UN Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs,
with support from the UN Population Fund (UNFPA)
|
| UN Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, with support from the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) |
|
MIGRATION NEWS
Vol. 3, No. 12 December, 1996
Migration News summarizes the most important immigration
and integration developments of the preceding month.
Topics are grouped by region: North America, Europe, Asia
and Other.
There are two versions of Migration News. The paper edition
is about 8,000 words in length, and the email version about
15,000.
The purpose of Migration News is to provide a monthly summary
of recent immigration developments that can be read in 60
minutes or less. Many issues also contain summaries and
reviews of recent research publications.
Distribution is by email. If you wish to subscribe, send
your email address to: Migration News
<migrant@primal.ucdavis.edu>
Current and back issues may be accessed via Internet on the
Migration News Home Page--- http://migration.ucdavis.edu
There is no charge for an email subscription to Migration
News. A paper edition is available by mail for $30 domestic
and $50 foreign. Make checks payable to UC Regents and send
to: Philip Martin, Department of Agricultural Economics,
University of California, Davis, California 95616 USA.
Migration News is produced with the support of the University
of California-Berkeley Center for German and European
Studies, the German Marshall Fund of the United States, and
the Pew Charitable Trusts.
Editor: Philip Martin
Managing Editor: Cecily Sprouse
Department of Agricultural
Economics,
University of California, Davis
Davis CA 95616
Tel (916) 752-1530
Fax: (916) 752-5614
ISSN 1081-9916
NORTH AMERICA
VOTING AND NATURALIZATION
WELFARE/IMMIGRATION REFORM IMPLEMENTATION
MEXICAN MIGRANTS ON THE CHICKEN TRAIL
LEGAL IMMIGRATION CHANGES?
INS ENFORCEMENT
MEXICO AND GUATEMALA
RELIGION AND IMMIGRATION
IMMIGRANT INTEGRATION
EUROPE
EU IMMIGRATION
GERMANY: BOSNIA, ASYLUM AND VIETNAMESE
FRANCE AMENDS 1993 IMMIGRATION LAW
IMMIGRANTS IN EASTERN EUROPE
MIGRANT SMUGGLING
RUSSIANS SEEK ASYLUM IN NORWAY
AUSTRIA TIGHTENS BORDER CONTROLS
IRELAND'S IMMIGRANTS
SWEDEN'S REFUGEE LAW
ASIA
JAPAN COPES WITH ILLEGAL FOREIGNERS
CHINA-HONG KONG BORDER
APEC MEETS IN MANILA
FOREIGN WORKERS IN SINGAPORE
SOUTH KOREA CONTENDS WITH FOREIGN WORKERS
TAIWAN STRUGGLES TO CONTROL FOREIGN WORKERS
OTHER
CHILD LABOR AND SLAVERY
POPULATION GROWTH, URBANIZATION AND TOURISM
INDIA/BANGLADESH
FOREIGN WORKERS IN THE MIDDLE EAST
RESOURCES
THE ATLANTIC: CAN THE US AFFORD IMMIGRATION?
_______________________________
NORTH AMERICA
_______________________________
Voting and Naturalization
On the basis of exit polls, the New York Times reported that
83 percent of those voting in November 1996 were white, 10
percent were African-American, five percent were Hispanic and
one percent were Asian. About 6.6 million Hispanics were
registered to vote in November 1996, including 2.1 million in
California and 1.6 million in Texas.
Exit polls after the November 5, 1996 election found that 71
percent of Hispanic voters supported Clinton, a sharp jump
from the Latino vote for Clinton in 1992 and a sign, some
analysts said, that Latinos were voting against Republicans
because of their support for anti-immigration proposals.
Republicans are divided over immigration; the party includes
both close-the-border and open-the-border extremes. The
open-border proponents said "I told you so" when many
Hispanic and Asian voters said that they voted for Clinton
because of some Republicans anti-immigrant rhetoric.
Hispanics are about 26 percent of the California population
and they cast about 1.4 million votes, accounting for 11 to
13 percent of the vote in California in November 1996, up
from 10 percent in 1992, and seven percent in 1988. There
are now 14 Latino representatives in the 80-seat California
Assembly. The Democrats, who retook control of the Assembly,
elected Cruz Bustamante of Fresno as their first Latino
speaker.
Latinos cast 16 percent of the November 1996 vote in Texas
and 12 percent in Florida, up from 10 and 11 percent in
November 1992.
On November 1, 1996, House Republicans asked the US Attorney
General to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the
Immigration and Naturalization Service's Citizenship USA
program. The program was launched in August 1995 to
eliminate the backlog of naturalization applicants.
In their letter requesting the special counsel, the five
Republican congressmen said that "The Clinton administration,
motivated by the belief that a large number of new citizens
... (would benefit) the Clinton-Gore ticket in the upcoming
elections, put heavy and continuous pressure on the INS to
naturalize as many new citizens as possible."
l/ Foreigners wishing to become naturalized US citizens must
pay $95 and have lived in the US for at least five years (or
three, if they are married to a US citizen), be of good moral
character (no felony convictions), be of sound mind and speak
and understand English (unless they are elderly or disabled).
A fee of $95 is charged. They must pass a 10- to 12-question
test on US history and civics based on a list of 100
questions and answers provided by the INS, among them: "What
is the White House?" "Where is the White House located?" and
"Name one right guaranteed by the First Amendment."
The INS is revising the test and welcomes suggestions:
Citizenship USA, 425 I St. NW, Washington, DC 20536. The
test is available at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpsrv/national/daily/nov/18/cit
izen.htm
Paul Gigot, "Anti-immigrant reckoning comes ahead of
schedule," Wall Street Journal, November 22, 1996. William
Booth, "The US Citizenship Test: Learning, And Earning, Their
Stripes," Washington Post, November 17 1996. Patrick
McDonnell and George Ramos, "Latinos Make Strong Showing at
the Polls," Los Angeles Times, November 8, 1996. Lori
Rodriguez, "Latinos Vote in Record Numbers," Houston
Chronicle, November 7, 1996. Eric Brazil, "Immigrant voter
push put to test," San Francisco Examiner, November 5, 1996.
Guillermo Garcia, "O.C. group vows to watch for voting by
noncitizens," Orange County Register, November 2, 1996.
_______________________________
Welfare/Immigration Reform Implementation
About 1.5 million of the nation's four million adult welfare
recipients are likely to lose welfare benefits in the next
few years and an additional 800,000 will lose their food
stamps. Beginning on December 1, 1996, each state will
receive a Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Block
Grant--a lump sum amount that will not change for five years.
One-third of the aged recipients of Supplemental Security
Income are non-US citizens. Two-thirds of the non-citizen
elderly on SSI are in California, New York and Florida.
The INS is likely to be asked to permit a number of state
programs to access its data base to determine the legal
status of applicants for state benefits.
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Archer (R-Texas)
in November asserted that he would oppose Clinton
administration efforts to allow non-US citizens to continue
to obtain welfare benefits. The Ways and Means Committee's
Green Book says that the US spent $4.5 trillion on "means-
tested programs" between 1968 and 1994.
California. California in November made plans to make
illegal aliens ineligible for benefits funded by state taxes
after December 1, 1996, including prenatal care for pregnant
women. Among the programs whose clients may be asked about
their immigration status are those for early breast-cancer
detection; child-abuse prevention; foster care; abortion and
family planning services; and assistance for the deaf and
disabled.
California will cut welfare payments for 2.7 million
recipients on January 1, 1997, by 4.9 percent to $565 for a
family of three in urban areas, and by 9.8 percent to $538
for a family of three in 41 rural counties. Welfare checks
written in December 1996 count against the maximum two years
and then work, and maximum five years of lifetime assistance
limits.
California counties are holding hearings to determine
whether to begin requiring proof of legal US residence before
providing services at tax-funded county clinics. If the
counties turn away illegal aliens, they will have to get
medical services either in hospital emergency rooms or in
private "free clinics." In Sacramento county, for example,
an estimated 630 unauthorized aliens received medical care at
county clinics in 1995, at an estimated cost of $300,000.
All persons were made eligible for services at county
hospitals in 1982.
Texas. In Texas, leaders of the border county of Zavala
believe that the new welfare law will bring hardship. Zavala
County has the highest percentage of Texas residents
receiving Aid to Families With Dependent Children, is third
in Texas in the proportion of food stamp recipients and
fourth in the percentage of Supplemental Security Income
beneficiaries. The $281 average weekly wage in the county is
half the state average, reflecting the fact that most
residents are seasonal agricultural workers. More than 90
percent of the students in the Crystal City school district
cannot afford 75 cents for lunch.
Economists see little hope for job creation in the area.
One town resident observed that even if 10 million jobs were
created in the area, 12 million people would move up from
central Mexico to take the jobs.
Massachusetts. The state estimates that the new welfare law
will eliminate AFDC, Food Stamp and disability benefits for
30,000 legal immigrants. The state plans to use some of its
$80 million windfall under the new welfare law to create
state-funded programs that will assist legal immigrants.
Poverty. In 1995, some 36 million US residents, 14 percent
of the population, lived in households with incomes below
poverty level. The poverty line-- calculated as three times
what a family needs to spend to eat-- was $15,569 for a
family of four and $12,158 for a family of three in 1995.
The median household income was $34,076 in 1995, meaning that
half of the nation's 100 million households had higher and
half had lower incomes.
