Migration, Globalisation and Human Security - Routledge Research in Population and Migration No.2

Synopsis

In recent years international migration has become a growing political issue in many countries, and a major topic of international debate. In the 1960s, only a handful of countries, mainly the traditional immigration nations in North America and Oceania, were significantly affected by international migration, but by the 1990s virtually every nation was influenced in some way by immigration or emigration of various kinds. As more and more migrants cross inter-state boundary lines, governments are realising that immigration and asylum problems cannot be separated from broader socio-economic and political issues. Attempts to develop multilateral strategies to ease international tensions arising from uncontrolled migration are complicated by economic disparities, regional political tensions and mounting population and ecological pressures. Internal migration, particularly in terms of forced resettlement and urbanisation, also gives rise to a myriad of problems relating to aspects of security. Until recently, the question what is security? was rarely asked in the context of these developments. Migration, Globalisation and Human Security looks at a range of security and human security issues related to the displacement of civilian populations and shows how the tenuous existence of migrants can lead to a myriad of human security threats. Providing major theoretical analyses of recent migration trends and in-depth case studies, this book shows that a redefinition of the notion of human security is now needed. Elisabeth Abiri University of Goteborg, Sweden; Richard Bedford University of Waaikato, New Zealand; Richard Davies Nottingham Trent University, England; John Glenn So