Migration

The European Commission has moved ahead and voted on its plans for an EU-wide Blue Card, to mirror the US Green Card. Administrators hope this new procedure will allow Europe to attract and retain highly-skilled workers from around the globe. In comparison to traditional migration countries, such as the US, Canada and Australia, Europe is losing out in the global war for talents: While the EU’s highly qualified workforce is made up of only 0.9 percent non-EU workers, countries that actively select highly skilled migrants boast figures of 9.9 percent for Australia, 7.3 percent for Canada and 3.5 percent in the US. We first commented on the proposal and the heavy criticism it faced from a few EU Member States in this piece.

At a press conference on the Blue Card, EU Commission President José Manuel Barroso underlined how the current 27 existing national systems directly countered one of the European Union’s underlying principles – mobility of labor – which is known as one of its the four freedoms. In a Union with open internal borders, nothing could be less attractive to a doctor, lawyer or other specialist, than restrictions of movement. In a US context that would translate into all 50 States having their own legislation on whom to admit when under which circumstances and limiting Green Card holders to living and working in one state. The Blue Card and the additional legislative proposal introduced today would put an end to what Barroso terms a ‘rights gap’ between legal immigrants and EU citizens, which was “incompatible with our value of equal treatment.” The existing system, Barroso said, hampered integration and social cohesion.

The second legislative package announced today on simplified admission procedures and a common set of rights for non-EU citzens working in the EU will remedy these discrepancies, it is hoped. The proposal has been in the works since 2005 and its key element is a “one stop shop” procedure towards attaining entry to the European Union and obtaining rights similar to that of a national with respect to social security, healthcare and employment related benefits. The new procedure will also facilitate family reunification for those non-EU nationals working in the Union.
With the European legislative system being what it is, we are still a number of months, if not a number of years away from this becoming a reality, as Member States have plenty to say about these new initiatives and a simple vote by the Commission (which can be likened in some ways to a national Cabinet of Ministers) is only the first step in a longer procedure that involves the European Parliament and the Council.

The official summary of the Blue Card provisions can be read here.

The English version of Der Spiegel also provides a roundup of the new proposals here.

To let EU Commissioner Franco Frattini know what you think of his Blue Card proposals, you can go to his website, where the topic is the ‘thought of the week’ and features a feedback form.

I recently weighed in on what the EU Blue Card means in a comparative perspective to the US in an interview with KGO/San Francisco. You can listen to my comments here.

In this week’s roundup - a look at Finland, as it tries to become a destination country for immigrants. Two personal stories that are causing politicians to critically reexamine Austria’s immigration legislation and a new report from UCSD that argues in favor of continued Mexican migration to the US to stem the adverse effects of a decline in the working population.

Looks like Frontex isn’t the magic solution after all. German papers are reporting that hundreds of migrants were rescued from the waters off the Italian island of Lampedusa over the past few days. Almost 600 mostly African migrants had been taken aboard coast guard and rescue vessels within 24 hours between Wednesday and Thursday evening of last week - more than 300 on Wednesday alone. A previous dip in the numbers of migrants seeking access to European territories from the Atlantik and Canary Islands had been attributed to closer surveillance of by EU border patrols, but numbers have been rising again over the past few weeks, particularly in the Eastern Mediterranean sea.

• A new report from the University of California San Diego argues that instead of closing borders to Mexican immigrants, the US needs to bring in more migrants to stem a looming demographic downturn that will pull at the purse strings of retirement funds, once the baby boomers leave their jobs in droves in the coming years. And immigration might not be the only solution, as fertility numbers among Mexican immigrants are also dropping.
• US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are coming under fire following a wave of raids against illegal immigrants in suburban New York, the New York Times reports.
• The electoral campaign of one of Switzerland’s largest parties has come under scrutiny for its racist undertones. A poster illustrating the party’s hardline stance in immigration shows a group of white sheep standing on a Swiss flag symbolically kicking a black sheep out of the country. The campaign has polarized a country, which prides itself on consensus policy-making. Over the weekend, sparks flew as left-wing protestors took to the street to demonstrate against the SVP campaign in the country’s capital, Bern.
• Two recent cases of immigrant family deportations have raised new questions about the controversial 2006 Austrian immigration law, which changed the provisions for residency.
• Finland is looking to become a destination country for highly-skilled migrants, the FT report, but has yet to develop a compelling strategy to attract the best and brightest it is looking for. It is hoped that these migrants will continue to power the R&D heavy side of the country’s high-tech companies. But just as needed are the semi-skilled, the nurses and caretakers of the elderly, just as much as the plumbers and metal workers. The government is looking to recruit workers primarly from neighboring countries, including Russia, but has had to acknowledge that the extreme degree of red tape involved in applying for residency and the country’s high taxes do not make for attractive prospects for would-be migrants. An attitude shift toward migrants may also be needed, as prejudices toward particularly Soviet migrants are still rife among Finnish employers, the article suggests.