For the first time, the Census Bureau released poverty data
on native- and foreign-born residents: 13 percent of the US-
born residents were poor, compared with 28 percent of the
foreign-born who were not naturalized US citizens. Native-
born households had median incomes of $34,800, while
households headed by foreign-born persons had median incomes
of $28,400.
In 1990, 9.1 percent of US households headed by a foreign-
born person and 7.4 percent of households headed by a person
born in the US received cash assistance from a program such
as Aid to Families with Dependent Children or Supplemental
Security Income.
More comprehensive data from the Survey of Income and Program
Participation reveals that the immigrant-native welfare gap
widens when non-cash benefits such as Food Stamps, Medicaid
and housing subsidies are included. Medicaid accounts for
about half of the almost $200 billion spent annually on these
programs. In 1990-91, about 21 percent of the households
headed by immigrants, compared to 14 percent of households
headed by US-born persons, were receiving a cash or non-cash
federal benefit.
Almost half of the households headed by persons from the
Dominican Republic and Vietnam received a cash or non-cash
federal benefit in an average month in 1990-91. About one-
third or more of the households headed by persons from the
ex-USSR, Mexico and Central America received benefits. Fewer
than 10 percent of the households headed by persons born in
Korea received benefits.
Dave Lesher, "State Prepares for Dawn of New Welfare System,"
Los Angeles Times, November 25, 1996. Diane Jennings,
"Bracing for welfare change, poverty-plagued counties on
border resigned to cuts," Dallas Morning News, November 12,
1996. Patrick McDonnell, "Wilson Moves to Limit Benefits for
Illegal Immigrants," Los Angeles Times, November 5, 1996.
______________________________
Mexican Migrants on the Chicken Trail
Missouri. The Los Angeles Times on November 10-12, 1996 ran
a three-part report on "the chicken trail," about the
recruitment of poultry workers along the US-Mexican border
for employment in the southeast.
The stories profiled Hudson Foods, based in Noel, Missouri,
(population 1,169), which paid a south Texas recruiter, B.
Chapman & Co., $175 for each worker who showed up in Missouri
for the $6.70 per hour jobs. The reporter told how workers
made their way north on the "chicken trail" to work for
Hudson and live in a converted motel, along with 135 other
migrant poultry workers, for $45 per week per person.
In 1994, Hudson employed about 1,200 workers to process 1.3
million chickens each week in Noel. Annual turnover exceeds
100 percent, so that Hudson hires about 50 new workers each
month. Hudson employees are represented by a union. About
45 percent of the labor force are Latinos. Hudson paid a
$20,625 INS fine in 1992 because many of them were not
authorized to work. Hudson offers current employees who
bring new workers to the plant a $300 bonus.
Hudson, the country's seventh largest-poultry producer, with
headquarters in Rogers, Arkansas, has 14 facilities in 11
states, more than 10,000 employees and expects $1.4 billion
in sales for 1996.
The reporter-worker described the wet, the 47-degree
temperature inside the plant, the semi-automated "dis-
assembly" line and the lack of training for newly hired
workers. The number of broiler chickens processed in the US
each year has more than doubled, from three billion per year
in the early 1970s to seven billion per year in the mid-
1990s.
Hudson's human resources director was quoted as saying:
"there's a large number of jobs that very few citizens in the
US want to do, but they're there and they need to be
done...One of the social goods the poultry industry provides
is employing people who would otherwise have a great deal of
trouble getting employed."
The labor recruiting company travels to industry shows in
search of employers seeking unskilled labor and then offers
to recruit workers for theses companies. According to the
reporter, the recruiting company checked workers'
identification cards and took urine samples on the particular
trip reported. The Border Patrol checked the Greyhound
passengers identification cards in Falfurrias, about 75 miles
north of the Mexican border.
In 1994, The motel owner bought the run-down hunting lodge
motel for $220,000 and reopened it to house migrant chicken
workers. Because poultry work is considered nonfarm work, it
is not subject to special farm worker housing inspection,
only normal local health and safety screening. The motel
management takes every new Hudson worker to apply for food
stamps at the Division of Family Services and the number of
Latinos receiving food stamps in Noel increased from 35 per
month in 1993 to 375 per month in 1996.
Hudson is the economic linchpin of Noel, Missouri, but
Hudson pays no property taxes to the city. The number of Latino
students in Noel's elementary school rose from 25 to more
than 100. Hudson and nearby Simmons Foods contributed
$12,000 to Noel schools in 1996.
The final article in the series concluded that, across rural
and small town America, jobs that "used to offer working-
class security to a local population" are now filled by
Latino immigrants. The article concluded that towns without
traffic lights and ATMs are not well equipped to deal with
bilingual education, overcrowded housing, and racial
tensions.
There are weekly reports of INS raids on food processing
facilities or of unauthorized aliens detected by local
police. For example, on November 21, 1996, 10 unauthorized
workers were apprehended at the Hi-Point Beef Co., a meat
processing plant in Bellefontaine, Ohio.
Some 40 unauthorized aliens were apprehended in late October
in Idaho Falls, Idaho, the tenth INS raid in the area in
1996, prompting criticism that the INS detained and removed
the parents of children in school from the US before they had
time to tell their children. Most of the inspections were of
potato processing and similar facilities.
Tobacco. The Virginia Agricultural Growers Association
imported 2,603 Mexican workers to harvest tobacco under the
H-2A program. The H-2A program requires that US employers
offer to US workers, and pay to foreign workers, an Adverse
Effect Wage Rate of $5.80 per hour in 1996 in Virginia. The
H-2A program also requires US farm employers to provide free
housing to workers and to pay the workers' round trip
transportation. Farmers have to guarantee workers employment
for at least 75 percent of a 44-hour work week, or 33 hours.
H-2A tobacco workers in Virginia earn about $3,000 a summer,
and $5,500 if they stay for six months.
H-2A tobacco workers are recruited in Mexico by Del-Al
Associates of San Antonio, Texas. The Mexicans obtain visas
to enter the US at the American consulate in Monterrey.
Mexican H-2A tobacco workers pay $30 to the local recruiter
who found them, and $125 to Del-Al Associates, which
includes $44 for the US visa and an $81 recruitment fee.
There is reportedly a blacklist that can get Mexican workers
excluded from participation in the H-2A program.
Mexican workers are also recruited under the nonfarm H-2B
program to work in the Virginia and North Carolina crab meat
industry. In 1996, eight Virginia crabmeat processors hired
143 Mexicans under the H-2B program and 27 North Carolina
seafood houses got Department of Labor approval to hire 1,685
H-2B Mexican workers.
Most of the seafood processors said that, when their local
Black women employees retired, they could not "compete
against the welfare programs of the United States government"
for local workers.
Unlike farm workers hired under the H-2A program, H-2B
workers do not receive written contracts that guarantee them
a certain amount of work at a government set wage. Most H-2B
crab workers are paid piece rate wages of $1.35 to $1.89 per
pound and most workers can extract 18 to 40 pounds of
crabmeat per day, for daily earnings of $25 to $67. Seafood
processors sell crab meat for $6 to $13 per pound.
All workers must earn at least the federal minimum wage,
$4.75 per hour, which generally means that workers must clean
at least 750 crabs over eight hours to obtain 25 pounds of
crab meat. Workers are entitled to 1.5 times their base
wages for hours in excess of 40 weekly, a requirement that
employers often violate.
Most seafood processors provide housing for workers, at a
cost of $15 to $25 per week for beds in mobile homes or
converted motels, The workers pay about $100 for bus tickets
from Mexico to Virginia or North Carolina.
Foreign workers are reportedly seeking jobs in construction,
on tobacco farms and in meat and poultry plants in
Kentucky. In October, 1996, the INS won its first conviction
of an employer in Kentucky, the Valley Fresh chicken-
processing plant in Glasgow, for knowingly hiring illegal
alien workers. Wages were $5 hourly.
In September, 1996, Kentucky police stopped a rented truck
taking 31 illegal aliens to North Carolina, but the short-
staffed INS told the police to let the truck continue its
journey.
Pamela Stallsmith, "Golden leaf brings man to Southside,"
Richmond Times Dispatch, November 10, 1996. Jesse Katz, "The
Chicken Trail: New Migrant Trails Take Latinos to Remote
Towns," Los Angeles Times, November 10-12, 1996. Lane
DeGregory, "Crab industry saviors come from unlikely place-
Mexico," Virginian-Pilot, November 10, 1996.
_______________________________
Legal Immigration Changes?
Legal immigration is expected to return as a major issue in
the 105th Congress, which begins its work in January 1997.
Current law anticipates the admission of 675,000 immigrants
each year within numerically limited categories. Although
about 900,000 legal immigrants in all categories were
admitted in FY96, plus an additional 100,000 asylum seekers
and parolees. An estimated 200,000 US citizens and
immigrants emigrate every year.
The extremes in the new Congress are marked by proponents of
the status quo, and those who advocate a moratorium that
would halt all legal immigration except for the immediate
families of US citizens.
The bipartisan US Commission on Immigration Reform,
established by the 1990 Immigration Act, will issue its final
recommendations in September 1997. The CIR in June 1995
recommended that the basic legal immigration system remain in
place, but that the entry of nuclear families be speeded up
by awarding the immigration slots now available to the adult
brothers and sisters of US citizens to immediate relatives.
The CIR also recommended that the number of slots for
immigrants requested by US employers be reduced and that US
employers demonstrate that they looked for US workers by
paying a fee into a fund that would be used to train
Americans who could eventually fill the jobs now done by
foreigners.
