Migration

German news magazine, Der Spiegel, has an in-depth look at the illegal immigrants that are the backbone of much of Europe’s farming sector, ensuring that even Norway has the tomatoes, zucchini and strawberries throughout the winter.

Most of the workers on the plantations are illegal immigrants, those that have risked life and limb travelling to Spain from African coastal countries in overcrowded fishing boats. The promised land many of these migrants dreamed of remains far out of reach, as they sell themselves into modern day slavery to ensure that Europeans further up North have cheap unseasonal fruits and vegetables. The thousands of migrants needed to keep the multi-million Euro business alive are left to their own devices, building makeshift shelters from bits of plastic and tarp between the greenhouses, without access to clean water or sanitation. Under constant fear of expulsion, the migrants sometimes work twice the hours fixed in union contracts under difficult conditions, inhaling the pesticides they work with and living among the hazardous fumes. And that’s not all: farming towns in Spain have become overwhelmed with migrants, making them easy targets for racist violence.

The article highlights villages like El Ejido, which have seen enormous growth over the past 20 years, as the plantations turned one of Spain’s poorest regions into a boom area. The town now counts 76,000 inhabitants, but the addition of 80,000 illegal migrants to keep the production going has sparked racial hate crimes in recent months. In a recent incident, the police only stepped in once the angry mob threatned to lynch a group of Marrocan migrants. Mayor Juan Enciso Ruiz supports the overall sentiment: “Yes to immigrants, but outside the city.”

Thus, migrants remain relegated to the outskirts of society, modern-day slaves without rights subject to direct and indirect abuse.

In a report by the CBC.ca, a discussion of the wage gap between Canadian Immigrants since the 1960s and American Immigrants since the same period shows that there is a significant difference between the two groups of immigrants. The report states that in Canada there seems to be less of a wage gap, as 4 in 10 immigrants to Canada have an undergraduate university degree or greater, while in the US it is 2 in 10. This has to do with the Canadian policy of taking in mostly skilled labour in the immigration process, as opposed to the US policy of taking mostly immigrants connected by family into the United States. While both countries also take in family related immigrants and skilled immigrants alike, the main engine might be where the immigrants come from and the need for certain skills in the American and Canadian society respectively.

Much of the US immigration comes from Mexico and Central America. As well, the US is a beneficiary of the Brain Drain from other countries, where highly educated people from one country flood to another for better opportunities and payment. Canada itself loses a great number of its educated citizens to the US which might explain while 2 in 10 are skilled immigrants to the US, it still is a large number of individuals from all over the world working and promoting the US economy.

Regarding Canada, in last week’s post on What Exactly is “Canadian Experience”?, we see that while Canada may take in many more skilled immigrants, there is strong evidence that the arbitrary barriers to employment for these skilled immigrants may dissolve any benefit to bringing in 4 in 10 skilled immigrants. In reality, many end up taking jobs in very low income sectors despite having a university education or higher. The situation in Canada has become so bad for many skilled immigrants that stories of foreign surgeons driving taxis or similar horror stories abound and a consensus among many skilled immigrants that Canada has become more of a trap for skilled immigrants than a benefit. Many skilled immigrants come to Canada to find that they will have an almost impossible task in requalifiying as well as living with lower real income than in their state of origin.

While Canada may bring in more skilled people, it is evident that the US benefits more from the skilled labour it does accept. There are of course many other factors in this comparison that require a full analysis, but in the meantime more attention needs to be brought on the issues of employment and economic rights in the debate on legal immigration in the US and Canada.

In her column on May 25th, Eleanor Clift of Newsweek discusses the benefits President Bush is gaining in the debate on new immigration policy. Her overview of the complex political views of Democrats who will most likely support Bush’s initiative under the guidance of Ted Kennedy is an interesting dynamic since most Democrats have tried to distance themselves as much as possible from the Bush Administration on almost all issues posed to them. Ironically, Bush will likely have more opposition from Republicans who think the immigration bill does not do enough to curb illegal immigration.

