MIGRATION AND
POPULATION MOVEMENTS
POLITICIZATION OF CONCEPTS
• Refugee: a person who is outside his/her country of nationality or habitual residence; has a well-founded
fear of persecution because of his/her race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or
political opinion; and is unable or unwilling to avail himself/herself of the protection of that country, or to
return there, for fear of persecution (1951 Refugee Convention).
• Migrant: any person who is moving or has moved across an international border or within a State away from
his/her habitual place of residence, regardless of (1) the person’s legal status; (2) whether the movement is
voluntary or involuntary; (3) what the causes for the movement are; or (4) what the length of the stay is
(IOM).
Categorization example
• Economic migrant: a person who normally leaves a country voluntarily to seek a better life. Should he or she
elect to return home they would continue to receive the protection of their government (UNHCR, 2001).
WHY IS MIGRATION A MATTER OF
SECURITIZATION?
MIGRATION Existential threat Affects the survival of the State
Use of extraordinary measures
i.e. European Union
Cooperation with
Quota system to List of safe countries
Search and rescue Military countries of origin
alleviate pressure to return of failed
missions to prevent intervention to and transit to
on the EU member asylum seekers and
loss of human lives tackle networks of readmit migrants
states which serve undocumented
at sea. smugglers and to tighten
as entry points. migrants.
border controls.
Greece
Tensions between states
Implications of securitising
migration
• From the ‘’Law for Aliens’’ (1991) to naturalising 250.000 immigrants in 2010
to save the economy;
Speech act according to Copenhagen School: it is not just the word ‘’security’’
that is crucial, it is the designation of an existential threat requiring emergency
action. Example:
• Kotsonis (PASOK) in 1991: ‘’Suddenly, Greece started to get flooded with
aliens, who enter, stay and work illegally, creating enormous social problems
for the state, while they inevitably try to solve their own problems by
engaging, sadly, in various criminal activities.’’
• Called immigrants ‘’problems’’ 28 times in his short speech.
Perceived threats of immigration to Greece
• Economic:
- 90% of Greeks think immigrants steal jobs (1993); proven to be not
true; immigrants had a positive influence on Greek economy (kept
inflation down, helped increase GDP and fundings of social security
fund)
• Criminality:
- 77% of Greeks thought people from minority groups were cause of
insecurities (2000); data shows that criminality under immigrants
mostly concerned their legal status
Greece and the European Union
on migration
Italy
1. often the first point of arrival
in Europe;
2. a role as bridge as a result of
the central geographic position.
(Profanter, 2021)
P1:https://data2.unhcr.org/en/situations/mediterranean/location/5205 P2: https://data2.unhcr.org/en/documents/details/89212 P3:https://www.macrotrends.net/countries/ITA/italy/refugee-statistics
the tensions and the threats (Ceyhan & Tsoukala 2002)
1. [political view] a threat to a state’s sovereignty
a security threat
2. [societal view] the freedom of society or societal identity
cultural difference caused social breakdown
the implications of securitising migration (Färber, 2018)
1. As an intersubjective process—The actor
Matteo Salvini’s League & the right-wing Brothers of Italy party, which could top the vote in the
next Italian general election, both construct contrasts between Italians and immigrants by
implying a vague sort of relative deprivation of the former with respect to the latter. (Cubbe, 2021)
the implications of securitising migration-the case of Italy
2. As an intersubjective process—The audience
the implications of securitising migration-the case of Italy
2. As a speech-act event
2.1 Self-referential practice and the performative nature of it.
The misuse and mis-conceptualizing.
● Italy’s former Prime Minister Berlusconi’s speech resorted to the wording ‘human
tsunami’ to refer to the growing number of migrants arriving in Italy in 2011 (Corriere
Della Sera, 2011). Thus, expressions connected to natural disasters serve as a securitarian
element in the politicians’ speech, as they imply that those migrants pose a threat to
internal security (Ferreira, 2018).
● Similarly, another former Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi took a stronger stance
threatening to ‘hurt’ Europe if it remained paralysed in the face of the migratory crisis
(Agence France-Presse, 2015).
They do not merely describe reality, but constitute reality.
the implications of securitising migration-the case of Italy
2.As a speech-act event
2.2 Making securitising moves by justifying extraordinary measures & actions.
The sinking of a vessel carrying over 500
refugees in Lampedusa (Italy) in October
2013 led to the Task Force for the
Mediterranean, which proposed measures
to better address migratory flows (Council
of the European Union, 2013). the most
controversial one was the proposal of a
military action to tackle smuggling in the
Mediterranean.