The President endorsed the CIR's recommendation for a
lowering of the overall number of legal immigrants allowed to
enter the country annually, but negated that endorsement in
March 1996, when his administration backed efforts to
separate legal and illegal immigration proposals in Congress.
The death of the Chairman of the Commission, former Rep.
Barbara Jordan (D-Texas), in January 1996, is widely seen as
a factor in the Clinton administration's change of heart.
The three major doors through which legal immigrants enter
the US are:
Family Unification. Congressional critics of the current
law assert that chain migration rather than US needs is
increasing the number of immigrants admitted to the US for
family reasons. The US admits without limit spouses and
minor children of US citizens, so that the current
naturalization wave is expected to increase immediate family
immigration.
After immediate families of US citizens, the US has four
family immigration preferences: the parents of US citizens,
the immediate families of US immigrants and the adult
brothers and sisters of US citizens.
There are lengthy backlogs in these categories. The CIR
recommended a trade off, more slots to speed up the
unification of immediate families of legal immigrants and the
elimination of slots for brothers and sisters.
In an effort to head off a debate over reducing legal
immigration, Empower America in November 1996 released, "In
Defense of a Nation: The Military Contributions of
Immigrants," a report that argues that immigration increases
national security by adding to the US population, by adding
scientists who develop military technology and through
individual acts of heroism by newcomers in the armed forces.
The report was released at a press conference attended by a
Mexican immigrant who won a silver star fighting in Vietnam.
Employment. The major bill in the House in 1996 would have
reduced the number of immigrants admitted annually for
economic/employment reasons from 140,000 annually to
135,000(including dependents), while the Senate bill would
have reduced the number to 90,000. Both bills would have
reformed the H-1B program, which admits a maximum 65,000
professional temporary foreign workers each year, each for up
to six years.
Business groups, especially high-tech companies such as
Microsoft, opposed any changes to the economic/employment-
based immigration system.
Refugees. The US adopted the UN definition of a refugee in
1980: a refugee is a person outside her country of
citizenship with a well-founded fear of persecution because
of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular
social group, or political opinion. The 1980 act anticipated
the normal arrival of 50,000 refugees each year and pledged
the federal government to reimburse states for the welfare
and other costs associated with resettling refugees.
Non-Immigrants. Some 22 million foreigners enter the US
every year, most for short-term tourist or business visits.
However, about 650,000 are admitted each year for US jobs or
to study in the US. Many of these non-immigrants are
authorized to remain in the US for three to 10 years and many
find ways to become permanent residents.
Population Impacts. About one-third of US population growth
is due to immigration and, if the US-born and US-citizen
children of recent immigrants are included, immigration
accounts for more than half of US population growth,
according to the Census Bureau.
Immigration is increasing the size of the current and future
population. In 1989, the Census Bureau projected that the US
population, 265 million in 1996, would level off at 300
million in 2050. The most recent projections suggest that
the US population will be 400 million in 2050. About 93
percent of the population growth in the year 2050 will result
from immigration that has occurred since 1991.
In 1994, there were more Hispanic than Black babies born in
the US--17 percent of the 3.9 million babies born were
Hispanic, compared to 16 percent Black, five percent Asian
and 62 percent non-Hispanic white. Hispanics are expected to
surpass Blacks as the largest US minority population in 2005.
William Branigin, "Immigration Issues Await New Congress,"
Washington Post, November 18, 1996. Anna Borgman, "The
Noncitizen-Soldier: Mexican-Born Hero of Vietnam Becomes a
Symbol in Fight for Immigrants' Rights," Washington Post,
November 8, 1996. Frank Trejo, Alfredo Corchado,
"Immigration debate rages on," Dallas Morning News, November
6, 1996. Deborah Billings, "Return of immigration debate
likely," Daily Labor Report, November 4, 1996.
_______________________________
INS Enforcement
The INS announced that it removed from the US 67,100 illegal
aliens in FY96, and 160,000 over the past three years. About
55 percent of the aliens removed committed crimes in the US
and many are removed as they leave US prisons. About 75
percent of those removed in FY96 were Mexicans.
In FY96, the INS conducted 4,900 worksite operations that
resulted in the removal of 14,000 unauthorized workers. In a
first-ever agreement, the INS in October 1996 announced that
it would notify the Virginia Department of Social Services
when it removed unauthorized workers from jobs in that state.
On November 13, 1996, the US Supreme Court ruled that the INS
could consider the fraud an alien committed in entering the
country when deciding whether the person should be deported.
The ruling overturned the opinion of an appeals court that
said that, because the INS generally disregards fraudulent
acts committed by people trying to gain entry, INS must
exclude from consideration any fraudulent acts connected to
how one ultimately got into the United States.
The case involved a couple from China who moved to Taiwan,
and divorced there. The wife, using fraudulent documents,
then assumed the identity of a US citizen. The couple
remarried in Taiwan under false names and the man used his
wife's apparent US citizenship to immigrate. The wife,
meanwhile, divorced her husband under her true name to obtain
a US immigration visa through US resident relatives.
In late November, the INS issued an arrest warrant for
Governor Wilson's ex-maid; the maid's questionable legal
status was detected in 1995, during Wilson's brief campaign
for the Republican nomination for President. The INS
suspects that the maid may have fraudulently married a US
citizen to become a legal immigrant.
On the US-Mexican border, environmental and public officials
expressed more concern about unauthorized migrants
threatening fragile plants in the Otay Mountains in eastern
San Diego county. There have been more than 322 fires so far
in 1996 in the Otay Mountains. The rugged terrain means that
mostly young men attempt the trip.
INS Commissioner Doris Meissner, in an October 27, 1996
interview with the New York Times magazine, said that
Congress was right in maintaining the distinction between
legal and illegal immigration in 1996 legislation. However,
she faulted Congress with not doing enough to help the INS
enforce employer sanctions.
Meissner noted that denying welfare benefits to legal
immigrants represented a major change in the US social
contract and disputed the notion that illegal alien women are
increasing numbers are motivated enter the US to give birth
to US citizen babies. She noted that US citizen children
cannot sponsor their parents for immigration until they are
21.
Carey Goldberg, "Scenic Mountains Scarred by Illegal Border
Crossings," New York Times, November 17, 1996. Joan
Biskupic, "Court Strengthens INS Authority Against Fraud,"
Washington Post, November 14, 1996.
_______________________________
Mexico and Guatemala
Gaps between the rich and poor in Mexico and between the
industrial northern and indigenous southern parts of the
country, are widening. There have been many skirmishes in
Mexico's so-called misery belt--Chiapas, Oaxaca and Guerrero.
One-fourth of the population is illiterate, compared with six
percent along the northern border.
On November 9, 1996 police shot and killed three protesting
Mexican peasants in Chiapas. The peasants were demanding a
doubling in the base price for corn, from the government-
guaranteed price of about $160 per ton to $315 a ton.
One recent study 55 percent of all Mexicans are poor and
working class, 35 percent are middle class, and 10 percent
are upper class. Only one-third of the poor and working
class have jobs that bring in regular wages and salaries.
Mexico's informal or non-tax paying sector represents about
39 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP).
Two-thirds of the 14 million people that Mexico classifies as
"living in extreme poverty" are in rural areas. Mexican
President Zedillo on November 8, 1996 said that the average
adult Mexican has seven years of education, up from one year
of schooling in 1950.
Many US investors are reportedly postponing plans to invest
in Mexico because of concerns about kidnappings and the
persistence of bureaucratic problems.
Zedillo announced the government's 1997 budget on November
7, 1996. It projects a 1997 GDP of about $360 billion, four
percent growth and 15 percent inflation. The peso/dollar
exchange rate is expected to fall from the current 7.7 pesos
to $1 to about 8.5 to $1. Exports of about $100 billion are
expected to approach 25 percent of GDP.
Mexico's economy grew by 7.4 percent in the third quarter of
1996, up from 7.2 percent in the second quarter. The US has
been importing about $6 billion worth of goods from Mexico
each month in 1996 and exporting goods worth $4.5 billion,
producing a $1.5 billion monthly US trade deficit with
Mexico.
Mexico and other Latin American countries continue to try to
increase their savings from the current 20 percent of GDP to
the 30 percent more common in East Asia.
In October 1996, unemployment fell to 5.2 percent in 41
cities, the lowest level since January 1995. Unemployment
peaked at 7.6 percent in August 1995. Mexico considers
persons 12 and older who actively sought a job in the two
months before the survey to be in the labor force.
In voting in November, opposition parties won enough
mayorships to control 10 of the 12 largest Mexican cities.
In response, the PRI-dominated 500-member Chamber of Deputies
backtracked on election reforms that were meant to open up
the political process. Over the protest of opposition
parties, the Chamber approved plans to spend $250 million in
government funds in the July 6, 1997 congressional races,
about half of which will go to PRI candidates.
PRI has governed Mexico for 67 years -- the longest
uninterrupted reign of any governing party in the world.
Some experts wonder what the impact will be when Mexicans
living in the US have their first opportunity to vote in
Mexico's next election. If, as expected, the PAN manages to
edge the PRI in Mexico, a poor showing among Mexican voters
living in the United States would critically diminish the
PAN's share of the total presidential tally. In the close
election everyone is expecting, a large unfavorable vote from
the US could reinstall the PRI through 2006.