In reality, among all the issues surrounding Iraq and the War on Terror, the Bush Administration pre-9-11 was very focused on immigration policy and building stronger ties with Mexico and a Free Trade Agreement of the Americas. His efforts did not go unrewarded, gaining 41% of the Hispanic vote from 21% during his years in office.

Despite small successes in his Immigration Policy, Bush also has had much criticism of his years in office regarding Border Security. In a report issued by the organization The Third Way, it was found that apprehensions on the Southwest border have declined by 350,000 per year, almost 30 percent from the Clinton years. In addition, the number of deportable aliens found at the northern border and border locations other than the Southwest has dropped by almost 40 percent.

Despite the study and opposition from his own party, any progressive movement on the immigration front is positive in comparison to criticisms about Iraq and everlasting current scandals to hit the White House. Clift suggests that the biggest problem in a Republican position against the proposed Bill is that it is likely to take more votes away from the Republicans in states where the Hispanic vote may make the difference between it becoming a Blue or Red state. In any case, Bush might have some luck in pushing the Bill through, although not from traditional allies of the President.

With current immigration reforms in the United States focusing on skilled immigrants and highly educated candidates in the new Senate Bill on Immigration, a comparison between another North American immigration system that deals with skilled labour and educated immigration candidates may shed some light on possible issues with future US immigration policy.

In the neighbouring Canadian Immigration system there have been many issues concerning the rights for many skilled immigrants to work in Canada. Many newcomers to Canada have been “headhunted” with very high levels of education to immigrate to Canada. Many have been recruited and given priority in an immigration points system which values education and skills, but also has an epidemic of unemployment for many of those professional people coming to Canada.

Journalist Steve Paiken reproduces an audio version of his May 7th broadcast interviewing officials and people from the most numerous immigration groups in Canada. Issues surrounding how the theory of “Canadian Experience” and the fairness of such an arbitrary measure as a determinant of the abilities of an employee are discussed. With more than 50% of the resident population of Canada’s largest city being foreign born, the role of professional immigrants in many larger Canadian cities require a certain level of rights to work with restrictions which are not anti-competitive in their nature. The issue is exacerbated with a shortage of skilled labour in medical and certain engineering fields. Its effect is said to contribute to the wait times for access to health care in the Canadian Public Health system, and even has the effect of losing more than $1 Billion from the Canadian economy each year.

To hear a thorough discussion in Audio, please listen to the show’s two audio broadcasts on the link page at Steve Paiken: The Agenda.

Links: 

• Access to Professions and Trades in Ontario
• Ontario Immigration - Global Experience Ontario - An Access and Resource Centre for the Internationally Trained
• Stats Canada - Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada
• Stats Canada - Immigrants’ perspectives on their first four years in Canada: Highlights from three waves of the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada

Spain has always held a unique position regarding immigration in Europe due to its proximity to Africa via the Straits of Gibraltar, its colonial possessions in North Africa, and the existence of the Canary Islands off the African coast. These Spanish Islands off the coast of Africa have made them a magnet for refugees from many West African states.

Recently the Spanish Government has made a commitment to crack down on illegal immigration, much coming to the Canary Islands. Reflecting the desire for new tougher policies, nearly 750 illegal migrants were “repatriated” back to their home country of Senegal this week. Many of these immigrants come on small, often unsafe boats which often produce many casualties during the voyage from Africa, and in much of the rest of the world. With the Spanish Interior Ministry claiming that nearly 31,000 illegal migrants sail to the Canary Islands alone each year, it is a difficult problem for all states involved and often a perilous journey for the migrants themselves.

The dangerous situation of the migrants spurred some Spanish newspapers this week to publish articles and photos of migrants who have died during their journey to Spain and Europe. In El Mundo, a photo showing the bodies of dead migrants were highlighted with the note that said: “They are not sleeping, they are dead”. These gruesome photos were said to be the first time such images were published in Spanish newspapers, hoping to deter Migrants from making the journey which could lead to death for many. While this deterrence strategy is questioned by many, there is no doubt that refugees everywhere face certain perils in their journey for a better life.