Salvini blocked a ship, the Open Arms, from docking in a port, forcing it
to anchor off the island of Lampedusa while conditions on board
deteriorated.
the implications of justification and the politics of bounding
Justification:
The countries or the EU itself face severe ‘threats’ to social and political stability and economic
burdens. But for the ‘migrations,’ these actions are discriminatory. So there are paradoxes between
security and human rights.
----But, “If you stand for nothing, Burr, what'll you fall for?” (Hamilton, the musical)
Politics of Bounding:
We need to explicitly engage with the politics of bounding, that is to say, the process by which
categories are constructed, the purpose that they serve and their consequences. (Crawley and
Skleparis, 2018)
SPAIN
https://data2.unhcr.org/en/documents/details/84312
Extraordinary measures
from the Government:
Political speech and
audience’s reaction:
IMPLICATIONS OF SECURITIZATION
INSTRUMENTS OF COOPERATION
Spain and Morocco:
- Police cooperation: Hispano-Moroccan work group on
immigration. (López-Sala, 2009)
- Joint patrols established to fight against traffic on the
western coast of Morocco. (López-Sala, 2009)
- Readmission agreement 1992. (López-Sala, 2009)
- Spain invested in building the capacity of Moroccan
authorities to manage migration, with Morocco
expressing interest in technology that could help
manage its boarders. For this purpose, EU granted 40
million euros in 2004 and another 67 million euros in
2006 to Morocco. (Lixi, 2017)
- Seasonal migration programmes for Moroccan workers
in Spain from 2004 to 2008. (Lixi, 2017)
EU and Morocco:
- 2019: A financing agreement with Morocco for a
budget support programme of €101.7
million supporting border management.
(Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and
Enlargement Negotiations, 2019)
European Commission Report, 2021. Managing Migration: EU Financial Support to Spain.
PUBLIC OPINION
Latest figures
According to DGMM,
Turkey • more than 4.9* million foreign nationals present in
Turkish territory,
• 3.7* million of whom are seeking international
protection:
• Most are Syrians (3,715,913* individuals) who are
granted temporary protection status.
• 31,334 international protection applicants present in
Turkey in 2020 from: Afghanistan, the Islamic Republic of
Iran and Iraq
Latest figures
• The Turkish Coast Guard (TCG) recorded 3,681* irregular
migrants and four fatalities in September 2021.
• The top ten nationalities of apprehended/rescued migrants are
Syrian, Somali, Afghan, Pakistani, Iraqi, Congolese,
Palestinian, Iranian, Djiboutian and Egyptian.
Facts & Figures
Turkey: refugee crisis Official estimate of registered Syrian
refugees in Turkey: Over 2.5 million
Non-Syrian refugees inside Turkey
(including Iraqi, Iranian, Afghan,
Somali and other): some 270 000
(UNHCR, November 2015)
EU humanitarian funding:
European Commission humanitarian funding for Turkey
since the start of the crisis: €71 million
Refugee Facility for Turkey: €3 billion (2016-17)
Securitization analysis: EU and Turkey
Elements The EU and member states Turkey
Syrian refugees Threat to the regional system Guest to the country
Securitizing actors The EU and members AKP, Erdoğan, Davutoğlu (Prime minister
and leader of AKP), AFAD (The Disaster
and Emergency Management
Presidency), conservative democrats
Extraordinary measures EU-Turkey summits, Fences-building, Open door policy, Law on Foreigners and
Border control International Protection, humanitarian
diplomacy, wall-building, border control
EU-Turkey ● Returns: All "irregular migrants" crossing from
Turkey into Greece from 20 March will be sent
Statement (2016) back. Each arrival will be individually assessed
by the Greek authorities.
● One-for-one: For each Syrian returned to
From April 2016 to end of 2020,
Turkey, a Syrian migrant will be resettled in the
2,139 people were readmitted as part of the
EU-Turkey Statement. (UNHCR reports) EU. Priority will be given to those who have not
tried to illegally enter the EU and the number is
capped at 72,000.
● Visa restrictions: Turkish nationals should have
access to the Schengen passport-free zone by
June. This will not apply to non-Schengen
countries like Britain.
● Financial aid: The EU is to speed up the
allocation of €3bn ($3.3 bn; £2.3 bn) in aid to
Turkey to help migrants.
● Turkey EU membership: Both sides agreed to
"re-energise" Turkey's bid to join the European
bloc, with talks due by July.
Public opinion
Public opinion
Turkey can’t bear burden of new migration wave, Erdoğan says
“As a country that has saved human dignity in Syria, we
neither have the means nor the patience to face another
migration wave,”
“We have tragically witnessed once again in Afghanistan
how solutions that ignore reality and collide with the social
fabric of the people ultimately fail. The Afghan people have
been forced to face alone the consequences of instability that
has been ongoing for more than 40 years,”
