A total of 25 officials from different national directorates of the Ombudsman's Office of Panama participated in a training day on Human Rights of people in conditions of vulnerability, with emphasis on migrants, coordinated by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) with the aim of updating, reinforcing, and promoting the exchange of technical knowledge in this area.

During the training held from September 22 to 24 of this year, the Ombudsman, Eduardo Leblanc, participated, together with directors and human rights officers from the Directorates of Citizen Orientation, Protection of Human Rights, Legal Advice, International Relations, the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture, Protection of Women's Rights, of Education, Academic Research, of Specialized Units, and of the Regional Offices of Darién, Chiriquí, Unión Chocó, San Félix, for their link to the assistance of people in conditions of vulnerability, with emphasis on migrants.

Topics such as international cooperation and migration, human trafficking, international protection for asylum-seekers and refugees, the rights and care of people living with HIV/AIDS, the protection of children, and Human Rights and their violation, particularly in the context of human mobility were presented and discussed. Likewise, the monitoring and follow-up of the violation of the rights of the migrant population, as well as the environment and climate change, the role of the regional human rights institutions before the mechanisms of the Universal System of Human Rights, gender and migration were discussed.

Santiago Paz, Head of the Panama Administrative Centre and IOM Chief of Mission in Panama, said that "the vocation of service of the personnel who provide assistance to people in vulnerable conditions is undeniable, and it is one of the reasons that allow to promote initiatives to strengthen technical capacities trying to provide an appropriate response, with a human rights approach by all the actors involved."

These trainings were conducted with the support of the Human Mobility Group of the United Nations System in Panama. The presentations were delivered by specialists from IOM, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees in Panama (UNHCR), the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).

These training sessions were carried out thanks to the support of the Regional Refugee and Migrant Response Plan and the Western Hemisphere Program, which is implemented by IOM with funding from the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration of the United States Department of State.

For more information, contact IOM Panama's communications team via iompanama@iom.int.