Moin Ahmed 1402049 Anthropology of Globalization Ali Khan 16th December, 2013 Research Essay Migratory Laws Migration

is arguably the rawest form of globalization that involves the movement of people from one geographical location to another either permanently or temporarily. We can isolate migration into two types, internal migration (within a locality or state) and international migration (movement between different states) (Plender). A coherent definition for migration involving both these aspects is problematic because, as Anthony fielding has said: Migration is a chaotic concept that needs to be unpacked (Joly 33). From unpacking it is meant that every migration in the world can only be understood within its own historical context, thereby making migration a loaded term that must be broken down into smaller parts. For example, the definition of a migrant cannot be specified without creating concrete time estimate that converts a traveler into a migrant. In the Netherlands, the law of migration is only applicable on people who have been staying there for at least a period of six months, while in the UK the time period is 12 months (World Migration 24). This non-uniformity in individual states makes it difficult to tackle the concept of migration because it also leads to different or conflicting statistical migration analyses due to the absence of a united definition. Another distinction exists due to the

different in political treatment of the concept of migration, leading to a difficulty in the formation of a cohesive international law that can accommodate all varying interpretation of migration on a global scale. International migration laws according to Plender, serve the function of assisting the free movement of people across the globe (3). This purpose is either supported by states or opposed, depending on various sociological, economic and political variables. This paper will limit migration to movement on an international scale (meaning travel between two countries) and will consider permanent diaspora formation in countries as being its ultimate realization. As a point of departure, it will provide a historical synopsis of migratory movements across Europe and America, before examining the formation of migration laws on the national level, while simultaneously tracing the increasingly globalized nature of migration and the emergence of international bodies for its regulation. It will then provide two case studies that establish the inevitability of migration due to globalization, before discussing the theoretical need for global migration laws and their advantages. Development of Migration Law Historical Synopsis: The concept of citizenship is important to understand the development of international law. The notion of citizen emerged during Greek times which became an important concept with regard to nationality (Plender 5). We can identify three types of individuals in this framework. The first is a national citizen which means a person who is born in a nation (this paper will not deal how birth affects nationality). The second type is a colonized individual who does not belong to the colonizing nation but is granted citizenship. The third type is an alien who does not

primarily belong to the state or nation and may or may not granted citizenship. Plender has shown that citizenship rights emerged from two principles, the principle of jus soli which literally means the right to the soil, and jus sanguinis which means right of blood ( 7). During the early Saxon period, there was a constant tendency to conflict between old customs of the family and newer laws of the state. As the power of state grew, the legal value of kinship diminished, because princes and lords would often seek protection under the jus sanguinis principle (Plender 8). This development became evident in 1066 when Normandy condoned jus sanguinis as a legal means of claiming right to the nation and citizenship. As geographical boundaries began to solidify, England was the one of the first to accept the jus soli principle that a person born abroad was not normally of fealty to the king of England (Plender 8). However, these concepts are not comparable with nationality in modern times. During the renaissance, nationality became a controversial topic because the question of allegiance was scrutinized. It was debated whether allegiance is owed to the King or the Kingdom. After a series of legal proceedings, the state emerged as the primary identifier of nationality rather than allegiance to the King (Plender, 15). In the early seventeenth century British law once again recognized the importance of jus sanguinis as an extension to jus soli principle. The principle of allegiance was first challenged during the American Revolution which gave citizens the right to choose between adherence to British nationality or American nationality. Soon many principles of citizenship emerged in the USA, Europe and Asia. Today nationality is defined as nationality is the juridical and political link which unites an individual with a state. Now, a state is composed of subjects and nationality being the link which unites them to it (Plender 30). This definition led to a debate about how much control a state can exert in controlling immigration.

There has always been a tendency within nations to be suspicious of strangers. Initially in England travel documents were issued to allow people to enter other states and the Magna Carta in 1215 allowed merchants to travel in England freely (36). This is one of the first examples of international migration law. Kant in perpetual peace defined hospitality as the right of the foreigner not to be treated with hostility on foreign soil. At this time, international migration law merely protected individuals from isolation in foreign territories. However, during in the 17001800s large immigration from France into England and war between England and France contributed to the decline of free movement. There was political instability in Europe which led to the Aliens removal Act in 1848 and was introduced as prevention of crimes in Ireland. Similarly as a result of WW1 and WW11 various exclusive and inclusive international laws were set up. (Plender 35-60) Establishment of the IOM: WW2 ushered in devastating humanitarian crises that pushed European citizens to emigrate. The absence of any global law to facilitate migration led to the formation of the provisional intergovernmental committee for movement of migrants from Europe (PICMME) in 1951. As the operations of PICMME grew, its name was changed to the Intergovernmental committee for European Migration (ICEM) in 1952. Its name was finally changed to IOM in 1989. Overtime the organization has gone global in scale and its mission is

To assist in meeting the growing operational challenges of migration management. Advance understanding of migration issues. Encourage social and economic development through migration.