The estimated four to five million Mexican voters living in
the US are a huge unknown in the election and each party has
a different approach to reaching these voters. The PRI was
responsible for giving Mexicans living in the US the right to
vote, hoping to win their support. The PAN has no strategy
for the voters north of the border. The PRD has extensive
networks of voters through the US and pushed for emigrant
voting rights.
Mexico plans to "register" Guatemalan refugees in Campeche,
Quitana Roo and Chiapas in December 1996, so that a
"legalization process for certain migrants" can be carried
out.
In Guatemala, it was announced that a 36-year civil war would
end with a peace treaty to be signed in Guatemala City on
December 29, 1996. During Central America's last and longest
civil war, some 100,000 people died, and an estimated 40,000
disappeared.
A Bank of Boston survey released in November found that 57
percent of US residents do not want NAFTA to be extended to
other Latin American countries, in part because 51 percent
believe that free trade agreements cost the US jobs.
During his first term, President Clinton did not visit Latin
America except for a quick trip to Haiti to visit American
troops. Many Latin American diplomats say the US largely
ignores Latin America and has no clear policy toward the
region, except for trying to suppress narcotics. The Clinton
administration says it does plan a presidential visit to
Latin America next year, although no firm date has been set.
Other Latin American specialists take a more favorable point
of view, pointing out that the Clinton administration acted
decisively in response to the Mexican peso crisis of 1994.
The multibillion-dollar bailout was a landmark in US-Latin
American relations.
Trade is expected to be the top issue in US-Latin American
relations during Clinton's second term. A Free Trade Area of
the Americans, agreed to at the 1994 Miami summit, should be
established by 20005.
Sebastian Rotella, "Foreign Policy: Clinton's Latin Lesson,"
Los Angeles Times, November 22, 1996. John Ward Anderson, "
Mexican Party Backs Down On Reforms," Washington Post
November 16 1996. "President says illiteracy rate down," The
News, November 9, 1996. Mexico. Financial Times Survey,
October 28, 1996. David R. Ayon, "Could votes of US
expatriates topple Mexico's PRI in 2000?" Houston Chronicle,
November 3, 1996.
_______________________________
Religion and Immigration
Largely because of changes in immigration laws in 1965, the
United States "is now the most religiously diverse country on
earth," according to an article in the September-October,
1996 issue of Harvard magazine.
According to Professor Martin Marty of the University of
Chicago, a religion has "six marks"--a system centered on a
matter of deep meaning, socialization (believers tend to form
communities), show a preference for symbolic language over
everyday speech, use ceremonies (especially at birth,
marriage and death), take a metaphysical view of life (there
is more to the world than what one sees) and require
behavioral adjustments (attending Sunday School or shunning
pork).
Some social scientists consider that religious institutions
to be of the most important sources of social capital in the
US--institutions that can create the social networks and
norms that enable people to work together for common goals.
Churches, in this view, teach people basic political skills--
how to give a speech, organize a meeting, raise money and
provide pools of friends and neighbors who can be recruited
for civic activities.
Protestants. Many traditional Protestant denominations are
welcoming immigrants and hope to thereby bolster declining
membership.
It has not always been easy to integrate immigrants. The
First United Methodist Church in Queens, New York was
troubled in 1995 by divisions between Filipino immigrants and
African Americans. The pastor of the church tried to bring
in new lay ministers, but was removed by the Bishop,
prompting some of the immigrant members to picket the
Bishop's office. In Queens, churches that rely on immigrants
who joined long ago are dying--one has 30 elderly Polish-
American members, another only five German-American members.
The United Methodist Church has lost about two million
members nationwide in 10 years. Membership is growing in
communities with Korean, Caribbean, African and Asian
immigrants.
Most Americans attend neighborhood churches and their
attendance patterns reflect housing patterns. Martin Luther
King in the 1960s asserted that 11 am on Sunday morning was
the most segregated hour of the week, as African-Americans
and whites went to separate churches. There are very few
racially-integrated churches in the US.
Catholics. The Pope's October 1995 visit to New York
highlighted the ethnic diversity of Catholic parishes brought
about by continuing immigration. Churches built by German or
Irish or Italian immigrants decades ago now celebrate Mass in
Spanish or Polish. Mass is celebrated in New York area
churches in 38 languages.
Before his 1995 visit, the Pope released a statement asking
established residents to try to understand the circumstances
of illegal immigrants. "The illegal immigrant," the Pope
said, "comes before us like that stranger whom Jesus asks to
be recognized." The Pope called for international
cooperation to foster political stability and accelerate
economic development so that people are not forced to
migrate.
In an address to the United Nations in 1995 the Pope deplored
the "fear of difference" that he said can lead to violations
of human rights.
Catholic leaders make a point of saying that no passport or
papers are required to enter their churches, thus reproving
those with less welcoming attitudes to immigrants. Los
Angeles Archbishop Roger Mahoney decried Prop. 187 in
California in Fall 1994 as a "social sin," and pastoral
letters in New York and elsewhere remind listeners that
Catholic teaching instructs that immigrants should be treated
with hospitality.
A nationwide September 1995 poll conducted in English and
Spanish found that about the same percentage of Catholics as
respondents in general--28 percent--want immigration levels
reduced.
There are an estimated 22 million Hispanic Catholics in the
United States, about a third of the country's 66 million
Catholics. About a fourth of the Hispanic Catholics were
born outside the US.
California's Catholic priests are becoming more outspoken on
issues such as affirmative action and prenatal care for
undocumented immigrants, a major change from their previous
behind-the-scenes lobbying efforts. A group of clerics
representing the state's 12 dioceses met with elected
officials in Sacramento in March, 1996.
According to a spokesperson, the group's advocacy is a
mandate from the state's 5.6 million Hispanic Catholics whom
they represent, and also reflects the church's traditional
concern for the poor, elderly and children. The group became
more outspoken after a November 1995 pastoral statement from
the US Catholic Conference of Bishops that urged Catholics to
become more active politically as a community conscience.
Islam. There are six to eight million Muslims in the US,
including two million Black Muslims. The number of Muslims
in the US is increasing rapidly through immigration and
conversions. Islam, now with one billion adherents, is the
world's fastest-growing religion.
Of the more than 1,200 mosques in the US, nearly 80 percent
have been built within the past 12 years. The first
theological school in the US to train Islamic imams opened in
Virginia in 1996. In the past two years, six mosques have
been damaged or destroyed by arson.
Experts say that Islam, with its clearly defined behavioral
norms, is particularly appealing to American blacks living in
neighborhoods where community and family life have been
strained by poverty, crime and despair. Islam also provides
an alternative for some blacks who associate Christianity
with slavery and racism. For some, Islam is a bridge to their
African roots-- as many as 20 percent of the slaves
transported to America may have been Muslims.
At a private Islamic school in Silver Spring, Maryland, girls
who wear the hijab, or traditional Muslim head scarf, do not
have to worry about teasing by their classmates. Islamic
schools in the Washington, DC area are popular; most have
long waiting lists. The American Muslim Council estimates
that there are 200,000 Muslims in the Washington DC area and
1,500 pupils in Islamic schools. Many Muslim parents who
cannot get their children into Islamic school opt to
homeschool.
Some Muslims, both immigrant and American-born, are
organizing to increase their political clout. Most are
liberal on minority rights and immigration, but conservative
in such matters as opposing sex and violence in movies and
television. In California, home to the largest Muslim
community in the US, most Muslims supported Republican Pete
Wilson in the governor's race, but most opposed Prop. 187.
Gustav Niebuhr, " America's Religious Quilt Has Become a
Patchwork," New York Times, November 23, 1996. Diego
Ribadeniera, "Islam's rising lure," Boston Globe, October 20,
1996. Tara Mack, "Lessons in their own faith," Washington
Post, October 15, 1996. Peter Steinfels, "Active Churches
and Synagogues Let People Work for Social, Political Goals,"
New York Times, May 4, 1996. Norimitsu Onishi, "Strangers in
the Next Pew," New York Times, April 14, 1996. Elizabeth
Spaid, "Churches still struggling to cross racial divide,"
Christian Science Monitor, April 10, 1996. Robert Marquand
and Lamis Andoni, "Muslims Learn to Pull Political Ropes in
US," and "Separating the Fact from the Fiction in Islamic
Extremism," Christian Science Monitor, February 5, 1996.
Gustav Niebuhr, "With every wave of newcomers, a church more
diverse," New York Times, October 3, 1995.
__________________________
Immigrant Integration
A survey found that 52 percent of graduating US high school
students think the US has too many immigrants. More than
half believe that immigration and affirmative action will
make it harder for them to get into the best universities and
to find good jobs.
The Wall Street Journal on November 13, 1996 reported that
more employees who are bilingual are demanding and getting
additional wages. The prevailing stated policy of US
employers has been to set wages by the job, not according to
the qualifications of the person filling the job, so most US
employers have not paid premium wages for workers with
bilingual skills. Management jobs, on the other hand, often
offer wage premiums for bilingual skills.
Bilingual skills used on the job have brought wage premiums
of five to 10 percent to US Customs inspectors and MCI
operators. In some cases, wage premiums for bilingual
employees have led to grievances from non-bilingual
employees.
In New York City, a new magazine, City Family, is aimed at
low- and middle-income immigrants trying to make a better
life for themselves. About 210,000 copies are sold each
month, half in Spanish as the La Familia de la Ciudad. The
magazine, aimed at women, is written at a fifth-grade level.
The magazine is distributed free in places where immigrants
congregate as well as by subscription.
