Migration: In Search of Conceptual Clarity

1
Migration In Search of Conceptual Clarity

• Migration, Globalisation, Security and
  Development
• Organised by SAMReN and RMMRU
• Supported by DFID and University of Sussex DRC
• 19-29 November 2005
• Tasneem Siddiqui
• Professor, Dept. of Political Science
• and
• Chair, RMMRU
• University of Dhaka

2
Sessions objectives

• To reflect with participants on all types of
  population movements that fall under the broad
  concept of migration
• To develop appreciation on complexities of
  migration
• Methodology
• Lecture
• Reflection on case studies by participants

3
Defining Migration

• Defining migration has become extremely difficult
• Extremely hard to distinguish from one type of
  migration from others
• Broad definition
• Movements of people from one place to another
  within or beyond national boundaries, in search
  of better life, livelihood or to avoid threat to
  life or livelihood, with or without permission of
  concerned states or regions.

4

• Migration takes place within the boundary of a
  state or outside the national boundary.
• It may be permanent or temporary in nature
• People may choose to migrate voluntarily or
  pushed to migrate
• It can take place within the purview of the laws
  of the concerned states or outside the legal
  framework of states

5
Reflection on case studies by the participants
6
Internal Migration

• Definition
• When individuals move their place of residence
  within the boundary of their own country
• Type
• On the basis of geography
• Rural to rural, rural to urban, urban to urban
  and urban to rural
• On the basis of time of stay
• Permanent, temporary, seasonal and circular
• On the basis of nature of movement
• Voluntary or forced

7
International migration

• Definition
• Movement of people from one country to another in
  order to take up employment, establish new
  residence or to seek refuge against persecution
• Type
• Typology of Appleyard (1991) and Rogers (1992)
• Permanent settlers
• Legally admitted and granted right to stay
  indefinitely in the country of destination
• Documented labour migrants
• granted limited permission to stay for specific
  period
• to conduct specific economic activity
• maintain family, permanent place of residence in
  origin country

8

• Undocumented labour migrants
• Not authorized by sending/receiving countries to
  leave, enter or stay
• No legal status in the country of origin
• Asylum seeker
• Appeals for refugee status on ground of fears of
  persecution
• Refugee
• Granted permission to stay in destination country
  owing to well-founded fears of persecution

9

• Typology of Ghosh (1992)
• Survival migrants
• Opportunity seeking migrants
• Persons fleeing persecution
• Environmental migrants
• Typology on the basis of nature
• Voluntary migration
• Forced migration

10
New types

• Diaspora
• Communities of migrants settled permanently in
  and owing allegiance to host countries, at the
  same time aware of their origin an identity and
  maintaining linkage with their country of origin
  and other diasporic communities of same origin.
• Transnationalism
• Migrants living in two spaces, host and origin,
  at the same time

11
Agents of migration

• Licensed recruiting agencies
• Unlicensed recruiting agencies
• Sub-agents of recruiting agencies
• Human smugglers
• Traffickers
• Travel agencies
• Social network of migrants