Abstract
The COVID-19 health crisis has put to the test Latin America’s already precarious social protection systems. This paper comparatively examines what type of social protection has been provided, by whom, and to what extent migrant and refugee populations have been included in these programmes in seven countries of the region during the COVID-19 pandemic, between March and December 2020. We develop a typology of models of social protection highlighting the assemblages of actors, different modes of protection and the emerging migrants’ subjectification in Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay in relation to Non-Contributory Social Transfer (NCST) programmes and other actions undertaken by state and non-state actors. The analysis is based on 85 semi-structured interviews with representatives of national and local governments, International Organisations, Civil Society Organisations, and migrant-led organisations across 16 cities, and a systematic review of regulatory frameworks in the country-case studies. The proposed typology shows broad heterogeneity and complexity regarding different degrees of inclusion of migrant and refugee populations, particularly in pre-existing and new NCST programmes. These actions are furthering notions of migrant protection that are contingent and crisis-driven, imposing temporal limitations that often selectively exclude migrants based on legal status. It also brings to the fore the path-dependent nature of policies and practices of exclusion/inclusion in the region, which impact on migrants’ effective access to social and economic rights, while shaping the broader dynamics of migration governance in the region.
Highlights
The COVID-19 sanitary crisis has put to the test Latin America’s already precarious social protection systems
We look at the inclusion of migrant and refugee populations in the Non-Contributory Social Transfer (NCST) programmes and other actions undertaken by governments, International Organisations (IOs) and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) between March and December 2020, and what this tells us about the place of migrants’ social rights and citizenship in the eyes of the state
We reviewed over forty legal instruments that rule migration in the country-case studies including constitutions, laws, decrees, and administrative acts to examine (1) whether migrants and refugees were explicitly mentioned as subjects of civil rights deserving equal treatment on par with nationals, (2) the circumstances under which social and economic rights were granted to them, and (3) the main existing and new NCST programmes introduced during the pandemic
Summary
The COVID-19 sanitary crisis has put to the test Latin America’s already precarious social protection systems. In the case of Chile, several articles of the Political Constitution are implicitly applicable to migrants, and even though irregular migrants are not included in this legal framework, the country has adopted specific decrees and regulations aiming to guarantee access to education and health, independently of residency status, as well as equal labour rights.
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