Affirmative Action. California voters, 54 to 46 percent,
approved Proposition 209 in November 1996, an initiative that
eliminates quotas and preferences in state and local
government university admissions, contracting and hiring.
Proposition 209 amends the California Constitution to read,
"The state shall not discriminate against, or grant
preferential treatment to, any individual or group on the
basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity or national origin in
the operation of public employment, public education or
public contracting."
Governor Wilson immediately issued an executive order
directing state agencies to identify programs that grant or
encourage preferences based on race or sex.
Men voted two to one for Prop. 209, as did 60 percent of
white women. About one-third of Black and Hispanic voters
supported Prop. 209.
Hmong. There are about 60,000 Hmong refugees from Southeast
Asia in California's San Joaquin Valley cities of Fresno,
Merced and Tulare. About 70 percent are on public
assistance, the highest rate of any immigrant group. The
Hmong are considered to be most disadvantaged refugee group
ever to come to America. Many are not literate and most live
in ethnic enclaves. Some of their customs clash with the
mores of established residents, including having girls marry
at 13 and many women having nine or 10 children.
Hmong community leaders say that in 1996 about 6,000 Hmong
have left the San Joaquin Valley for Minnesota, Wisconsin,
Oregon and elsewhere. They attribute the departures to the
prospect of losing welfare benefits and to better job
prospects elsewhere. Many have moved to St. Paul, Minnesota,
which has 32,000 Hmong residents.
In the 1960s, the Hmong were recruited by the CIA to fight
the Viet Cong and suffered the highest casualty rates of any
group of combatants in the Vietnam War. To many of the
125,000 Hmong who made their way to the US, welfare benefits
are no more than a proper reward for having fought in an
American cause.
Peter Fritsch, "Bilingual employees are seeking more pay, and
many now get it," Wall Street Journal, November 13, 1996.
Mark Arax, "Hmong Seek Better Life in Exodus From State," Los
Angeles Times, November 10, 1996. Robert Pear, " In
California, Foes of Affirmative Action See a New Day," New
York Times, November 7, 1996.
_______________________________
EUROPE
_______________________________
EU Immigration
The EU's on-going inter-governmental conference (IGC) is set
to approve majority voting for employment promotion and
environmental protection. However, Irish negotiators
preparing for the Dublin summit said that there were "major
inhibitions" on questions of citizenship and nationality
becoming an EU responsibility.
The European Commissioner responsible for issues related to
immigration and judicial affairs, Anita Gradin, visited
Morocco's northern provinces in November to discuss drug
trafficking and illegal immigration in Europe.
The EU provided about $116 billion in regional aid in 1996.
Much of the aid goes to the "poor four" EU members--Ireland,
Portugal Spain, and Greece. In a review of disparities
within the EU, it was noted that Ireland's per capita GDP is
now 90 percent of the EU average, while Greece's is still
only 64 percent of the average. Hamburg is the richest city
in the EU--its per capita GDP is 189 percent of average,
followed by Brussels at 183 percent.
The Cecchini report in 1988 projected that the "single
market" would add 4.5 percent to the GDP of the 12-nation EU,
adding 1.8 million jobs. On October 30, 1996, the EU
released a report on the first four years of the single
market and it estimated that the GDP of the now 15-nation EU
was 1.1 to 1.5 percent higher than it would have been without
the removal of market barriers and that a net 300,000 to
900,000 new jobs were created.
Studies done in preparation for monetary union emphasize that
unemployment rates might rise because, under current
integration steps, differences in regional unemployment rates
have not diminished.
The EU Court of Justice on November 12, 1996 ruled that the
UK--the maximum 48 hour work week. The UK argued that it had
negotiated an exemption from the "social chapter" of the 1991
Maastricht agreement.
Quentin Peel, "Spring fears British block in the IGC,"
Financial Times November 8, 1996.
_______________________________
Germany: Bosnia, Asylum and Vietnamese
The German Bundestag in November approved changes to
immigration laws that permit the expulsion of foreigners
convicted of "severe" disruption of the peace at an
unauthorized protest rally. The law was a response to
Kurdish protests in Spring 1996 against the Turkish
government.
Germany continues to debate eased naturalization procedures.
Persons who have a right (Anspruch) to German nationality do
not have to take a language test, while those who are
permitted (Ermessen) to apply for naturalization must satisfy
residence, language and other requirements.
Most of the proposals would ease the requirements for the
Ermessenseinbuergerung, such as reducing the residence
requirement for persons born in Germany, or giving persons
born in Germany the right to become German nationals at age
16 or 18.
Bosnians/Serbs. Germany and Bosnia-Herzegovina in November
signed a final agreement to return home the 320,000 Bosnians
in Germany. Until June 1997, only single people and couples
without children will return.
German courts in August ruled that Bosnians "tolerated" in
Germany do not have the right to apply for asylum in Germany
because the Bosnian government can protect them within the
borders of Bosnia.
Germany and Yugoslavia signed an agreement October 10, 1996
to begin return 135,000 mostly Kosovo-Albanians on December
1, 1996. The return of the persons to Serbia is expected to
take three years.
Asylum. On November 5, 1996, a minister charged with
providing "church asylum" to a Roma gypsy between 1994 and
1996 went on trial, the first time a person involved in
church asylum was put on trial in Germany.
The number of asylum seekers in October was 11, 677.
In the first seven months of 1996, 489 rejected asylum
seekers appealed to the German Constitutional Court and eight
were found to have been unconstitutionally rejected.
Aussiedler. Germany accepts up to 220,000 ethnic Germans per
year from the ex-USSR. The SPD has been urging the coalition
government to make this annual quota flexible, reducing the
number admitted when German unemployment and funds to provide
integration assistance decline. The German government
reduced integration assistance for Aussiedler, but kept the
quota at 220,000 per year.
Germany requires ethnic Germans to complete their
applications and to demonstrate some knowledge of German,
before they leave Kazackstan and Russia for Germany.
Some 3.5 million Aussiedler migrated to Germany since 1950,
including 1.3 million from the ex-USSR, 420,000 from Romania,
and 104,000 from the ex-Czechoslovakia. The peak year of
Aussiedler migration was 1990, when 397,999 persons arrived.
Vietnamese. On November 1, Cornelia Schmalz-Jacobsen, the
German government official with responsibility for
foreigners, called for a permanent right of abode for
Vietnamese workers in the former East Germany. Following
reunification, East Germany's foreign worker population
dropped from 90,000 Angolans, Cubans, Hungarians, Mozambicans
and Vietnamese to 15,000, including 13,000 Vietnamese.
Most of the former East German guest workers received an
Aufenthaltsbefugnis in 1993-94, a residence permit that can
be renewed every two years if the foreigner can prove that he
has appropriate housing and no receipt of welfare or record
of crime. After four renewals or eight years of lawful
residence, the Vietnamese are eligible for an
Aufenthaltserlaubnis, a more secure residence permit.
Under current law, residence before 1993-94 does not count
for the Vietnamese seeking to qualify for an
Aufenthaltserlaubnis. One proposal is to count half of the
years before 1993 toward the eight-year requirement and to
permit those convicted of minor crimes to obtain residence
permits.
The number of xenophobic violent crimes against foreigners
living in Germany fell from 382 in the first eight months of
1995 to 200 in the same period in 1996.
Illegal Immigration. At the end of August, 1996, the German
Border Patrol announced that it had apprehended 29,604
illegal aliens attempting to enter Germany over its eastern
borders in 1995, down about five percent from 1995. Those
apprehended represented an estimated 80 percent of illegal
entrants.
An additional 125,742 foreigners were turned back at the
border and 36,455 were flown out of Germany by the German
Border Patrol.
Labor Market. Unemployment in October rose to over four
million or 10.6 percent of the labor force.
About three million foreigners were employed in Germany in
April 1995. About 37 percent were employed in manufacturing,
22 percent in services such as hotels and restaurants, 15
percent in other services, 11 percent in construction and
eight percent were self employed.
Schwarzarbeit--unauthorized foreigners and Germans working
for unreported wages--cost Germany an estimated DM100 million
or $65 million per year in lost income and payroll taxes.
There are an estimated 500,000 "illegal jobs" in Germany.
German employers and construction unions in November 1996
agreed on a minimum wage for all construction workers for the
period January-August, 1997. All workers on construction
sites must be paid at least DM17 ($11.33) per hour in the
former west Germany and DM15.64 ($10.43) per hour in the
east, which would then become the minimum wage for foreign
workers.
An estimated 200,000 foreign workers and 350,000 German
workers are employed at German building sites.
In 1995, a total DM117 billion ($76 billion) was spent on
unemployment insurance, early retirement benefits and other
programs for the jobless in Germany. An average 3.6 million
people were unemployed in 1995, about 10 percent of the labor
force.
A report by the Council of Economic Advisors found that
growth in east Germany will be only 2.25 percent in 1997,
which means that for the first time since German
reunification in 1990, the growth rate in the east will be
slower than in western Germany. Construction has been the
catalyst for east German growth. Productivity in east
Germany remains 50 percent below that in the west, but wages
in the east are about 70 percent of western levels.
The German union confederation, the DGB, in November 1996
changed the manifesto adopted in 1958 to accept more labor
market flexibility. The change was pushed by IG Metall, the
world's largest industrial union, with about three million
members, or one-third of DGB members.
Human rights. On November 8, a UN human rights committee
criticized the treatment of foreigners and minorities by
German police and expressed concern about continuing
xenophobia and anti-Semitism in Germany. The UN committee
recommended the establishment of independent bodies
throughout Germany to investigate complaints of ill treatment
by the police.
