilitation.

5. Migrant workers and members of their families convicted of a crime
shall have the right to their conviction and sentence being reviewed by a
higher tribunal according to law.

6. When a migrant worker or a member of his or her family has, by a
final decision, been convicted of a criminal offence and when
subsequently his or her conviction has been reversed or he or she has
been pardoned on the ground that a new or newly discovered fact shows
conclusively that there has been a miscarriage of justice, the person who
has suffered punishment as a result of such conviction shall be
compensated according to law, unless it is proved that the non-disclosure
of the unknown fact in time is wholly or partly attributable to that
person.

7. No migrant worker or member of his or her family shall be liable
to be tried or punished again for an offence for which he or she has
already been finally convicted or acquitted in accordance with the law
and penal procedure of the State concerned.

Article 19

1. No migrant worker or member of his or her family shall be held
guilty of any criminal offence on account of any act or omission that did
not constitute a criminal offence under national or international law at
the time when the criminal offence was committed, nor shall a heavier
penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time when it
was committed. If, subsequent to the commission of the offence, provision
is made by law for the imposition of a lighter penalty, he or she shall
benefit thereby.

2. Humanitarian considerations related to the status of a migrant
worker, in particular with respect to his or her right of residence or
work, should be taken into account in imposing a sentence for a criminal
offence committed by a migrant worker or a member of his or her family.

 

Author: international

Mentioned in these Entries

Treaties.