In a continuation of last week’s weekly update on the deal reached in the US Senate on Immigration Reform, approval and criticism of the bill has been voiced by both sides of the political right and political left. While perspectives on the right of the debate will likely claim the bill to be somewhat of an “amnesty” for illegal immigrants, the opposing end of the political spectrum might claim the bill to be “not humanitarian enough” according to Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania.

While the bill is aimed at allowing illegal immigrants to right their status, it will also focus on border security and even adopt laws for fines against employers who are using undocumented labour in the conduct of their business. While many of these goals are accepted in a general sense, the technical issues and how policy is affected are fueling much debate over the Immigration Reform Bill.

One of the contentious issues surrounding the bill is the proposal of an altered Guest Worker Program. Many see the new bill as focusing more on job skills and education, and less on family connections. This merit based system is seen by many Democrats as unrealistic and likely the most disturbing part of the new bill as most illegal immigrants in the US would not achieve possible merit based qualifications proposed in the new bill. Beyond the qualifications issue, a proposal to cut the number of guest workers to 200,000 and capping the number of workers is also adding flames to the fire on the debate over the immigration bill.

“The point system does not reflect how much Americans value the family ties that bind people to their brothers and sisters or to their parents,” he said. “How many of our forefathers would have measured up under this point system? How many would have been turned back at Ellis Island?”-Barak Obama

Many Republicans also are concerned with the new bill, as Border Security is thought to take a second seat to immigration and newly proposed programs. This criticism is not new, as critics of the new bill point to past failures in immigration reform to secure the border and the current situation where illegal immigration has become almost unmanageable.

Beyond Democrats and Republicans, the concern of many immigrants in the US is also divided with regards to the new bill. While many illegal aliens, approximately 12 million may be able to gain legal citizenship, the new system changes connections via family ties in place since 1965 towards a system which values skilled labour and education. While people will likely adapt to the new system, it may be a challenge to both legal and illegal immigrants as much as it runs the debate on Capitol Hill. With much of the voting population taking clear sides on immigration as well, the issue may clarify the next election with Iraq as the two issues of most concern to all Americans, new and old.

The first test to the fragile Senate compromise on immigration reform came in a  vote on Tuesday. Scrapping the guest worker provision would have rocked the boat too far and could have brought the fragile compromise to a collapse. Tuesday’s vote, however, doesn’t rule out the possibility to curtail the guest worker program to 200,000 a year, as proposed by Democratic Senator Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico. The New York Times has the full story on the vote and predicts more controversy once Senators return from their Memorial Day recess.

At the end of last week, senators announced their bipartisan compromise on immigration reform that combines border enforcement, a guest worker program, a path to legalization for illegal immigrants, tougher employer sanctions, and an education/skills-based point system for future immigrants. Rich Basas will comment on their proposal in the coming days.

<>Already, the policy proposal is having a divisive effect on Republican presidential hopefuls, as the UK’s Guardian reports. While John McCain has come out in support of the Senate proposal - as he was heavily involved in shaping the compromise - the article quotes potential rivals Rudy Guiliani and Mitt Romney criticizing the bill as “inadequate hodgepodge” and an “amnesty for illegals.” The division among presidential candidates is symbolic for the deep split the proposal cuts through the entir Republican party. Nevertheless, the Republicans are already hard at work to toughen the compromise further.

<>Meanwhile, Democratic candidates have been vocal in their criticism: Sen. Barak Obama has denounced the points system for evaluating future immigrants as giving “too little weight to family ties,” ABC news reports.

<>The New York Times’ Julia Preston and Randal Archibold sat down with illegal migrants to get their perspective on the bill’s provisions. Many said that living in US was worth overcoming the difficult legal hurdles. Advocacy groups, however, are quick to point out that the family reunification provisions represent a radical departure from US traditions: “This is an unprecedented shift from family unity being the cornerstone of our immigration policy,” said Isabel Garcia, a lawyer and a chairwoman of Derechos Humanos, an advocacy group here. Ms. Garcia also objected to what she called “insurmountable” obstacles in the bill.

