The Purpose and Effectiveness of the International Organization of Migration in the 21st - Essay Example

? The Purpose and Effectiveness of the International Organization of Migration in the 21st Century Table of Contents Introduction 3 Overview of the IOM 4 Function of the IOM 6 The 21st Century 9 The New Economic World 13 Discussion 15 Conclusion 17 Works Cited 18 Armour, Stephanie. Some foreign household workers enslaved. USA Today. 21 November 2001. Web. 10 September 2011. 18 The Purpose and Effectiveness of the International Organization of Migration in the 21st Century Introduction The International Organization for Migration was originally structured to help facilitate the migration of those who had become displaced due to the consequences of World War II. The purpose of the organization is defined by the structures of migration, provisions for movement from one region to another through organization of temporary facilities, paperwork, permanent housing, and employment opportunities all falling under the purview of the intended Interaction with governments and providing solutions for political issues that occur during the process are also under the responsibilities of the organization (Westra 239). However, the needs of the 21st century have changed dramatically since the initial needs that gave cause to form the organization. In looking at the state of migration and the political climate in which it takes place, the nature of the current problems emerge and begin to form a global reference point from which to better understand the organization. The organization was first created in order to help refugees from the aftermath of World War II to find their way back to a safe and supportive environment from the chaos of destruction and a war torn economy. Established in 1951, the organization helps those in need to navigate the policies and requirements for moving from one region to another. However, the needs of the 21st century are dramatically different than the needs that first inspired the development of the organization in its early years. Migration is now a part of a world in which fear of ‘other’ has increased, providing for a hostile environment for migration. Although this fear has always existed, legislation and policies throughout the Western world has made migration difficult and the IOM has a daunting task in facilitating the smooth transition of those in need of help with migration. Overview of the IOM The IOM is a national organization that works with multiple governments in order to facilitate the movement of people from one region to another. According to the description that the IOM presents on the website, “From its roots as an operational logistics agency, it has broadened its scope to become the leading international agency working with governments and civil society to advance the understanding of migration issues, encourage social and economic development through migration, and uphold the human dignity and well-being of migrants” (IOM). This statement also suggests the objectives of the organization, the facilitation of migration through cooperation and connections between governments. The organization has eight regional offices in Dakar, Senegal, Pretoria, South Africa, Cairo, Egypt, San Jose, Costa Rica, Buenos Aires, Argentina, Bangkok, Thailand, Brussels, Belgium, Vienna, Austria from which coordination is arranged for those in need of services (IOM). Two special liaison offices out of New York and Addis Abba are used to form relationships non-governmental entities as well as multilateral bodies. There are more than 240 offices worldwide that help to connect people to the regional offices and to analyze and make recommendations about the local problems in migration as well as two administrative centers in Panama and Manilla which provide IT support for the overall organization. Six country offices in Nairobi, Canberra, Bangkok, Rome, Astana and Guyana support and coordinate regions of the relative needs, while four more offices in Tokyo, Berlin, Helsinki and Washington, D.C provide fund raising support so that the financing of the work that is done through the IOM can be accomplished (IOM). The financing of the work done by the IOM is funded by 97% through voluntary contributions that are earmarked for projects. Member states fund the rest of the budget which is used for administrative costs and to maintain the structure of the organization. The governing of the organization is done through a council made up of appointed individuals from the member states. The member states work together in order to achieve the goals of the IOM through cooperation and program administration. Each member state has one individual on the council and one vote. The organization has a three tier ruling structure in which the Council, the Executive Committee, and the Administration all work together towards mutual goals. The Standing Committee on Programs and Finance is the current entity that is concerned with budgetary issues and is available for membership from anyone in the membership (IOM). While it is an autonomous organization, it is connected through the needs of its members, the idea of the organization supported by its service to its members in helping to suggest policy and make positive change (IOM). The IOM uses both effective communication through rhetoric based articles, reports and promotion as well as real world powers towards influencing changes in policies and through facilitation of migration for individuals which significantly changes lives. Because the organization has had to be flexible to create meaningful influence and action in a world that has changed dramatically since the organization was first established, the entity has shown that it has a great capacity for change. Function of the IOM