The UNAOC’s Migration-Integration Online Community, “Integration-Building Inclusive Societies” (IBIS) was presented at a conference in Bogota, Colombia on September 2, 2010.
IBIS was presented at a panel on “New Political and Legal Perspectives of Citizenship in the Context of Migration and International Peaceful Coexistence” at the Second International Forum on Migration and Peace which had the theme of “Migration, Peaceful Coexistence and Independence: Toward New Perspectives on Citizenship and Democracy,” from September 1-3, 2010.
After giving the audience an overview of the UNAOC, Dr. Thomas Uthup, UNAOC Research and Education Manager, provided an outline of IBIS and urged the audience to get involved with IBIS to provide good practices of migrant integration from South America. Several hundred bookmarks for the IBIS site were also distributed.
Among those present at the conference were several hundred NGO representatives, students, religious leaders, diplomatic personnel, UN agency representatives, and city and government officials, including the Vice-President of Colombia, Mr. Angelino Garzón.
The Forum was organized by the Scalabrini International Migration Network, with the support of many other entities, including the Alcaldía Mayor de Bogotá D.C., the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, the Colombian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the International Organization of Migration.
Dr. Uthup said, “We were very pleased to present IBIS in Colombia since it is one of the newest members of the Group of Friends community.”
The objective of the Forum is to continue the creation of an international network for the promotion of fully human and peaceful co-existence as a universal right for all with the representatives of governments and civil society and to maintain a high-level dialogue on the multi-faceted relationships between international migration and peaceful coexistence in inclusive democracies.
Apart from several other presentations, the Forum also featured practical workshops on promoting peace in the framework of international migration. These workshops topics covered the Afro-American and indigenous communities, gender, education, art, communication, and best practices.