Other commentators have plenty to say:

Navarrette: Immigration anxiety is cultural

Dobbs: New immigration plans ignores history’s

Washington Post Editorial: The storm over immigration

See also: Mexico Blog by Rohini Gupta - Bush strikes deal over immigration bill

This week’s news roundup takes a first look at France’s new ministry of immigration and national identity, Switzerland’s refusals to accept more Iraqi refugees and newest EU plans to curtail the number of illegal migrants employed throughout Europe:

• Nicolas Sarkozy is a man of his words. On May 18 he appointed Brice Hortefeux to lead the newly created ministry of immigration and national identity. In response, eight historians working on a national project on French immigration history resigned in protest. Among the eight is Patrick Weil, who developed the immigration policy program for the Jospin government back in 1997. Liberation has a full article on the demissions, while Le Monde quotes one of them as saying “to associate immigration and national identity is to portray immigration as a problem for France and the French in terms of their self-understanding.” The new ministry, headed up by a 30-year personal friend of M. Sarkozy, will eventually pull together all administrative functions related to immigration (i.e. visa and expulsion matters, asylum, integration and the elusive national identity) under one roof. For now, however, these areas will remain with their current ministries, while a full-fledged plan for their integration is developed, i.e. the foreign ministry will remain in charge of visa attribution.
• While Senators put the finishing touches on a compromise solution toward new a new US immigration policy, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of migrants, Jorge Bustamante, was kept out of immigrant detention centers in Texas. A scheduled visit to the T. Don Hutto facility in Taylor, Texas was called off at short notice, leaving Dr. Bustamante “frustrated,” though that must be a diplomatic understatement. The Dallas Morning Herald reports the following:
  “U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement canceled Mr. Bustamante’s visit to Hutto because of pending litigation regarding the facility, according to a State Department spokesman. ICE officials have invited Mr. Bustamante to visit another family detention facility near York, Pa. The Hutto detention center – a former prison – houses about 400 noncriminal immigrants awaiting deportation or other outcomes to their immigration cases. “I am particularly concerned with the treatment of children and children’s human rights,” said Mr. Bustamante, who is from Mexico. The Hutto center has come under fire from civil liberties and immigration advocates, who contend families detained there are subjected to psychologically abusive guards, inadequate medical care and inhumane conditions.”

• The ACLU has a full site, including podcasts, dedicated to Dr. Bustamente’s trip and his insights. We will continue to follow this story in the coming days.
• The New York Times examines the situation of Haitian migrants leaving their country, frustrated with the lack of change. On their way to the promised land of the United States many get stranded on the Turks and Caicos islands, and have become an administrative burden for the local government. A tragic incident on May 4, when a Haitian refugee boat capsized off the Turks and Caicos leaving 90 dead and survivors blaming the aggressive tactics by local authorities for many of the deaths.
  
• Business Week reports on EU immigration Commissioner Franco Frattini’s new plans to penalize employers who take on illegal immigrants.
  
• We recently reported on the plight of Iraqi migrants. Switzerland is the latest country to refuse the UNHCR’s request to accept a contingent of the 20,000 migrants the organization has identified as particularly in danger of falling prey to excessive violence and torture. The majority of these would-be migrants are women and children. According to an article in the Neue Zuericher Zeitung, Switzerland is refusing to accept additional Iraqi migrants pointing to the fact that 5,000 refugees already reside in the country. Instead, government officials want to step up humanitarian aid to internally displaced Iraqis.

The Migration Policy Group, a Brussels-based NGO and independent advisor to the European Union, has published the second edition of its ‘Handbook on Integration for Policy Makers and Practitioners.’

The handbook is the result of in-depth workshops with the National Contact Points on integration, which are a key element in the European Union’s Hague Program. The handbook is a mixture of strategic and practical policy advice and “best practice” solutions. Different chapters address both integration infrastructure and practical issues, such as economic integration and housing matters.

The full report can be downloaded here, while the Commission’s press release summarizes the findings.