Migration is a constant and pervasive issue that has created caution and prejudice throughout history as people of one region move to another region. As a people from one culture moves into a region with people of another region, suspicion and distrust are often a part of the emotions and policies that define the experience. The reasons behind migration are many, but the most common reasons are displacement and economic struggles. War or natural disasters can displace people from their homes, creating a necessity to find a new place to reside. As well, when one region is not supporting the local inhabitants and causing economic hardships, this too will provide an incentive for migration. Most often, the circumstances that support a migratory move are not pleasant, thus the need for transitional help can be vital during the process. The International Organization of Migration (IOM) was created in order to help people of one region relocate into another in order to support a more successful and beneficial life experience. The IOM lists on their website as their basic and primary function, the following statement: “With 132 member states, a further 17 states holding observer status and offices in over 100 countries, IOM is dedicated to promoting humane and orderly migration for the benefit of all. It does so by providing services and advice to governments and migrants” (IOM). There are four basic areas of need in which the organization functions: development, facilitation, regulation, and forced migration (IOM). Through these four broad sections of migratory systems, the IOM helps to manage the incidents of migration. Development refers to the development of programs within which different sectors of the world population can benefit from growth that facilitates movement from one area into another. Programs that target migrating women, labor programs aimed to build labor forces where needed, and addressing capacity issues with governments area all under the purview of the IOM. The IOM provides facilitation help to governments in order to create better systems for migration, as well as help migrants to navigate those systems. Systems for language and cultural orientation programs, training, and integration all fall under the facilitation sector of the organization. One of the more important functions of the IOM is to help in creating and formatting policies that protect against human trafficking and smuggling. The final category is based upon the need for governments to be advised in policy problems that are creating difficulties and barriers to migration. The goal is to “enable states and other stakeholders to respond to and plan for migration effectively and in a sustainable way” (IOM). The IOM was born from the chaos of World War II from which 11 million people found themselves displaced and without a home and no way to regain any financial stability in a war ravaged Europe. The Provisional Intergovernmental Committee for the Movement of Migrants from Europe (PICMME) was the first name that was given to the organization, and successions of names were used until it finally settled on the current moniker. The original mandate was defined by the need to find suitable countries that were willing to take the refuges in order to facilitate new lives for those who had their lives torn apart. The organization was able to find transportation for almost a million of those displaced people during the 1950s towards new and hopeful lives (IOM). The initial purpose of the IOM was to provide for those who were left bereft of basic needs through the ravages of war. Through interaction with governmental agencies and through working with policies to provide for the urgency with which these displaced members of society were struggling, the organization found a need that was desperate to be filled. In creating relationships with a variety of nations and states that both needed and could fulfill the needs of those who found purpose in their lives through migration, the agency has developed a system of networks through which to facilitate the best possible outcomes for migrants (Gibney and Hansen 260). The nature of the organization has had to change with the changing political climate and the nature of the world in regard to migration. Globalization that has provided for world economies has shifted some of the reasons for migration from desperation to opportunity as new jobs are no longer available in some regions of the world and must be transnational and developed through integrations of cultures. Emerging markets in China and India are creating migration into those regions to fill the positions that are opening up as the developing nations are working towards meeting production levels of the West and need experienced and knowledgeable people to fill key positions to support these emerging industries. As well, the climate changes in the world have changed local economies and cataclysmic natural disasters have created the need for populations to find other regions in which to live (Challen 8). A volatile world has emerged that stretches much farther than the original countries that need help with migration in the 1950s and the organization has had to grow to accommodate those needs. The 21st Century According to a speech given by Antonio Guterres, “the movement of people is becoming more and more complex, and the areas of the world that are still free for exploration are becoming smaller and smaller” (Guterres). Encapsulated in this statement is the core of the problems with a globalized world where the monetary system is the controlling element to finding space in which to live. Because the natural resources of most areas of the world are monopolized by industry and land has become something that is owned, finding a place to live has become