Addressing illegal immigration

Sri Lankans have settled down all over the world. Apart from the 1.5 million Sri Lankans employed abroad who generally have to return once their contract and/or visa expires, there are around a million Sri Lankans who (permanently) call foreign lands their home. A few of them do have dual citizenship, but many have more or less given up their ties with Sri Lanka.

Immigration is as old as time or really speaking, human civilization. The movement of people form one continent to another and from one region to another has led to the creation of new civilizations over millennia.

Immigrants have founded whole countries - the USA and Australia are good examples. This is a never-ending process. Worldwide, there are more than 200 million immigrants.

In the modern era, there is a shift for so-called 'greener pastures'. This is a process where people from poor countries try to migrate to the rich countries of the West in search of elusive riches. A whole 'industry' has grown around this dream. In its most basic form, this industry is called human smuggling or trafficking.

There are traffickers who demand thousands of dollars per person for a risky ocean voyage to the West or Australia/New Zealand. Once in those shores, the illegal immigrants are left to their own devices - and fate. The traffickers who organise these trips make enormous profits and sometimes disappear with those funds to unknown destinations so that they cannot be tracked by law enforcement agencies.Sri Lanka is again in the news because two ships allegedly carrying Sri Lankan nationals have been intercepted off the coasts of Canada and Australia (or more correctly Indonesia, the ocean gateway to the latter).While there is evidence that some on board are LTTE members who had escaped the final stages of the war, this is not the first time that ships carrying Sri Lankans of all ethnicities, mostly youth, have been intercepted in foreign waters. This is certainly a blot on our good name.

There are several factors that propel individuals in developing countries to undertake these risky sea voyages where hundreds are crammed into a rickety vessel with little or no margin for safety and hygiene. One factor is a perceived, not real, sense of insecurity in their native countries. Another reason could be the lack of employment opportunities. Some are just driven by a desire to 'make it big' in the West. Most of them never realise that the thousands of dollars they had paid to the trafficker could well have been used for a profitable venture in their native country.Unfortunately, such messages are not properly driven home among the youth, many of whom aspire to earn more in a foreign land. The authorities and the media have a major role to play in convincing the people about the inherent dangers of illegal immigration. The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) frequently conducts awareness programs on this issue in collaboration with the authorities, which the media must highlight.It is important that more employment opportunities are created within the country. Sri Lanka now has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the region, but thousands of youth are deprived of university education and hence, certain employment opportunities due to the present limitations of the university system and admission quirks. There is a clear mismatch between the education system and the needs of the job market. Take any Sunday newspaper and one can find hundreds of vacancies in every sector - but the sad truth is that there only a few takers for most of these jobs. If our education system can be structured in such a way that these needs can be addressed, a lot of youth would prefer to stay here and engage in such vocations.The other approach is the creation of more legal employment opportunities outside the country, especially for the skilled.

In other words, more avenues must be opened for legal migration, be it for employment or permanent settlement. Sri Lanka has traditionally depended on the Middle East for foreign employment. Now the authorities are wisely looking at a range of other countries and signing agreements with some of them for employment. Italy, one of the prime targets of illegal immigrants, is one of those countries. The creation of legal employment opportunities in such countries is a welcome move.

In fact, this brings us to the vital question of a dialogue between the developing and developed worlds over the issue of immigration. Many countries seem to be blocking their borders to all outsiders, legal and illegal.

Europe used to be known as Fortress Europe. This is largely driven by internal politics and a phobia for migrants among the indigenous populations, but such a policy is counterproductive in the long run.Immigrants make a huge contribution to the socio-economic landscapes of their host countries.

These countries must re-examine their border control and immigration policies in view of current developments. Australia, Canada and New Zealand already do have legal immigration programs mainly targeted at skilled personnel in the developing world. The US has the unique Diversity Visa lottery, which grants Green Card status to around 55,000 persons from a select list of countries every year. European countries should closely look at these models and explore the possibility of formulating similar programs, which will help block or reduce attempts at illegal entry. Even those countries with legal immigration policies and programs could possibly vary their parameters to afford more people an opportunity to enter and live in their countries legally.

Both First World and Third World countries should also work together on the issue of political/economic refugees and asylum seekers, who in most cases do not face any kind of persecution in their home countries as they claim to be.Illegal immigration is not an issue that can be wished away or one that will fade away. A concerted effort by all affected countries is needed to address the problem in a manner that balances the aspirations of would be immigrants and the fears of the host countries.