ICMA 2014_Panel 3_ Laura Zanfrini and Fabio Baggio

Irregular Migration

SIHMA ConferenceDecember 3, 2014

Laura ZANFRINIUniversità Cattolica di Milano

Fondazione ISMU, Milan

Irregular Migration (IM)It is a movement that takes place outside the regulatory norms of the sending, transit and receiving countries

From the perspective of receiving country: Entry, stay or work in the country without the

necessary authorization or documents required under immigration rules

From the perspective of sending country:Leaving the country without a valid passport or

travel documents or without fulfilling the administrative requirements

The Issue of BordersBorders = human “invention”, introduced only

recently in human historyBorders’ defense = one of the last symbols of

the State sovereigntyParticularly after 2011, IM connected with

security issues = reinforcement and externalization of borders

Both in Europe and US: restrictive immigration policies and borders’ enforcement = growth of IM

Borders and “mixed flows” = difficult to distinguish among asylum seekers, people in need of protection and migrant not in need of protection

Few Emblematic ExamplesCIS countries: IM resulting from new

borders of the StatesSome African countries: IM from imposition

of artificial borders by colonial powersIn many Latin and Central American

countries: increase of African and Asian IMs mainly due to US restrictive policies

EU: admission of new countries and millions of IMs transformed in regular migrants

Pacific Islands: offshore camps for IMs (“Pacific solution”)

Political Construction of IMThe regular/irregular status = not a permanent

attribute, but a temporary situationIM status = result of political construction

(definition of the borders + conditions for entry)

IM status can vary over the course of the migration experience for different causes

IM opens a debate on the ethical (or non ethical) foundations of its definition and the “right to migrate”

Consequence of the implementation of immigration policies stating conditions for entry

Causes of IMUnequal development, structural changes

(globalisation) and strong social inequalitiesLack of labor and livelihood opportunities,

education and efficient welfare systemThreats to personal security: conflicts, political

instability and environmental/climate changesDisproportion between no. of candidates and

no. of regular migrants set by receiving countries

Inconsistency between entry requirements and needs of the local economy in receiving countries

High costs and long waiting time of regular channels

Restrictive rules concerning family reunions

Causes of IMThe huge “Migration Industry”Introduction of free-visa entry and free

circulation spaces with no right to stay and work

Demand for cheap labor in destination countries, growing flexibility and precariousness of employment relations, “parallel welfare systems”, presence of employers of same ethnic background

Strong ethnic and social networks favoring the arrival and the stay of irregular co-nationals

Misleading advocacy of some actors and organization resulting in reinforcing the culture of irregular migration

Who Gains from IM?Smugglers and traffickers + mediators and

fixers

Sending countries governments (remittances)

Corrupted public officials

Employers, and large outsourcing corporations

Private households who employ low-paid domestic workers

Consumers who purchase goods produced under exploitative work conditions

Owners and clients of the sex industry

Actors managing the informal remitting channels

Who Loses from IM?Victims of human traffickingAll IMs (rights abuse and no possibility to go

home)Left behind families (no possibility of family

reunification)The host country fiscal system (no contributions

from IMs)Local and regular migrant workers, (social

dumping and deterioration of labor standards)Honest employers (unfair competition by

employers of IMs)Hosting society cohesion (negative perception of

IMs)

The Social Perception of IMsCriminals who keep at risk national

sovereignty, public order and collective security, cause social dumping phenomena and feed the criminal economy

expulsion, deportation, detention, punishment

Victims of trafficking organizations, who suffer conditions of exploitation and slavery

policies of assistance and protection

Free actors who deliberately chose to violate an illegitimate international order

access to rights, regularization, reform of migration policies

EU Unresolved ParadoxesEuropean history: tensions between declared

policy goals and evolution of migration processes, attempting to bridge opposite intents:Limitation of new entries vs. integration of resident migrants

Liberal logic of open markets vs. fear for “migrants’ invasion”

Protection of the European traditional identity vs. enhancement of mobility and diversity

Institutional discrimination against non-EU migrants vs. protection of fundamental human rights, regardless of nationality and status

Restrictive admission policies vs. a deregulation of the labor market and tolerance towards underground economy

Defense of local communities from migrants vs. defense of migrants

EU Unresolved ParadoxesIn the EU government of IM, there are some

clear tendencies:To renounce to some basic juridical principles in

order to limit “unwanted migration”To represent borders management as a technocratic

task, neglecting its ethical implications To devote enormous resources to fight irregular

migration, (with little results) and little resource to support social integration projects

To submit the process of comunitarisation to the logic of securitization and distribution of the burden of border control

To bound international cooperation to sending countries’ cooperation in migration control (retention and repatriation)

A Decalogue of Priorities 1. Promote the “right not to migrate”, making migration

a real option and combat the “irresponsibility” of sending countries (emigration vs. development policies)

2. Eradicate the culture of (irregular) migration with specific awareness raising initiatives (individuals and families)

3. Combat the improper use of entry and regularization policies, particularly those tending to extend the protection for humanitarian reasons to “fake” asylum seekers

4. Introduce regular migration schemes aiming at satisfying the real demands of the receiving countries’ markets

5. Reinforce incentives for families who regularly employ migrants; contrast the social acceptance of migrant irregular employment within the households

A Decalogue of Priorities6. Apply stronger sanctions to employers of IMs and

improve the overall labor market management7. Question the characteristics, functioning and role of

detention centers, looking for alternative solutions 8. Develop the cooperation among civil society

organizations and religious groups of the receiving and the sending countries, in order to provide valid alternative to irregular migration and enhance the use of regular migration channels

9. Promote the dialogue between sending, transit and receiving countries in order to enhance the harmonization of migration laws and policies

10.Promote at all governance levels and among all actors the awareness of the basic principle of human dignity