difficult for cultures that are still developing and have yet to meet the standards of living of the Western world. Stripping cultures of local economic stability has created pockets of poverty throughout the world that has left individuals bereft of resources for survival. The globalized market has created an issue of labor, and in this issue is the problem that is defined by ‘irregular’ movement by Guterres. As most people consider this as illegal movement Guterres shows that movement is a result of the equation created by supply and demand. Where there is a need for labor, those willing to fulfill that needs will gravitate towards it. This has opened up the door for human traffickers and smugglers, their illegal activities defined by need. People will go where there is work, whether or not there is a legal method of entry towards that work or if they must use ‘irregular’ means. Because there is a demand for labor, there will continue to be movement and Guterres suggests “with its present demographics and global trends, there will be an inevitable and meaningful migration flow into Europe in the coming decades. And it would be better to see this happen in a regular way, a legal way, than to count on smugglers to provide this service to the international community, with all the dramatic violations of human rights and enormous suffering that people endure today”. While Guterres was referring to migration into Europe, this same sentiment can be applied to the migration that occurs into the United States. The problems that face those who are motivated to migrate involve the difficulty in obtaining legal entry into a country added with the motivation to follow the work that will best take care of their family. As the IOM enters the 21st century, there has already been proof that the services provided by the organization are needed. In 1998 there were 67 states involved with the IOM, but by 2006 that number had increased to 2006 with 20 additional states held in observer status (Isaacs 16). The large number of states that have involved themselves with the organization shows that an increased need for an intermediary agency has emerged as the 21st century has developed. The biggest obstacles that the IOM is still facing in the 21st century are combating prejudices that are built on false myths. The three most common myths are that migrants drive down wages, that they are stealing jobs of indigenous populations, and that they are creating undue burdens on the social systems of the host nations. According to a book on the topic published by the International Organization for Migration, these myths have been shown to be false, the types of jobs taken by migrants having little to no impact on the opportunities of national citizens. Jobs that are based upon service, such as child care, housekeeping, and agricultural field work rarely involve displacing people within a culture in order to fill those positions with migrants. Migrants typically take jobs that are not desirable to local populations, thus filling the labor needs within a country. Studies done by the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, there is no correlation between unemployment and migration (International Organization for Migration 12). One of the worst problems facing the IOM during the 21st century is that of human trafficking. The concept of human trafficking was a difficult problem for the IOM in regard to definition. Human trafficking was originally defined in the 1990s as the illegal movement of people from one location to another for the purposes of profit. This definition had to be refined as the 21st century dawned, the problem with the definition being based upon the lack of reference to the idea of exploitation, thus making it indistinguishable from smuggling. Smuggling people is done through organized efforts to bring people from one area into another without addressing the legal migration issues (Gallagher 19). Trafficking is done through the usurpation of freedom and forcing those trafficked into slave or slave like positions that economically trap them without recourse towards freedom. Women brought over and forced into prostitution, children made into domestic slaves, and men put into labor camps with high buy out costs all fall under the human trafficking problems. The issue of human trafficking is a problem that is seen throughout the world, a term that is often not recognized for its meaning in that it refers to modern day slavery (Hart 5). Although it sounds like a remote problem, human trafficking happens in Europe, the United States, and throughout all of the Western countries as well as in nations of Africa, the Middle East and the East. Human trafficking includes everything from boys forced into slavery in West Africa to work the cocoa been farms to the use of children from developing countries for slave domestic help in United States suburbia. The case of human trafficking is almost always started through the need of individuals from an impoverished population to find economic relief. The case of Sandra Bearden is an example of this problem. Sandra Bearden lived in a suburb of Laredo, Texas and was in search of a domestic servant to take care of her home. Bearden when to Vera Cruz, Mexico and engaged an arrangement with a family to take their twelve year old girl to the United States in order to give her a better home and an education as well as a job in her home. When the child was found, she was chained to a pole in the backyard where she spent her ‘free’ time after long days of work that included torture when it was not accomplished to the satisfaction of Bearden (Bales and Soodalter 4). According to the police, this was the worst case of domestic slavery that had seen – indicating that it was not the only case of domestic