Uphold the human dignity and well-being of migrants.(IOM 1)

Globalization and National law: Globalization has played an increasingly important role pertaining to migration. Metropolitans have emerged that call out to the people across the globe with promises of a better life. Similarly ease of transport has made it exceedingly simple to travel from here to there. This has allowed for the advent of truly pluralistic and multi-cultural cities where immigrants can thrive. This of course has had a significant backlash due to ethnic insecurities. The obligation of a state to its citizens seems to losing importance in face of the economic imperative to grow. This has created an anti-immigration stance in various countries throughout the world. For example America passed an exclusion act in 1882 that barred Chinese and Immigration Act 1924 barred Asian migrants permission to enter America and also penalized existing immigrants (Immigration to the US 1). Similarly even today, Japan has strict migration laws preventing most people from migrating to Japan. Denmark has maintained a strict anti-immigration policy since its formation. This allows us to infer that every country has unique laws and attitudes towards migration. Migration can both assist a countrys economic prospects and harm them. Attractive states can attract capable individuals from other counties but at the same time allowing everyone to emigrate can lead to huge financial stress. For example, Canada has successfully adopted lenient immigration laws for a variety of reasons and is increasingly improving its economic standing. Conversely, Denmark has accrued a profit of 6.7 billion euros by being strictly against immigration; according to The Integration Ministry April 2011 report (Reimann 1). This allows

us to see that at a national level, the regulation of immigration plays a positive role in the economics of the state. Difficulties in the Formation of Global International law: So far we have tried to trace through national laws the formation of global laws for migration. We have outlined the historical development of national migration laws and how the IOM has emerged as a body facilitating migration. International migration law can be imagined in two contexts. Any migration law that affects another countrys citizens migration behavior can be called international and an actual law formed under an international body that regulates migration. In the latter sense, no real laws exist except when they are related to fundamental human rights. For example, In Japan illegal immigrants were placed in detention camps however, international bodies moved immediately to save the children of these families labeling it the violation of children rights (BBC 1). Hobbes has argued that during a time of crisis rejection of another country citizen can be understood as an insult and show of hostility to the affected nation (Plender, 281). To avoid this, an unspoken global law exists that all counties will guarantee the safety of fundamental human rights of all people, migrants or not. Two case studies will be analyzed showing the socioeconomic impact of migration laws. Case Studies Japan: During the 1960s, Japan opposed the trend of allowing immigrant workers to fill local labor demand by utilizing its rural labor pool. This was not enough to fill the demand gap for a long time and Japan started to encourage women to participate in industrial activity across Japan. Finally however, Japan had to resort to foreign migrant workers to continue competing in the

global market by the 1980s. By the late 1990s, approximately 300,000 visa overstayers and more than three times that number of legal migrants with work permits were estimated to be in Japan, most of them of Japanese descent from Latin America (Japan in a global age 7). Two major factors have affected immigration policy in Japan. The Revision of migration laws in 1989 set the stage for a distinction between Japanese descended Latin Americans and other would-be immigrants, with preference being given to the former and the latter barred from entry into Japan. And the second is Japans economic recession that persisted beyond expectations. The first factor has resulted in more than 200,000 immigrants entering Japan while the second has curtailed migrations from countries like Pakistan and India. Overall however, migration is at an all-time high in Japan (still far less than immigration to Canada). Japan has become a net importer of labor where before it had always been a net exporter. Another important aspect to consider is the low birth rate within Japan that will lead to a huge scarcity of human capital. It is projected that as more and more time will pass, Japans need to support immigration will grow and that its migration policies will become more and more lenient. Globalizing forces the emergence of multicultural and pluralistic societies. Japan exhibited signs of resistance to globalization in an effort to preserve Japans indigenous culture and values, but economic needs forced them to allow immigration. Indeed, large families have migrated from Korea and other states into Japan, which has the potential to develop into a separate ethnic community. It would seem then, that it is important in Japans case to accept the effect of the forces of globalization if it seeks to maintain a competitive edge in the future.

