The Policy Report: Refugees and Migration - Essay Example

The Policy Report: Refugees and Migration International relations outline the relationships between states through analyzing and formulating foreign policy of a given country. It entails a comprehensive study of different issues such as globalization, nuclear proliferation, refugee and migration, international security, economic development and global finance, international interventions and human rights. The report below entails a research of an international relations issue of refugee and migration where important dilemmas and tensions are identified. Also, recommendations are made in the report that can be used by governments to solve some of the dilemmas. Refugee and migration issue is a broad topic that needs to be viewed in all dimensions of the international relations. It is evident in the current world as it was in existence in previous centuries. One dimension of the international relations regards refugees as people seeking habitable resident since they have escaped or have been forced to leave their residences by a given event. Historically, the concept of refugees was outlined by 1967 protocol by regional conventions in Latin America and Africa to include people who had fled due to war in their home country. The law also offers subsidiary protection to any person who has fled his native country due to war or any external aggression. The same form of protection is practiced on people who are not refugees, but face torture and other degrading, inhuman treatment when they reside in their countries (Betts, A & Loescher, 2011). The first ever international coordination of refugee affairs was as a result of the creation of High Commissioner for Refugees by the League of Nations in 1921. The commission secured about 1.5 million people who had fled from the Russian Revolution of 1917. Also, the role of the commissioner for refugees was evident in1923, when the commission was to take care of 1 million Armenians who left Turkish between the years 1916 to 1923 due to the Genocide experiences. It is apparent that with time the mandate of the commission was expanded as there were other cases of Assyrians and Turkish refugees. One of the significant achievements of the High Commission of Refugees is that it led fourteen countries to ratify the 1933 Refuge Convention and that it was able to assist one million refugees worldwide. All that happened before the commission had financial problems and the high growth of refugees across the globe. Also, the lack of co-operation by some few member states led to its downfall (Dalton, 2005). The formation of the United Nations after the World War II secured the grievances of the refugees as the international community was aware of the crisis. The International Refugee Organization (IRO) was first founded but in the late 1940s it fell out of favor. In the December of 1950, UNHCR was established with the purpose of protecting and supporting refugees at the authority of the United Nations in their resettlement. UNHCR also provides protection to asylum seekers, local communities directly affected by the refugees' movement, Internally Displaced People (IDPs) and the stateless people. Statistics by the United Nations High Commission of Refugees (UNHCR) have shown that, at the end of 2012, there were 15.5 million refugees worldwide, while the number of the IDPs was 28.8 million which is almost double. The increase in the number of IDPs is because of a diversion in the nature of war, in the last few decades. There are now more internal conflicts which have replaced the interstate's wars. This is evident in the missions the UNHCR has in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Serbia and Montenegro, Lebanon, Afghanistan, South Sudan and Iraq (Dalton, 2005). Migration being the movement of human beings from one area to another with the idea of settling in a new area, it has been apparent in the current times. Though, migration can be from one country to another it can also be internal. Migration has continued both in voluntary form and involuntary form of human trafficking and slave trade. International Organization for Migration gave a report in 2010 that estimated that the number of international migrants was estimated to be 220 million in 2013 (Armando, 2008). The increase in the international migration worldwide pose a threat to the international stability and security. This will be more evident in the states that are fragile such as the Middle East, the high region of Africa and the Balkans. Also, the rise of the xenophobic politics in the Western Europe portrayed that even the most of tolerant democracies risk being destabilized politically by the unwanted immigrants. This is because when the immigrants come in a country they will practice their cultural activities and influence the residents and that multiculturalism will bring about disunity. Thus, in this reasoning countries are threatened by globalization from above and multiculturalism from below (OECD, 2012). One of the problems that lead to migration of people is the limited number of jobs that are well paying. In Africa and Latin America there are high numbers of unemployment and due to this the unemployed seek to go to North America, Europe and Australia where there is a high demand of both skilled and unskilled labor. This demand-pull and supply-push tend to encourage international migration. Despite the effort of restricting immigration, the number of immigrants is still rising. The risk reduction done by the immigrants is the use of friends and relatives who are in the destination nation. This makes the transition process easier if they are willing to help. Another challenge faced in the process is the use of social networks which lower costs associated with immigration and making it less risky (OECD, 2012 ). The other problem experienced by the governments in minimizing of the immigrants entering a particular country is the presence of smugglers. It has proven that the more the country makes it difficult for the crossing of its border the migrants are forced to