IDC members from around the world attended our 2016 Annual Member Meeting this year, held on June 14th in Geneva. The meeting was streamed live online for the first time and took place the day before the annual NGO consultations hosted by UNHCR.
In his opening address, IDC Director Grant Mitchell highlighted the pressures that NGOs are facing in response to unprecedented number of people migrating, pointing to the 250 alternatives to detention that the IDC has identified from over 50 countries, as a viable option for migration governance. Mr. Mitchell pointed out that national advocacy alone was not enough to address immigration detention, and that regional and international collaboration between agencies and governments are imperative to effect change.
During the meeting, the IDC secretariat consulted with members about developments and plans for the coming year. Trends emerging recently include identifying the need to move beyond a national security lens and use of case management to address root causes of immigration, especially in regions like the Middle East and Africa. Vanessa Martinez from the Americas region pointed out there was increased interests across the Americas to explore alternatives to detention.
Junita Calder, IDC Middle East and Africa Regional Coordinator revealed that there was continuing research into preventing child detention across Africa. Government agencies and organisations across Asia Pacific are also increasingly collaborating with each other to end child detention in the region, Evan Jones from the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network spokesperson said.
The IDC has a series of online trainings to increase the capacity of IDC members to advocate for changes to law, policy and practice around the use of unnecessary immigration detention. The online training will be released later this year.
If you are a member and you were not able to attend the 2016 IDC Annual Member Meeting, please contact us at [email protected] for a copy of the recording or meeting minutes.