Elements for the constitution of the Inter-American Network for the Defense of Persons in the context of Mobility

The EUROsociAL + Program of the European Union, continuing to support the Inter-American Association of Public Defenders-AIDEF to contribute to the improvement of access to justice for people in the context of human mobility, presents the proposal for the constitution of the Inter-American Defense Network of People in the Context of Mobility, to be evaluated and validated by the members of the AIDEF.

This network proposal has been prepared from the exploration of the process of creation and operation of similar initiatives existing in the region, and the opinion of the members of the AIDEF, collected with a questionnaire that was answered by eleven countries, with their opinion of how the network should be formed and what content it should have. Based on these elements, a proposal has been structured that presents the consensus points of the consulted institutions, and the best practices of other existing networks.

The proposal to create the Network responds to a regional need. The region is supporting large migratory flows

that generate demands for access to justice that must be covered by Public Defenders. The situation of these groups has also been aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The support of the Public Defenders’ Offices for migrants and refugees is expressed in a series of legal services for access to their human rights in terms of documentation, health, education, security, protection in cases of violence against women and people with guidance sexual and diverse gender identities (LGTBI), the defense of children and adolescents, among other aspects. Their provision depends on the legal framework of each country and the competencies established for each Ombudsman’s Office, with different approaches depending on the country.

This document is linked to:

Collection Nº 15: Access to justice for people in the context of human mobility. Regional diagnosis and good practices

Tool 60: Regional Model for the Defense of People in the Context of Mobility

Action File: We promote access to Justice in alliance with the Inter-American Association of Public Defenders

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