slavery they had been called to deal with during their time as police officers (Armour). In the cocoa bean fields of West Africa, the most important crop of that region providing more than 70% of the world’s cocoa bean crops is a terrible story of terror and slavery (United Nations Publications 18). According to Satre, there are as many as 15,000 slaves working the fields that provide cocoa for the world’s fetish for chocolate. The slaves are mostly young boys, held in camp conditions, beaten when they do not work quickly enough, and held close to starvation. The Western world is obsessed with chocolate, the UK spending more than 1/3 more on chocolate than on bread and 8.5 billion dollars per year being spent in the United States annually (222). The world is getting their chocolate fix on the backs of children who have been stolen from their homes, put into slavery, and denied basic human needs in order to facilitate the cultivation of the cocoa bean crops. These examples show that the world is a place in which terrible things are happening to people who are in dire economic states. The IOM is centrally fixed on creating policies that minimize the consequences of people trying to find a better life and facing unscrupulous individuals who will take advantage of their vulnerability. Most of the human trafficking cases in the world are a result of someone wanting to migrate to another country in order to improve their economic situation. Globalization has created free trade, but it has not created a more free system of the movement of people. Because the world economy has opened up borders to goods without opening up the borders to people, the continuation of the problems of smuggling humans across borders and dealing in human trafficking have been exacerbated. According to Shelley, “Without integration of the human dimension, human smuggling and trafficking are perpetuated” (304). The New Economic World One of the aims of the IOM is to help to facilitate the reduction of human trafficking and smuggling is to lower restrictions on migration so that short term and long term migration can more easily be accomplished without individual feeling the need to resort to illegal means that leave them vulnerable to exploitation (Shelley 304). Traditionally throughout the world, the North is more industrialized than the South, but in efforts to develop the South, a repressed state is emerging in which labor is forced under undesirable circumstances. This is encouraging a shift to the North, migration being developed through the desire to avoid unworkable conditions as land and resources are being used through means that strip the land rather than encourage sustainability. If borders were more open, equalization could occur where the desperation of the Southern regions of the world would ease and the use of labor could be more fairly balanced (Gereffi, Spener, and Bair 127). The problems that have been observed for the exploitation of migrants through smuggling and human trafficking are the direct result of a freedom of trade that is not accompanied by a freedom of human movement (Shelley 304). Displacement in the 21st century has changed. War and climate are still viable answers for the reasons that people move from one place to another, but the primary reason for movement is because of the world economy and the way in which cultures are becoming homogenized without an equal level of advantages available to every culture (Bigman 37). As stated, while trade is open, movement is not, thus the demands for labor and those willing to fulfill those needs are colliding against governmental policies that are preventing them from moving to the areas where there is a need. According to a report done for the UNHCR (the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees), “In an era of globally structured change and the increasing interconnections of international and local affairs, advancing integration of even remote societies into a global system of commerce, migration and production is apparent, supported by technologies of communication and transportation far more efficient and more difficult to know about and control than traditional means” (UNHCR). Bringing the availability of the world to the doors of its citizens requires that the borders be opened for migration from regions in need to those of plenty in order to support the economic changes. The report to the UNHCR also states that globalization will depend on open borders in order to create the flow of human services that are needed to support the global economic changes. The development of nations that are currently without the same standards of living enjoyed by more developed areas is a concern that promotes the homogenization of cultures in order to create a more freely open economic advantage. The idea of cultural homogenization is not necessarily a healthy vision for the world. The cultural losses that occur as the Western market overwhelms other nations with iconic brands produce a Westernized version of their world (Wilkie 109). However, with closed borders and open trade, the people of the world find themselves in a vice and unable to adequately interact with the globalized system. The beginning of free trade has become the beginning of a new form of oppression that is creating deeper poverty in some regions of the world as the richer areas are becoming obscenely wealthy on the backs of those who have no recourse in movement. Discussion The new displaced people of the world are defined by their position in a world economy that has not been designed for the freedom of people, but for the freedom of trade only. With this limitation, the nature of movement has been reduced to a straightjacket in which it is difficult and strenuous to accomplish migration through legal means. Thus, the