Turks. Turkish President Suleyman Demirel visited Germany
on November 6 for talks with German officials regarding Turkey's
bid for EU membership, human rights and the security of Turks
living in Germany. Demirel said that Turkish EU membership
is only a question of time. German Foreign Minister Klaus
Kinkel responded that Turkey belongs to Europe and serves as
a bridge between Europe, Islam and Central Asia, but added
that Turkey must improve its human rights record.
Michael Anders, "Mirage of east German economic boom melts
away," Agence France Presse, November 15, 1996. "The once and
future capital," The Economist, November 9, 1996. "Growing
together," The Economist, November 9, 1996. "Germany seeks
to ban low-wage EU construction workers," Deutsche Presse-
Agentur, October 8, 1996.
_______________________________
France Amends 1993 Immigration Law
The French cabinet on November 6, 1996 approved a bill that
would remove "anomalies" created by 1993 immigration laws,
largely by increasing the power of police to deal with
illegal immigrants and make it easier for foreigners with a
French spouse or French children to obtain residence permits.
The bill would permit aliens who did not leave France as
instructed to be jailed for up to three months and permit
police to conduct identity checks in workplaces to crack down
on illegal labor.
France's Human Rights Commission asked the French government
on November 15 to review the entire 1993 immigration law
because it violates human dignity without resolving the
problems of illegal immigration and labor. The commission
said that the bill to remove the anomalies would clear up the
status of a number of immigrants but may threaten individual
freedom and create a special criminal law for foreigners
which the commission believes would breach the principle of
equal justice.
In Dreux, a city of 36,000 45 miles west of Paris whose
population is 20 percent immigrant, a mayoral contest
highlighted the tensions between the French and North African
immigrants. The National Front candidate said that illegal
immigrant children should not be permitted in French schools.
The National Front candidate, who promised to double the
city's police force to 40, won 36 percent of the vote in the
first round. The National Front Candidate lost in the run-off
election on November 24 despite a visit to the town by
National Frond leader Jean-Marie Le Pen. The incumbent may
won 60.4 percent while the National Front candidate trailed
with 36.4 percent. National Front mayors were elected in
Toulon, Orange and Marignane.
After the election, fighting between the conservative and
National Front supporters was reported. No one was seriously
injured.
Many of the North Africans live in high rises on the
outskirts of the city where unemployment and reliance on
welfare are high.
The Economist in its November 16 issue summarized the French
integration model as one which expects newcomers to "speak
French, eat French food, wear French clothes, observe French
customs."
In 1994, Jean-Claude Barreau, the adviser on immigration to
the French minister of the interior, was quoted as saying
that "when somebody emigrates, he changes not only his
country, but also his history. Foreigners arriving [to
settle] in France must understand that from henceforth their
ancestors are the Gauls and that they have a new homeland.
But Muslim extremists have begun arriving in France as
colonizers, with gods and weapons in their baggage . . .
Today, there is a real Islamic threat in France which is part
of a great worldwide wave of Muslim fundamentalism."
France has four to five million Muslim residents. About half
are French citizens, born in France or acquiring French
nationality (by marriage or naturalization) since their
arrival. About six percent of the Muslims adhere to the
strict tenets of their faith and 10-15 percent worship
regularly at a mosque or prayer center, about the same
percent of French Catholics who go regularly to mass.
A 1996 poll found that two-thirds of the French think that
France has "too many Arabs" and "too many Muslims.".
High school students in the French Guiana capital Cayenne in
South America rioted in November; the French attributed the
riots to illegal immigration, which helped to increase the
population to 140,000 from 80,000 over the past 13 years.
The unemployment rate is 25 percent.
"Far-Right National Front Loses Local Vote," Chicago Tribune,
November 25, 1996. Craig Whitney, "Anti-Immigrant Testiness
at Issue in Mayoral Race," New York Times, November 18, 1996.
Irwin Arieff, "French far-right takes lead in key city poll,"
Reuters Financial Service, November 17, 1996. 3The Muslims
in France. Rejecting their ancestors the Gauls,2 The
Economist, November 16, 1996. "French government urged to
review immigration laws," Reuters, November 15, 1996.
"France to hold Guiana talks after student riots," Reuters,
November 12, 1996. Alexander Miles, "France accuses rioters
of destabilizing Fr. Guiana," Reuters, November 13, 1996.
"France to plug tough immigration law loopholes," Reuters,
November 6, 1996.
_______________________________
Immigrants in Eastern Europe
Poland and Russia in November signed an agreement that
permits visa-free travel between the two countries. Russia
also agreed to accept from Poland illegal immigrants from
third countries who passed through Russia into Poland.
Poland has set up detention centers for foreigners awaiting
deportation. The immigrants can be held a maximum of 90 days
and then they will be released. On November 15, the
detention center in Ostrowic Swietokrzyski could not take 44
illegal immigrants because it were full.
In 1996 there were an estimated 190,000 foreigners living in
the Czech Republic with long-term or permanent residence
permits. The 70,000 foreigners living legally in Prague are
10 percent of city's residents and there may be another
60,000 illegal immigrants in the city.
By 2020, about 20 percent of the Czech population will be
over 65 compared with 13 percent in 1995. This may prompt
immigration to fill labor shortages.
"Illegal Immigrants Detained," Polish News Bulletin, November
18, 1996. Anthony Barker, "Ending visas with Russia won't
boost crime," Reuters, November 15, 1996. "Czech Population
Aging, New Immigrants Will be Required--Study," CTK National
News Wire, October 21, 1996. "Prostitutes 'are migrant
workers,'" The Independent, October 5, 1996.
_______________________________
Migrant Smuggling
An International Organization for Migration heard a plea to
treat prostitutes as migrant workers because they are forced
by their economic situation to cross borders to work as
prostitutes. Hungarian police estimate that one-third of the
prostitutes working in clubs, massage parlors and other
venues in Budapest are foreigners, primarily from countries
east of Hungary.
The City Council of Verona, Italy is attempting to halt a
rise in prostitution primarily by foreign women from Africa,
Romania and Albania. The council suggested confining
prostitution to a designated area of the city and a reopening
of brothels--much to the outrage of the Catholic Church.
The women are recruited with promises of high wage jobs but,
after their arrival, the smugglers destroy their documents
and force them into prostitution. Italy's largest
association of prostitutes charges that, since the Italian
authorities cannot control the influx of illegal immigrants,
they target the most visible immigrants--prostitutes.
By the end of October, 1996, 12 persons were arrested in
Belgium under a 1995 law that prohibits "trade in human
beings." Over the past four years, a Belgian-based smuggling
ring recruited an estimated 4,000 Filipinos by promising them
high wage jobs in Europe. They then sent most of the
Filipinos to Italy as manual workers, maids or prostitutes.
The Filipinos paid up to $8,000 each to the smugglers.
The Belgian law allows anyone who forces an immigrant to work
against his/her will to be charged with illegally trafficking
in human labor. Without the new rule, any abused immigrant
trying to get police protection would have been immediately
deported as an illegal alien before being able to testify at
a trial.
3 Detectives crack scam wedding ring," Sunday Mirror,
November 10, 1996. Raf Casert, "Filipinos smuggled as slave
laborers," Associated Press, November 7, 1996. Marlise
Simons, "Belgium Holds Suspects in Immigrant Smuggling," New
York Times, November 6, 1996. Jessica Taylor, "Shamed by the
ladies of Verona," Sunday Telegraph, November 10, 1996.
"Prostitutes are migrant workers," The Independent, October
5, 1996.
_______________________________
Russians Seek Asylum in Norway
The Norwegian Foreign Ministry has refused to give the
Russian Embassy information about eight Russian citizens
seeking political asylum in Norway. The Russians traveled to
Norway by bus via a border post near Kirkenes in the Arctic
north and requested asylum in Tromso, 400 kilometers from the
border.
The Russians are being held at a refugee center in Trondheim.
According to a 1971 Norwegian-Russian agreement, each country
is to inform the other about all cases involving the
detention of citizens of the other. The Norwegians say they
are not detaining the Russians and so this case is not
covered by the agreement.
According to the Norwegian press, 28 Russian citizens have
asked for political asylum in Norway since the beginning of
the year.
The Russian Ministry of Labor and Social Development reported
that the number of immigrants to Russia from the former the
USSR republics is dropped by half in 1996. Each year nearly
100,000 Russians emigrate, primarily for Germany, Israel, the
United States and Greece.
Lilya Kuznetsova, "Immigration to Russia from CIS going
down," TASS, November 15, 1996. "Russia denied information
on political asylum," TASS, November 15, 1996. Igor
Pshenichnikov, "Eight Russians Seek Asylum in Norway," TASS,
November 13, 1996.
_______________________________
Austria Tightens Border Controls
On November 13, the Austrian government announced that it
would impose stricter controls on its border with former
Communist countries, including the Czech Republic. The extra
border guards, supplemented by the Austrian Army, will be
concentrated on the Hungarian border, where most of the
illegal border crossings are made.
The beefed up patrols are an effort by the Austrian
government to comply with the Schengen agreement. Bavaria's
interior minister warned that the passport controls on the
Austria-Bavaria border will not be eliminated until there is
proof that Austria can secure its eastern borders.
Joerg Haider's Freedom Party won 28 percent of the vote in
elections for EU Parliament representatives on October 13,
1996, making it the strongest anti-immigrant or far-right
party in Europe.
