Part I International laws and mechanisms Further, several civil and political rights can never be limited and do not allow for differential treatment between nationals and non-nationals. These include the following rights identified as non-derogable under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights: • the right to life (article 6) • freedom from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment (article 7) • freedom from slavery, servitude and forced labour (article 8) • the right not to be imprisoned merely on the ground of inability to fulfil a contractual obligation (article 11) • the right to equality before the law (article 16) • freedom of thought, conscience and religion (article 18). 3.4. The Convention on Migrant Workers The most comprehensive human rights treaty on the rights of migrant workers is the Convention on Migrant Workers, which was adopted in 1990 and entered into force in July 2003. It responds to the particular situations and vulnerabilities of migrant workers involved in international labour migration. In general, the Convention does not create new rights but rather restates many of the rights found in the other human rights treaties and labour conventions. Importantly, however, it identifies a set of core rights that apply to all migrant workers, regardless of their migration status. For example, the Convention specifies the following non-derogable rights: • the right to life (article 9) • protection from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (article 10) • freedom from slavery, servitude or forced or compulsory labour (article 11) • freedom of thought, conscience and religion (article 12) • the right to liberty and personal security and protection against arbitrary detention (article 16) • the right to procedural guarantees (article 18). These rights apply to both documented and non-documented migrant workers and members of their families.34 Article 5 of the Convention sets out the definition of documented and non-documented migrant workers and states that “migrant workers and members of their families”: (a) Are considered as documented or in a regular situation if they are authorized to enter, to stay and to engage in a remunerated activity in the State of employment pursuant to the law of that State and to international agreements to which that State is a party; (b) Are considered as non-documented or in an irregular situation if they do not comply with the conditions provided for in subparagraph (a) of the present article. The Convention provides additional rights to documented migrant workers and members of their families, such as the right to liberty of movement in the territory (article 39) and equal access to education, vocational guidance and training services, housing, social and health services and cultural rights (articles 43 and 45). 34 Articles under Part III of the Convention (articles 8-35) apply to “all migrant workers and their families” as the title of that Part indicates. For further discussion of these articles, see: The International Convention on Migrant Workers and its Committee; Fact Sheet No. 24 (Rev 1), OHCHR; 2005; p. 5; and the Guide on Ratification: International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families; International Steering Committee for the Global Campaign for Ratification of the Convention on Rights of Migrants; 2010; p. 17. Chapter 1: The international legal framework on the rights of migrant workers and members of their families | 7