16 February 2011 - 29 March 2011

The human rights of migrants under international are governed by a convergence of different international legal regimes: international and regional human rights law, international labour law, international criminal law and refugee law – each of these treating the protection of migrants through different lenses. For many migrant rights advocates, the challenge is to sift through these different legal regimes and utilise the most appropriate and useful legal norms and tools. At the same time, the identification of existing normative frameworks to protect and promote migrants’ rights is essential to ascertain existing gaps that will have to be addressed.

This distance learning course explores the human rights of migrants under international law, concentrating on the application of these international legal regimes on migrants and their families, both regular and irregular. It will commence with the participants acquiring a firm understanding of the current definitions and issues relating to the human rights of migrants. The course will proceed to provide a comprehensive overview of the distinct but over-lapping international legal regimes on migration and explore the extent and limits of state sovereignty on migration issues. The bulk of the course will be devoted to examining each of these international legal regimes and how they protect the rights of migrants and their families. The course will also assimilate the current discussions on migration management from the perspective of human rights advocacy. Throughout the course a strong gender-perspective is integrated in all the discussions and conclusions.

Course outline

Week 1: Overview of the international legal regimes that guarantee the rights of migrants
Week 2: International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families
Week 3: Migrant rights in Europe and the Americas
Week 4: Emerging regional human rights law: Africa and Asia (South Asia and ASEAN)
Week 5: Protection under international labour law
Week 6: Applying a human rights perspective to current discourses on migration management

Level: professional , post-graduate graduate

Location: Internet (e-learning course)

Participants: university students and graduates of international relations, international law, politics and other areas, NGO staff members, staff of international organisations, migrant rights advocates and other practitioners. Participants should have a good written command of English and have high competence and comfort with computer and Internet use.

Tuition, fee, lodging: The course tuition fee is US$ 435 (tuition for auditors is US$ 165). There are no discounted tuition rates or scholarships available for this course. Further information and application form can be found at: www.hrea.org/migrant-workers. Participants will be accepted on a first-come-first-serve basis.

Contact Information:
Sandra Quintin
Distance Learning Programme
HREA
97 Lowell Road
Concord, MA 01742
USA
Tel: +1 978-341-0200
Fax: +1 978-341-0201
E-mail: applications@hrea.org
Web: http://www.hrea.org