A/64/213 Raising prospective migrants’ awareness of human rights 65. The Special Rapporteur welcomes joint efforts implemented by Governments, civil society and intergovernmental organizations to provide assistance and information to prospective migrants. Such is the case in Colombia, where, in Bogotá in December 2008, the first assistance and information centre for international migrants was opened with the aim of promoting regulated and dignified migration through the provision of information and technical advice, including on the rights of migrants and protection options available within and outside Colombia. The Centre is part of a pilot project managed by the International Organization for Migration and the General Labour Confederation, with the support of the Ministry of Social Protection. Strengthening the role of national human rights institutions in the protection of the human rights of migrants 66. The Special Rapporteur welcomes the significant increase in efforts undertaken by national human rights institutions to protect the human rights of migrants, as in the case of the region of Asia and the Pacific, where a regional plan of action for such institutions has been put in place aimed at ensuring cooperation with a view to ending impunity for trafficking in persons. Special focal points and units dedicated to migration, refugees and displacement have also been established within national human rights institutions. 67. The Special Rapporteur praises the initiative undertaken in 2008 by national human rights institutions in Asia, led by the national human rights institutions of the Republic of Korea, to develop a number of guidelines, inter alia, to ensure the protection of migrants’ rights in multicultural societies, including strategies such as campaigning for the ratification of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families; developing and strengthening remedies to address human rights violations committed against migrants, in particular against those who are undocumented or in an irregular situation. The Special Rapporteur also welcomes the initiative of national human rights institutions in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines to launch a joint research project to examine the main concerns of migrant workers in the region with a view to making appropriate recommendations to Governments. Access to health care regardless of immigration status 68. The Special Rapporteur has been informed of some progress made in the protection of migrant children, particularly in relation to the extension of health coverage and care services, regardless of the immigration status of those concerned. The Special Rapporteur on the right to health has documented a good practice in Sweden, where undocumented children receive health-care assistance on the same basis as resident children. 69. The Special Rapporteur also welcomes the fact that some States in the Latin American region, in particular Uruguay (law 18.250, art. 9) and Argentina (law 25.871, art. 7), have prohibited the denial of health-care services on the grounds of irregular migration status. 16 09-43777

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