France: As already stated World War2 prompted a mass migration to the Western Europe from the affected states. The primary pull factor was the economic boom prevalent in these countries at that time. France is one of those countries where a large number of North Africans migrated. Nevertheless in 1974, France barred foreign immigrants from seeking citizenship in France. This was because the North African immigrants were predominantly Muslims with a distinct ethnic identity. The government feared that ethnic tensions would escalate between the nations and the aliens. Despite taking these measures, the population of existing migrants tripled by 2000. The French government incentivized these non-nationals to leave France by literally paying them cash in 1977 and 2005. This plan backfired as immigration increased because immigrants were dis-incentivized from pursuing citizenship rather all they had to do was enter France and leave with cash. These migrants usually find legal ways of entering France and hence, the government plan backfired. Existing immigrant citizens would sponsor relatives and their families which can be accomplished legally despite anti-immigration policies. Another method that is employed to immigrate to France is through neighbor states. Families can apply for citizenship in states other than France and once it id=s granted they can travel to France under a far less strict legalities of migration. It is important to note here that anti-immigration laws can only go so far in preventing immigration and that making the process more difficult only increases cost in a global economy. (David 15-24) IOM; the need for migration regulation: The case of Japan makes it abundantly clear that migration cannot occur if the host country is unwilling to accept foreigners. Conversely, IOMs role in helping migrants shift to

Japan once policies were relaxed is a testament to how the facilitation of migration can stabilize a countrys economy. Similarly the case of France shows that migration cannot be controlled after a certain point and it merely becomes a more time consuming process. From this we can assert that there is need for an international legal body that regulates migration in light of a countrys reported need of migrants. The IOM already plays a tangible role in promoting cultural homogeneity by integrating migrants into foreign cultures so that ethnic insecurities do not escalate. They also educate migrants about political system of the host country so that foreigners are able to adapt to the new political environment. Still the IOM cannot legally influence migration policies, but if globalization persists then such a body may be needed. It can be argued here that anti-globalization forces exist leading to a decline in migration. However, migration cannot practically be stopped without a regulatory body with international powers as has been shown through the case of France. An argument against this fact can be presented from Denmarks example where immigration is strictly impossible. But as has already been argued in Japans case, inevitable global economic demands ultimately do create a need for immigration. It is fallacious to argue that because Denmark has opposed immigrating so far, it will continue to do so in the future. Conclusion: In this paper we have sought to establish the importance of migratory laws especially as they pertain to migrants who seek to permanently settle in foreign countries. From the time of the Magna Carta to the establishment of the IOM, we have seen difficulty in forming global regulatory laws for migration. A large part of this is due to the fact that every nation supports or opposes international migration depending on its own context. What stands above all of this is an

unspoken agreement that gives due regard to fundamental human rights between all states, yet as the forces of globalization make it ever easier to travel and truly pluralistic societies emerge, it seems inevitable that global economic interplays will make it necessary to form an international body that has authority to regulate migration and form migratory laws based on the preference of individual states. Migration is an unstoppable globalizing force in itself and we have tried to show through the cases of Japan and France that it is impossible to deny immigration due to prevalent economic and social trends in the world. Although it cannot be denied that difficulties do indeed exist in the formation of global migratory laws, yet the emergence of bodies like the IOM can be construed as a sign that it is indeed possible. It is an almost paradoxical situation that when migrants did not have benefit of the technologies of travel that are possible today, it was considered a universal right of a person to travel and be accepted in foreign lands, though of course this did not entail citizenship all the time. Reverse globalization has indeed played a role in preventing fluid migration, but that is not a strong enough argument against migration in light of economic globalization. It is not plausible or pragmatic to suggest that global migratory laws essentially uphold the spirit of complete freedom as far as migration goes, what this paper has tried to show is that a more nuanced approach to migration can not only help migrants, but also host countries. For example the IOM has a cultural integration program that educates migrants about foreign cultures. If an international body of law dictates that this is a necessary precursor to migration, and then it could lead to a reduction in ethnic hostilities and social tensions. Having global migratory laws offer advantages for the streamlining and coordination of migration between states, and is indispensable in the contemporary world.

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