On July 2, 2024, the event “Cartagena+40 Process: Chile Declaration and Action Plan 2024-2034” was held in which Catholic organizations presented their recommendations in a dialogue with the Ambassadors to the Holy See, Italian institutions and international agencies.

This event, sponsored by the Embassy of Chile to the Holy See, the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) and Caritas Internationalis, sought to position the voices of refugees and forcibly displaced people, as well as the challenges of the migratory context and the recommendations that must be considered by the government for the preparation of the Chilean Action Plan, in which people are put at the center, from a human rights, intersectional and intercultural approach, in such a way that a positive impact is achieved in the protection of the lives of people who have had to be displaced.

The event was held. developed in two panels, the first of them on the background and future perspectives of the Cartagena+40 process, in which the Ambassador of Chile to the Holy See, Ms. Patricia Araya, participated; Ambassador Pedro Hernández, Director of Migration of the Chilean Foreign Ministry; Ms. Chiara Cardoletti, UNHCR Representative in Italy, the Holy See and San Marino; Mr. Alistair Dutton, Secretary General of Caritas Internationalis; Father Fabio Baggio, Undersecretary of the Dicastery for the Service of Integral Human Development and Professor Rodrigo Guerra, Secretary of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.

In the second panel, there was a discussion about the contributions of refugees and displaced people, the Church and civil society in the process, considering the accompaniment experience carried out by the JRS national offices in Mexico, Venezuela and Ecuador, and the Jesuit Service for Migrants Chile (SJM Chile); as well as the regional experience of JRS LAC, Cáritas LAC, the Jesuit Network with Migrants (RJM LAC) and the CLAMOR Network, the latter represented by the delegate of the Franciscan Network for Migrants.

Taking advantage of the participation of the different diplomatic delegations to the Holy See, the faith-based organizations delivered to the government of Chile the document with recommendations, which includes elements proposed in the three thematic consultations of April, May and last June, for the negotiation of the Declaration and construction of the Chilean Action Plan, which will take place in Geneva during the second half of 2024.
The 40th anniversary of the Cartagena Declaration is an opportunity for the region and can become a model that inspires other continents to create an effective protection system for people fleeing not only from armed conflicts but also from new causes of displacement.

As faith-based organizations, we recognize and value the efforts made to welcome, accompany and protect people in their places of transit and destination. We call for solidarity, responsibility and concrete commitments that recognize the dignity of all people, guaranteeing their rights without discrimination and seeking lasting solutions towards processes of building a dignified and peaceful life.

Download the Chile Action Plan Proposals 2024-2034 Vatican - July 2, 2024