During a Freedom Party conference on November 10, Haider said
that like France and the US, Austria must consider housing,
jobs and integration in its policy towards foreigners.
"Austria to impose stricter controls on Czech-Austrian
Border," CTK National News Wire, November 13, 1996. Susan
Ladika, " Austria backed far right in protest vote, not neo-
Nazi shift," Washington Times, November 10, 1996. Janet
McBride, "Austria's Haider says has government in sights,"
Reuters, November 10, 1996.
_______________________________
Ireland's Immigrants
Ireland, a country of 3.6 million with a per capita GNP of
$13,500 in 1994, has heretofore been a country of emigration
rather than a destination for immigrants.
Today Ireland has about 40,000 legal alien residents,
including 2,000 asylum seekers who are awaiting decisions on
whether they will be allowed to remain in Ireland. Most of
the legal aliens have annually renewable visas.
Legal aliens who have been married to an Irish citizen for
three years are automatically entitled to Irish citizenship.
Those not married to an Irish citizen can apply to the
Minister for Justice for Irish citizenship after five years'
legal residence in Ireland, although the Justice ministry
does not have to give any reason for refusing citizenship.
During the first nine months of 1996, 713 foreigners applied
for asylum in Ireland, versus 424 in 1995, 355 in 1994, 91 in
1993 and 39 in 1992. The largest group of asylum seekers are
Romanians, followed by persons from Somalia and Algeria. In
1995, 14 foreigners were granted refugee status and eight
were given "humanitarian leave to remain" in Ireland.
At present, the authoritative statement of Ireland's refugee
policy is a 1985 letter from the Irish Department of Justice
to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR)
outlining its commitment to the 1951 Geneva Convention. The
practice has been to interview applicants for asylum and then
to await comments from the London office of UNHCR and the
Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. Only after their advice
was received was a final decision reached, often after two to
three years.
According to Irish authorities, these delays and some
passengers on Aeroflot planes seeking asylum during stopovers
at Shannon Airport, contributed to the 1,000 percent increase
in the number of asylum seekers in the past three years.
In 1996, Ireland approved a new Refugee Act that will go into
effect in 1997. It has an expansive definition of refugee,
adding to the Geneva Convention the possibility of receiving
refugee status because of persecution due to gender, sexual
orientation or trade union membership. In addition, the
Irish Refugee Act defines "family" broadly for the purpose of
regulating family reunion for refugees.
Asylum seekers in Ireland are prohibited from working, but
are eligible for public assistance. If an asylum seeker
becomes the parent of an Irish born child or marries an Irish
citizen, she or he gains the right of residency and therefore
the right to work.
Ireland in October 1996 deported to Algeria an Algerian man
who was returning to Ireland from a visit to France and did
not have a re-entry visa. The Algerian man had entered
Ireland as a student in 1991, married an Irish citizen in
1993 and remained in the country. His brother, who owns a
restaurant in Dublin, obtained a court order to delay the
man's deportation, but he was sent to Algiers despite the
court order.
Irish immigration laws, like US law, do not require the
government to give any reason for refusing to issue a visa.
There is no right to appeal the decision of an immigration
officer.
"Bid to have immigration staff jailed for contempt," Irish
Times, November 1, 1996. Yvonne Healy, "Out of the frying
pan into the fire," Irish Times, October 22, 1996.
_______________________________
Sweden's Refugee Law
The Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs released in October
1996 a summary of a Proposed Parliamentary Bill on Migration
Policy. If enacted, the bill would reduce the number of
asylum-seekers through more stringent eligibility rules for
family reunification and transfer responsibility for alien
affairs from the police to the Swedish Immigration Board.
Two reasons cited by the Swedish government for the change in
refugee policy are the fiscal crisis in Sweden and the influx
of persons from the former Yugoslavia. Sweden has provided
shelter for 122,000 Bosnians, more than any other nation, on
a per capita basis.
The Swedish government WILL continue to grant refugee status
to persons fleeing areas in which the state fails to provide
protection against persecution by other agents.
In the past, Sweden has denied asylum to refugees suffering
persecution by non-governmental authorities, such as
Peruvians targeted by the Shining Path or Algerians
persecuted by the insurgent Armed Islamic Group. Denying
protection to such persons has been criticized by the Human
Rights Watch.
"Swedish Migration Policy in a Global Perspective," Summary
of Government Bill 1996/97:25, Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
October, 1996. ELDR President Address on Asylum Refugee
Policy," Reuter European Community Report, October 18, 1996.
_______________________________
ASIA
_______________________________
Japan Copes with Illegal Foreigners
On November 18, the Japanese government said it will grant
Japanese citizenship to a child born out of wedlock to a
Filipina woman and a Japanese man. In a settlement worked
out at the Hiroshima District Court, the government said it
would give Japanese nationality to the child and cancel the
deportation order for the child and the mother.
The government's decision followed a Justice Ministry
announcement in July 1996 that divorced, separated, widowed
or otherwise single foreigners--even those illegally in
Japan-- who are bringing up children with at least one
Japanese parent would be granted legal residency. If a child
is born to a foreign women out of wedlock, the Japanese
father must acknowledge the baby before birth for the mother
and child to remain in Japan.
According to Japanese press reports, many municipalities have
begun to treat foreigners like ordinary residents; many no
longer worry whether a foreigner has overstayed his or her
visa. Local authorities are supposed to report visa
violations to the Immigration Bureau, but many do not.
Shinjuku Ward in Tokyo gives illegal foreign residents access
to public hospitals and schools. Other local governments
provide Japanese language training, job placement assistance
and classes on Japanese culture to foreign residents.
Under current laws, local governments can hire foreign
residents only if they possess special skills, and if their
job does not involve the "use of public power." Local
authorities would like to have more freedom to hire foreign
residents, especially for 3-D jobs--dirty, dangerous, and
difficult--and to help to provide government services to the
growing foreign communities.
The governors and mayors of several cities that have large
(and growing) foreign populations, including the Tokyo, Osaka
and Kyoto governments, would like to give foreign residents
the right to vote in local elections.
The Fukuoka District Court sentenced 18 Chinese to one year
in prison, suspended for three to four years, for illegally
entering Japan from a Chinese fishing boat on August 22,
1996.
The Japanese birth rate hit an all-time low in 1995, down to
1.4 births per woman. If this low birth rate continues,
Japan's population is projected to fall from 125 million in
1996 to 55 million in the year 2100.
Some Japanese worry that a declining population could lead
to costly economic adjustments or a loss of world power and
prestige. Some local governments offer financial rewards to
mothers with four or more children and a few are helping to
arrange for the immigration of Filipino wives.
"Filipina/Japanese child to get Japanese nationality," Japan
Economic Newswire, November 18, 1996. "18 Chinese sentenced
for illegal immigration," Mainichi Daily News, November 15,
1996. "Letting Local Government Push Its Limits--Rights of
Foreign Residents," Japan Economic Institute of America
Report, November 15, 1996.
_______________________________
China-Hong Kong Border
In mid-November, some 2,000 police and border troops in
China's Guangdong province launched their second drill to
prevent a sudden storming of the border by Chinese citizens
when the British colony reverts to Beijing's control in July
1997.
Chinese authorities say they constantly battle rumors in
Guangdong province about a July 1997 amnesty for illegal
immigrants in Hong Kong. Guangdong authorities have informed
the Hong Kong police that criminal gangs on both sides of the
border tempt mainlanders with rumors of an amnesty to
encourage them to use their services to sneak into Hong Kong.
Newspaper reports in 1996 have said many mainland Chinese
think that after July 1997, they will be able to enter Hong
Kong at will. However, China plans to keep Hong Kong as a
distinct entity and to restrict immigration tightly.
Hong Kong's governor has been trying to get pledges from the
European Union nations that they will allow Hong Kong
passport holders visa-free entry after July 1, 1997. The
Benelux nations, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Sweden and the
United Kingdom currently allow visa-free access for holders
of British national overseas passports and Hong Kong Governor
Patten would like these countries to extend this right to the
future holders of Special Administrative Region passports,
which Britain has agreed to do.
China is expected to issue SAR passports to just under half
of Hong Kong's 6.2 million residents.
Many EU nations are resisting visa-free entry for SAR
passport holders for fear that they would be opening
themselves to Chinese immigrants.
British citizens going to Hong Kong for employment, residency
or education will need to apply for a six-month visas before
the July 1, 1997 transfer of Hong Kong sovereignty to China.
The new visa will permit entry, but not work or study. This
change will bring the immigration status of British citizens
into line with that of other foreign nationals in Hong Kong.
Previously, Britons were allowed a 12-month unconditional
stay in Hong Kong that permitted work, study or vacation.
Hong Kong's immigration chief since May 1989, Laurence Leung,
resigned suddenly in July 1996 and there are rumors that he
told Beijing which Hong Kong residents had accepted the
50,000 British passports offered to restore confidence after
the Tiananmen Square Massacre. Other reports say that Leung
was involved in the unauthorized provision of so-called "one-
way permits" to mainland Chinese moving to Hong Kong.
Leung's wife, Kitty, and two daughters emigrated to Canada in
1989.
There were reports in the press that Hong Kong's Secretary
for Industry admitted that political pressure compelled the
government to adopt a labor importation policy under which
the quota of 5,000 imported workers was eliminated.
Since 1985, China's economy has grown by an average of 10.3
percent each year.