Thank you, Roger Cohen, thank you. We here on this humble little blog have underlined time and time again, how the Iraqi refugee issue is getting out of hand, and how the United States as leading military force in the country is failing to live up to its commitments in sharing the burden to secure the saftey of refugees fleeing the war-torn country. In earlier entries, we highlighted how Sweden, a country that in many ways could serve as a role model for international refugee policy and immigrant integration, has accepted thousands of Iraqis into the country and has offered them generous protection, including the possiblity to become a Swedish citizen five years upon their arrival.

The comparative numbers have always startled and shocked me, and Cohen’s use of them in his recent Op-Ed in the International Herald Tribune, makes the underperformance in this area all that more obvious:

Between January and August this year, Sweden took in 12,259 Iraqis fleeing their decomposing country. It expects 20,000 for all of 2007. By contrast, in the same January-August period, the United States admitted 685 refugees, according to State Department figures.

In January, Sweden admitted 1,500 Iraqis vs. 15 that entered the United States.

In April, the respective numbers were 1,421 and 1; in May, 1,367 and 1; and in August 1,469 and 529.

Cohen goes on to express his frustration with the US government:

“Of all the Iraq war scandals, America’s failure to do more for refugees, including thousands who put their lives at risk for the U.S., stands out for its moral bankruptcy. Last time I checked, Sweden did not invade Iraq. Its generosity shames President Bush’s fear-infused nation.

I know, the U.S. is showering aid (more than $122 million in 2007) on Iraq’s neighbors to help more than two million fleeing Iraqis. It set up a refugee task force in February and, when that faltered, appointed two refugee czars this month.” (..)

“An aggressive American intake of refugees would suggest that their quick return to Iraq is improbable: that smacks too much of failure for Bush. Moreover, you have to scrutinize refugees from countries ‘’infiltrated by large numbers of terrorists,'’ Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff opined recently.”

Note that Sweden seems to be handling that threat just fine.

Slowly but surely, the US government is beginning to understand that it has a potential problem on its hands, as reported “bottlenecks” are preventing Iraqis from coming to the US.

‘’The numbers are totally embarrassing,'’ says Kirk Johnson, who worked for the United States Agency for International Development in Iraq. ‘’We can’t recognize a moral imperative any more.'’

No kidding.

Please, do yourself a favor - read Cohen’s full article. Then pick up a pen, a phone or open that email account. Write to your Representative. Do something. Thousands of Iraqis - mothers, fathers, children - are fleeing a country ravaged by civil war and the invasion. Don’t tolerate this - Speak up!

In a place like Toronto, Canada an interesting situation which rarely exists in many cities in the world is common place in the streets of Canada’s largest city. Immigration is seen as a staple of Canadian society and economy, with over 50% of Toronto being foreign born, but at the same time the divisiveness of institutions in Canada while being open to everyone, does not take into account much of the layered societies which live in the country. Often the Government gives priorities towards larger immigrant groups and avoids addressing smaller immigrant minorities in processes of health, immigration procedures and education.

Institutionally, the Government in the Province of Ontario in Canada offers many programs for new immigrants in society, but when the issue places minority groups against other minority groups the Government has often institutionalised and tried to justify some groups getting funding, while others go without. No other issue makes this evident beyond funding of only Catholic Schools in Ontario. In Ontario it is prohibited for other religions to have access to funding for faith based schools with the justification being that opening funding for faith based schools promotes the “segregation” of people in Canada. Despite this statement it goes without mention from the same Government representatives that their current policy is doing precisely what they are campaigning they are strictly against. While no one is anti-Catholic in any manner, it is completely unjustified to prohibit funding for some groups and not others. This was raised as a problem of inequality in a 1989 UN Report on the issue that suggested that there was no other just measure unless all are funded or none are funded. In addition to this fiasco, the Government two months ago were criticized for funding ethnic communities in Ontario without properly recording the funding going out and to which organizations. The opposition was called on as being anti-immigrant and racist upon questioning Ontario Primier McGuinty, only to find out that in an Official Inquiry into the issue that undocumented funds were given to many minority societies without documentation and with funds well above the requested amounts. This embarrassment of Ontario’s ethnic communities and involvement in a corrupt process has gone unresolved to date. An election highlighting these issues is taking place Oct 10th.