problem with smuggling and human trafficking is directly related to free trade (Aronowitz 26). In order to work with these problems, the IOM is required to deal with a multitude of nations that now are involved in a free trade system that has oppressed the human element. The nature of the increases in membership that the IOM has experienced is due to the development of free trade that has raised the demand on labor until it has impacted the nature of migration. There are interconnections of problems due to free trade begetting the need for migration, which is then restricted by governmental policies, then connected to human trafficking and smuggling. This vicious cycle has become a system in which people of the world are struggling to find a way in which to deal with their economic struggles and the opportunities that they perceive in other nations. The primary focus of the IOM is on ending this difficulty, but in order to do this there must be activity on multiple fronts that will support the overall success of the efforts. Through effective policy change and in showing the nations of the world that the fears that come with migration policies that are lenient are unwarranted, the goals will be achieved in opening the borders so that the issues that come from free trade can be concluded within the human element that is attached. Conclusion The nature of migration is defined by the collision of cultures which creates difficulties where misunderstandings and fear close borders in order to create a protective layer between a nation and the outside world. An organization like the IOM is dedicated to finding ways to smooth down those borders so that the need for migration can be fulfilled in order to support the many reasons why an individual would have the need to cross into a new nation. There are many reasons that an individual may choose to migrate to a new area. War and climactic change, as well as natural disasters can all contribute to the reasons that people will choose to migrate. Migration in the 21st century, however, is occurring due to the globalization of the economy, creating problems where migration policies have not caught up with the needs of companies and nations to facilitate the new economy. The IOM is involved in creating help for nations and for individuals as the issue of migration continues to be a vital and important problem. The organization is worldwide with a large membership and a governing body that equally represents that membership. Through an organization that is dedicated to creating equal access to opportunity through migration, influences on policy decisions is an important power that is maintained through fair representation within the governing parties. In approaching the problems through a network of understandings, through collecting meaning from the perspectives of many nations, the IOM is approaching the problems of migration through an even handed approach to the issue. The IOM is an organization that strives to create worldwide movement through open borders that reflect global economic needs. Works Cited Armour, Stephanie. Some foreign household workers enslaved. USA Today. 21 November 2001. Web. 10 September 2011. Aronowitz, Alexis A. Human Trafficking, Human Misery: The Global Trade in Human Beings. Westport, Conn: Praeger, 2009. Print. Bales, Kevin, and Ron Soodalter. The Slave Next Door: Human Trafficking and Slavery in America Today. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2009. Print. Bigman, David. Globalization and the Least Developed Countries: Potentials and Pitfalls. Wallingford, UK: CABI, 2007. Print. Caparini, Marie and Otwin Marenin. Ethics and Communication at Border Points. UNHCR. 2011. Web. 9 September 2011. Challen, P. C. Migration in the 21st century: How will globalization and climate change affect migration and settlement?. New York: Crabtree Pub. Company, 2010. Print. Gereffi, Gary, David Spener, and Jennifer Bair. Free Trade and Uneven Development: The North American Apparel Industry After Nafta. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2002. Print. Gibney, M. J., & Hansen, R. (2005). Immigration and asylum: From 1900 to the present. Santa Barbara, Calif: ABC-CLIO. Guterres, Antonio. “People on the Move: The Challenges of Displacement in the 21st Century" - International Rescue Committee UK Annual Lecture by Mr. Antonio Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Royal Geographical Society, London, 16 June 2008”. UNHCR. 16 June 2008. Web. 11 September, 2011. Gallagher, A. T. The international law of human trafficking. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2010. Print. Hart, Joyce. Human Trafficking. New York: Rosen Pub, 2009. Print. International Organization for Migration. World migration 2005: Costs and benefits of international migration. New Delhi: IOM, 2006. Print. IOM. International Organization for Migration, 2011. Web. 27 August 2011. Isaacs, A. K. Immigration and Emigration in Historical Perspective. Pisa: Edizioni Plus, Pisa University Press, 2007. Print. Mosk, Carl. Trade and Migration in the Modern World. New York: Taylor and Francis, Inc, 2005. Print. Satre, Lowell J. Chocolate on Trial: Slavery, Politics, and the Ethics of Business. Athens OH: Ohio University Press, 2005. Print. Shelley, Louise I. Human Trafficking: A Global Perspective. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010. Print. United Nations Publications. Human Rights Translated: A Business Reference Guide. Melbourne, Australia: Castan Centre for Human Rights Law, 2008. Print. Westra, Laura. Environmental Justice and the Rights of Ecological Refugees. London: Earthscan, 2009. Print. Wilkie, Robert. The Digital Condition: Class and Culture in the Information Network. New York: Fordham University Press, 2011. Print. Read More