MPI's Migration Information Source Newsletter

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March 15, 2022

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Country Profile
Origin of World's Largest Migrant Population, India Seeks to Leverage Immigration
www.migrationpolicy.org/article/india-migration-country-profile
With nearly 18 million nationals abroad, India is the origin of more international migrants than any other country and claims the world's largest diaspora. Indian emigration can be traced back to the colonial era, with the British empire dispatching Indian workers across the globe, and has evolved for more than a century in response to global labor demands and geopolitical events. This article offers a comprehensive profile of migration from and to India.

Feature
The World Is Witnessing a Rapid Proliferation of Border Walls
[link removed]
The number of border walls globally has multiplied at a rapid clip, from fewer than five at the end of World War II to more than six dozen now, with more under construction. Most of the world's border fortifications have been built since the turn of the millennium, and are intended to accomplish a range of functions. This article charts the remarkable growth and normalization of border walls globally.


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EDITOR'S NOTE

While much of the world's attention has, of course, been focused on the crisis in Ukraine, some important news last week about migration through the Americas may have slipped under the radar. After a meeting with his counterpart from Colombia, U.S. President Joe Biden announced plans for a new hemispheric migration pact for countries across the Western Hemisphere to work together to respond to unexpected and changing patterns of movement.

"Our hemisphere's migration challenges cannot be solved by one nation or any one border. We have to work together," Biden said. "This can't be a piecemeal approach in my view. It needs to include far more support for countries like Colombia that are hosting the lion's share of the refugees and migrants. It is an obligation of all of us, not just Colombia."

The goal is for leaders to sign a Regional Declaration on Migration and Protection at the Summit of the Americas in June, though at this point it is unclear precisely what commitments it could include. In addition to greater support for major countries of first asylum such as Colombia, which is host to nearly 2 million Venezuelans, Biden said the agreement should "dramatically expand access" to refugee resettlement and other legal migration pathways, as well as more aggressively target smugglers and traffickers.

Both Colombia and the United States have offered forms of temporary protected status to Venezuelans, and more than 1.8 million have responded to the legalization offer made by President Iván Duque's government last year. In recent weeks, meanwhile, as the number of Venezuelans caught trying to cross the U.S.-Mexico border without authorization has ballooned, the United States has begun returning those who had previously lived in Colombia back to that country, under the controversial Title 42 public-health order.

The new declaration seems to be apiece with Biden's focus on working with regional governments to better manage migration before large numbers of people reach the U.S. border. The administration has framed this as an attempt to tackle the "root causes" of migration such as endemic poverty, corruption, and violence. It has also used the language of collaboration with Mexico and Central American countries.

Regional collaboration across the Americas has been a major theme for the Migration Policy Institute, too. My colleagues have written at length about the opportunities for countries to work together and the benefits that it could yield for countries of origin and destination, as well as individuals themselves. You can find their work here: www.migrationpolicy.org/programs/regional-migration

In some ways, events in Europe could be instructive. The European Union's solidarity was tested during the refugee and migration crisis of 2015-16. Yet amid a massive exodus of nearly 3 million Ukrainians in less than three weeks since Russia's invasion, EU Member States have spoken as one. So far, the system seems to be responding as well as could be expected. In his remarks with Biden, Duque noted that he has spoken with leaders in Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and elsewhere in Europe about Colombia's responses to Venezuelans in distress. Perhaps both regions might have something to teach each other.

Best regards,

Julian Hattem

Editor, Migration Information Source

[email protected]

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NEW FROM MPI

Straight Path to Legal Permanent Residence for Afghan Evacuees Would Build on Strong U.S. Precedent
www.migrationpolicy.org/news/afghan-adjustment-act-commentary
By Julia Gelatt and Doris Meissner

Promoting the Inclusion of Europe's Migrants and Minorities in Arts and Culture
www.migrationpolicy.org/research/europe-migrants-minorities-arts-culture
By Lucía Salgado and Liam Patuzzi

The Challenge of Coordinating Border Management Assistance between Europe and the Maghreb
www.migrationpolicy.org/research/border-management-europe-maghreb
By Matt Herbert


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HAVE YOU READ?

Can Diaspora Bonds Supercharge Development Investment?
www.migrationpolicy.org/article/diaspora-bonds-supercharge-development-investment

Mexico's Search for Disappeared Migrants Has Evolved, but Challenges Remain
www.migrationpolicy.org/article/mexico-search-disappeared-migrants

Global Demand for Medical Professionals Drives Indians Abroad Despite Acute Domestic Health-Care Worker Shortages
www.migrationpolicy.org/article/global-demand-medical-professionals-drives-indians-abroad


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MEDIA CORNER

Author and commentator Julissa Arce confronts notions of integration and belonging in the United States in "You Sound Like a White Girl: The Case for Rejecting Assimilation."
[link removed]

Iris Beau Segers's "Mobilization against Asylum Seekers in Contemporary Urban Spaces: Not in Our Backyard" is based on ethnographic research of opposition to a center for asylum seekers in Rotterdam.
www.routledge.com/Mobilization-against-Asylum-Seekers-in-Contemporary-Urban-Spaces-Not-in/Segers/p/book/9780367765613

"Immigrant Agency: Hmong American Movements and the Politics of Racialized Incorporation," by Yang Sao Xiong, analyzes former refugees' grassroots efforts in the 1990s and 2000s.
www.rutgersuniversitypress.org/immigrant-agency/9781978824041

"The Routledge Handbook of Refugees in India," edited By S. Irudaya Rajan, collects scholarship on frameworks for responding to refugees and asylum seekers in India.
www.routledge.com/The-Routledge-Handbook-of-Refugees-in-India/Rajan/p/book/9780367531096

Sociologist Philip Kretsedemas examines the U.S. government's approach towards Haitian migrants in "Black Interdictions: Haitian Refugees and Antiblack Racism on the High Seas."
[link removed]

Martin Shaw offers a new lens for viewing Great Britain's departure from the European Union in "Political Racism: Brexit and its Aftermath."
www.agendapub.com/books/194/political-racism


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