use the smugglers. United States is an example of that as after increasing border patrol and enforcement of security along the border of Mexico. This increased the number of smugglers that were ready to cross immigrants through the border as they could earn more money in the process. Human smuggling exposes the immigrants to harsh conditions. In North Africa cases of immigrants dying as they head to Europe at night due to bad weather in the sea, are apparent. In 2011, about 1,500 people died attempting to cross the Mediterranean. Thus, the human smuggling is still a problem in developed countries in Europe and in North America (Hanlon & Vicino, 2014 ). Human trafficking is another dilemma in the illegal immigration. Though, the international instruments have been implemented to eliminate human trafficking of humans and prosecute those involved in it, keen is needed to control the menace. This is a form of the modern slave trade, which is condemned by the international law. This is because modern slave trade subjects the immigrants to degrading work and other slavery forms such as forced labor and debt bondage. Statistics from the International Labor Organization (ILO) have shown that 12.3 million people are living in forced labor in Asia, Europe, the Americas and in the Middle East (Hanlon & Vicino, 2014 ). In the case of refugees, the dilemma of wars caused by the political instability of a country leads to the increase of refugees who tend to seek refuge in the neighboring countries. The war leads to the scarcity of assessment of the basic human needs such as food and at times the shelters are destroyed. Also in the instant where the government is abusive of the human rights the people tend to leave the country and seek refuge. This was evident in Syria, where the government used nuclear weapons to kill the citizens and thus a large number of people left the country for their safety (Dalton, 2005). The environment is also a factor that has led to the rising numbers of the refugees worldwide. This refers to the victims who cannot be taken back as their homeland is littered with landmines. The result of this is burned crops, mined fields to obstruct enemy movement and the terrorizing of the civilians. Eco-migrants also are affected by the environment as they move to new locations as the resources they entirely depended on have been destroyed and in other times severely degraded. The other eco-migrants is influenced by their cultural practice. They grow a mixture of crops at one site for several years. Later, when the soil is depleted, they move on to a different area and do the same (Zolberg & Benda, 2001). The issue of refugees and migration is becoming a menace with time, and unless it is controlled, it will continue to affect the society worldwide. One of the recommendations is that the laws be set to curb immigration as it is a threat to the country's security, economic stability and the quality of life. That is why Western nations have embraced a system to manage migration pressures as part of their core political, economic and security objectives. Also, the laws made should consider humanity. This strategy may apply whenever the immigrants are arrested, they should not be jailed for life and be put in a docile environment. The laws set should enable them to be deported back safe and sound to their country of origin (Zolberg & Benda, 2001 ). The other recommendation in the controlling of immigrants is that the state should document its citizens and keep their borders in check of any intruders. This also should be followed up by intensive check to those who enter the country through the borders. A unique force should also be created to curb smuggler cartels and ensure there is no any slavery in the country that brings about the demand of human trafficking (Zolberg & Benda, 2001). The minimizing of immigration can also be done when the state can set up projects that will offer jobs both to the skilled and the unskilled. These projects should be set up in both the urban centers and the rural areas so as their citizens are able to improve on their living standards residential areas. Corruption also must be dealt with to give citizens confidence in their government in the developing countries. This will reduce the waste of the public funds and hence the people will benefit. Governments should ensure that there is political stability to avoid people being refugees. This also entails a system that will use dialogue in case of conflict between the opposing parties. The government also should consider humanity by not oppressing its citizens by use of weapons such as nuclear bombs. The government also should coordinate with international organizations such as UNHCR for the refugees well being. In conclusion, it is evident that the rate of immigrants is growing with time. If plans are not set to curb it, the number will continue to increase in the future. The major cause of immigration is the hunger for better economic conditions which make people take high risks reaching their destination. It is also apparent that IDPs are growing more than refugees in the current world as there are more internal conflicts than the interstate conflict. Also, the UNHCR is playing a great role in ensuring the right to liberty of refugees is respected. References Armando, N. (2008). The Immigration Crisis: Nativism, Armed Vigilantism and the rise of a Countervailing Movement. USA: Rowman Altamira. Betts, A & Loescher, G. (2011). Refugees in International Relations. New York: Oxford University Press. Dalton, D. (2005). Refugees & Asylum Seekers. United States: Heinemann library. Hanlon, B & Vicino, J. Thomas. (2014) . Global Migration The Basics. United States of America: Routledge publishes. O.E.C.D. (2012). Free Movement of Workers and Labour Market Adjustment Recent Experiences from OECD Countries and the European Union: Recent Experiences from OECD Countries and the European Union. European Union: OECD Publishing. Zolberg, R. Aristide & Benda, M. Peter. (2001). Global Migrants, Global Refugees: problems and Solutions. USA: Berghahn Books. Read More