UNICEF/Eduard Serra Between January and October 2022, more than 200,000 migrants crossed the Darian Gorge to continue to their destinations
More than 50,000 deaths have been recorded since 2014 when global migration deaths began being recorded, according to a report released today by the International Organization for Migration. While this death toll is rising, governments in countries of origin, transit and destination have done little to address this long-standing global migrant disappearance crisis.
Julia Black, one of the report's authors, said: "While thousands of deaths are recorded each year along the way to migration, little has been done by the countries concerned to address the consequences of these tragedies, let alone prevent them. Whatever the reason for people to migrate, they should not pay with their lives in search of a better life. ”
No news
More than 30,000 people whose nationalities are unknown are recorded in the Missing Migrant Program, and thousands of families are still struggling to find the truth.
In 2021, a Moroccan immigrant in Spain told IOM that his brother disappeared 20 years earlier on his way to Europe and that he was still searching for his whereabouts. He said: "After so long, there is still no news at all. ”
Of the missing migrants whose nationalities have been confirmed, more than 9,000 are from African countries, more than 6,500 from Asia and more than 3,000 from the Americas. Notably, Afghanistan, Syria and Myanmar are the top three source countries of migration, with violence in these countries frequent, with many fleeing their homes seeking asylum abroad.
UNICEF/Eduard Serra A migrant reception centre near the Colombian border in Panama.
Dangerous journey
Of the 50,000 recorded deaths, more than half died on migration to Europe and within Europe, including at least 25,104 on the Mediterranean route. The European route also has the highest number of missing and presumed deaths, with at least 16,032 people missing at sea whose remains have never been found.
Africa has the second highest number of migrant deaths. In total, more than 9,000 people have died while migrating across Africa since 2014. Regional household surveys show that the true death toll is much higher.
About 7,000 migrants died in the Americas, most of them on their way to the United States (4,694). More than 4,000 people have died en route across the U.S.-Mexico land border since 2014.
Some 6,200 deaths were recorded in Asia, with 717 child deaths, accounting for more than 11% of the total deaths, the highest proportion of any region, of which more than half (436) were Rohingya refugee children.
In Western Asia, at least 1,315 people have lost their lives on the move, mostly in conflict-ridden countries, making it difficult to document missing migrants. At least 522 people from the Horn of Africa have died in Yemen, often as a result of violence. Records show that 264 Syrians were killed while trying to cross the border to Turkey.
Call for protective and preventive measures
IOM emphasizes that States must at all times comply with their obligations enshrined in international law, including respect for the right to life. States need to work together to improve and expand routine and safe migration routes by prioritizing search and rescue operations, ensuring priority protection of migrants to prevent and reduce further deaths.
The easiest to learn of the 7,000 foreign languages is Esperanto