Immigration is also an issue facing Canadians. While most developed countries seek out the best and brightest, Canada’s immigration system often forces the middle class immigrants out of the process and leaves those middle class and below to apply via the refugee system. The current policy also invites highly educated migrants to come to Canada only to make them re-study much of their professional degrees at very high costs and at very long periods of retraining while they are prevented from entering any lucrative labour roles in Ontario society due to lack of Canadian Experience…whatever Canadian experience is…This is the opposite of most other developed countries who seek the best and brightest and let them prosper and grow the economy and country. The result is a lack of Doctors in Ontario as well as thousands of internationally qualified professionals and university educated immigrants driving taxis and living in a state of poverty in downtown Toronto.

In the end, those minorities within larger minorities are dependent on a social system which does not address needs past majorities in society and they are unable to rely on deep social connections to neutralise the negative effects on becoming a newcomer in society. Social connections, whether they exist or not, are also greatly relied upon in the formal immigration system as well. This is often the case of those seeking some support or sponsorship from their larger community in larger cities in Canada when looking for support or sponsorship.

A unique community in Toronto and worldwide, Prithi Yelaja of the Toronto Star wrote an article about Jewish People of Indian Origin and their life in the Greater Toronto Area. While Jewish communities of European and North American origin are often written about and make up the majority of known media and history of the Jewish people in English language and most of Western media, a large number of Jewish people come from what are seen as unlikely places where Jews would exist. The list is broad and includes such countries as Morocco, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, Yemen and India, just to name a small few. Jewish people of Indian origin which number 400 in Toronto and 4,000 in India as mentioned in the article did not know much Anti-Semitism in India, and only in Canada was there the idea of feeling as a true minority in different senses.

A minority in Canada is one common identity that many possess like the Indian Jewish Community of Toronto. While there are differences in society and with institutional issues above, they are still Canadians. There is also an issue of being a minority in the Jewish community in Canada. While many see all Jewish people as being the same, in reality Judaism is a religion which comprises many cultures and can often be confused as being only one culture, or one religion comprising one culture as well. As a minority in a minority however, even a Canadian with such a diverse background might be and often are left out of the folds of decisions made for Ontarians for the majority and those larger minority communities to which are seen as the only important groups for policy considerations. The thousands of other smaller minorities within minorities have to contend with the lack of political power indefinitely until more become citizens and can work to have economic and political pressure groups in society.

With issues such as labour, education and health reflecting Canada’s majorities, issues raised in Constitutions of equalities for all minorities will never be addressed as long as smaller groups and individuals have no political pressure groups in society. While Canada is a good place to live as a minority, not having rights and equality for all minorities, or using them for political games is an abuse of individual rights and respect in a society where most people will soon be born outside of Canada and are often minorities within larger minorities living across the country.

It’s official: the French Senate has voted in favor of a controversial new law that would introduce genetic testing for would-be migrants that want to be reunited with their families in France. The test would be applied only in cases where authorities were unsure of an existing blood relation. The government had introduced the proposal pointing to twelve other EU countries in which this practice is already being applied. We reported the story in an earlier post, including the public outcry the proposal has caused among migrant support groups, such as SOS Racisme, who had launched a petition against article 5 of an entire package of legal measures to curtail immigration to France. The French parliament had already voted in favor of the proposal, though the Senate has watered down immigration minister, Brice Hortefeux’s original plans. Once the Senate has debated all elements of this new immigration law, it goes back to the conciliation committee, though the government is expected to accept the changes the Senate has made to the article 5 provisions.

Let’s take a look at the amendments to the new law:

• Contrary to what was originally proposed, DNA samples will only be collected from those that consent to the procedure.
• Children’s DNA will only be compared to that of their mother to avoid uncovering the paternity of children born out of wedlock, for instance.
• The government, instead of the individual, as was originally proposed, will have to assume the costs of genetic testing

Aside from immigrant rights groups, the African Union has also been vocal in opposing testing. Senagalese President Abdoulaye Wade has criticised the measure calling it a “serious mistake” and “disrespectful to human freedom.”

Immigrants looking to join their families in France will have to prove their French language skills before entry, while resident families will have to prove they earn at least 1300 Euros, i.e. at least minimum wage to support the new arrivals.

Immigration was a key issue in the French Presidential election and these legal changes are to be just the beginning of a crackdown on illegal immigration in the country.

<> More on this story can be found here:

BBC: France approves migrant DNA tests 

France 24: Senate approves DNA testing for immigrants 

That DNA testing can be a controversial way of deciding immigrant status is the topic of this 2006 article in the Washington Post:

DNA Testing a Mixed Bag for Immigrants