An American entrepreneur has an unusual scheme to attract
Chinese investment in Fujian-- any Chinese mainlander who
invests in and works for the Fujian-based joint venture
company can immigrate to the US. Investors in the company,
which makes video cassette storage boxes, will receive stock
in the firm and a transfer to the US after they work for the
company in Fujian for one year.
As US employees, they will receive health insurance, 24 paid
holidays a year and education and legal assistance. After 15
months in the US, the company will sponsor their applications
for green cards.
Magdalen Chow, "Pay fraud denied by agent," South China
Morning Post, November 22, 1996. "Britons to lose HK
privileges," Financial Times, November 19, 1996. Stephen
Vines, "Britons find HK job market is drying up," The
Independent," November 19, 1996. "Britons set to lose visa-
free entry to Hong Kong," Reuters, November 18, 1996. Dusty
Clayton, "US venture promises a job and new life," South
China Morning Post, November 14, 1996. Yojana Sharma,
"Border Security Braces for Mainlaind Stampede," Inter Press
Service, November 13, 1996. "Chinese troops drill to block
1997 border stampede," Reuters, November 13, 1996. Glenn
Scholoss, John Flint and David Wallen, "Queen concerned for
minorities," South China Morning Post, November 11, 1996.
"France mute on HK visa rights: Patten," Agence France
Presse, November 11, 1996. "Chinese troops drill to block
1997 border stampede," Reuters World Service, November 13,
1996. Linda Choy, "Political heat 'forced dip in labour
quota,' South China Morning Post, November 5, 1996.
_______________________________
APEC Meets in Manila
The 18-nation Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum (APEC)
met in Manila on November 20-25, 1996 to discuss ways to
achieve free trade between the developed economy members by
2010 and for all APEC nations by 2020. Two APEC members,
China and Taiwan, are not members of the World Trade
Organization.
APEC members also endorsed free trade in computers and
information technology by 2000. APEC includes Australia,
Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan,
South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea,
the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and the United
States.
The Philippines is booming; its 70 million people have a GDP
of almost $80 billion. Economic growth will exceed seven
percent in 1996 and per capita income has risen to more than
$1,000 per person per year. However, the boom is mostly an
urban phenomena; inequality between rural and urban areas has
increased and two-thirds of Filipinos live in rural areas.
Philippine President Fidel Ramos announced that the economic
boom has resulted in "fewer people going abroad now...And we
have people coming back." However, Ramos reiterated his call
for a global conference on migration and development.
Keith B. Richburg, "Philippine Economy Reviving," Washington
Post, November 22 1996.
_______________________________
Foreign Workers in Singapore
There are now 350,000 foreign workers employed in Singapore,
nearly 12 percent of the population. Most of the foreign
workers in Singapore are from Malaysia, Thailand, the
Philippines, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and India.
Some believe that Singapore's reliance on foreign workers is
hurting productivity and slowing growth, especially in
construction. Construction productivity has been falling for
the last four years, a period that coincided with the import
of more foreign construction workers.
Cheap labor does not necessarily mean low costs. According
to a 1989 Construction Industry Development Board comparison
study: in Dallas, Texas, materials cost 80 per cent more and
wages are six times higher than in Singapore, but unit
construction costs are only two to 15 per cent higher.
The Singapore government will increase the maximum stay of
skilled foreign workers from eight to ten years to minimize
employers' training costs. About seven percent of the
foreign construction workers are skilled. Construction
employers must pay a S$440 per month levy to the government
companies for each foreign worker they employ.
Malaysian workers can continue to renew their work permits
every two years.
Some contractors worry that once workers are trained they
will continue to job-hop or move to countries with higher pay
such as Taiwan.
A Singapore court has ruled that building contractors who
hire foreign workers must check their documents instead of
relying upon sub-contractors to inspect workers' documents.
The ruling was made in September in the case of a contractor
who was sentenced to 16 months jail for employing and
harboring two illegal workers.
Employers of foreign maids in Singapore were warned by the
government on November 21, that they faced fines if they
deploy their workers to other duties. The Ministry of Labor
reported that it found 59 cases in 1996 of employers who had
their domestics work for relatives or friends, often as non-
domestic workers in retail, food shops or factories.
Singapore's work permits are valid only for the trade,
occupation and employer specified on the card. Employers
violating the law could face a fine of up $3,500 US and/or a
jail term of up to one year.
"Singapore employers of foreign maids get a warning," Agence
France Presse, November 21, 1996. Tan Ooi Boon, "Contractors
must check foreign workers' papers," Straits Times, November
9, 1996. Audrey Tan, "Maximum job period for foreign workers
extended," Business Times, November 6, 1996. Yeow Pei Lin,
"Skilled workers can be kept for 10 years now," Straits Times
(Singapore), November 6, 1996. "Singapore minister warns of
dangerous dependence on foreign labor," Agence France Presse,
November 4, 1996.
_______________________________
South Korea Contends with Foreign Workers
The South Korean government plans to import 1,500 skilled
foreign workers from Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines
in 1997 for the construction of Inchon International Airport
in northern South Korea. This will be the first time that
skilled foreign workers have been admitted to South Korea by
either a private or public agency.
South Korea plans to bring in 3,000 more skilled foreign
laborers in 1998 and about 2,000 in 1999 to work on the
airport.
South Korean businesses are struggling to find workers for
the 3-D (dirty, difficult and dangerous) jobs. Up to 50
percent of an employer's workers can be industrial trainees.
However, many of the trainees escape from their employers
because they can earn more than trainee wages as illegal
workers.
There are an estimated 170,000 foreign workers in Korea,
including 70,000 to 110,000 illegal foreign laborers.
Korea plans a third crackdown on illegal foreign workers,
after two previous crackdowns resulted in the removal of
8,500 illegal aliens over the past 12 months. The crackdown
will focus on restaurants and places of entertainment, not
factories, reflecting, an official said, recognition of labor
shortages in manufacturing.
The national fishing cooperative says there are 53,000
coastal fishing jobs and only 42,000 Korean fisherman. The
Korea Federation of Textile Industries cannot fill nearly 15
percent of its jobs, up from 12 percent in 1995. About 20
percent of heavy manufacturing jobs are vacant at small- and
medium-size businesses. Some sectors, such as plastics and
electrical machinery, are short 30 percent of their desired
work force.
Foreign workers in South Korea complain that the biggest
problems for them are poor living and working conditions,
substandard wages and employer abuse. Koreans managers are
notorious for mistreating workers, both at home and in
Korean-owned factories abroad.
In August, 1996, a Korean manager of a Korean-owned shoe
factory in Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh City received a suspended
prison sentence for lining up and beating employees with an
unfinished shoe. Corporal punishment was accepted in Korean
work places until the 1970s.
The Korean government has announced plans to improve local
training programs for foreigners, cracking down on immigrants
who commit crimes and establishing a new system to track and
supervise foreigners throughout their stay in Korea.
South Korea promised to change its labor laws when it joined
the OECD in 1996 and became a full member of the ILO in 1991.
A 1963 law limits each work place to one union, one union per
industry and one national union confederation, the Korean
Trade Unions (FKTU), thereby making the activities of the
rival Korean Congress of Trade Unions unlawful.
A 1980 law bars non-employee organizers from assisting a
plant union and a third law prevents teachers and civil
servants from joining unions. Hundreds of union activists
are in jail for violating these laws.
Korean employers complain that rigid labor laws limit their
flexibility. Workers can be dismissed only "for cause" and
discharged workers are entitled to 30 days severance pay per
year of service.
South Korea is a country of 44 million, with a per capita GDP
of about $11,000 in 1996. Seoul, which is only 30 miles from
North Korea, is home to one-fourth of all South Koreans.
Pauline Jelinek, "Influx of foreign labor leads to harsh
lessons for South Korean Bosses," Los Angeles Times, November
10, 1996. "South Korea to import skilled foreign workers,"
Xinhua News Agency, November 5, 1996. "Crackdown on illegal
foreign workers looming," Agence France Presse, October 28,
1996.
_______________________________
Taiwan Struggles to Control Foreign Workers
The Council of Labor Affairs on November 14, 1996 announced
that it was reducing the maximum percentage of foreign
workers in a company or factory from 32 to 35 percent to 30
percent. There were about 239,000 foreign workers in Taiwan
in August 1996--most from Thailand, the Philippines, Malaysia
and Indonesia --and 300,000 unemployed Taiwanese.
According to the Taiwan Labor Front, there may be a total of
450,000 foreign workers in Taiwan, including illegal workers.
Taiwan first admitted foreign workers in 1991 for 3-D jobs--
dirty, dangerous, and difficult--but expanded permission to
employ foreign workers in 73 industrial and business
categories, as well as six major manufacturing projects on a
case-by-case basis.
The Department of Health reported on November 15, 1996 that
24,966 foreign workers, 10 percent of those who legally
entered Taiwan, had abandoned their jobs. About 15,200 have
been caught, which leaves almost 10,000 who have fled their
jobs.
Sofia Wu, "Nearly 25,000 legal foreign workers have fled
their jobs in Taiwan," Central News Agency, November 15,
1996. "Taiwan to further reduce number of foreign workers,"
Agence France Presse, November 14, 1996.
_______________________________
OTHER
_______________________________
Child Labor and Slavery
On November 11, 1996, the International Labor Organization
released a report, "Child Labor: Targeting the Intolerable,"
that estimated that 250 million children ages five to 14 work
in developing countries, double previous estimates. About
130 million of these children work part time and 120 million
work full time. About 60 percent of the child laborers are
in Asia.
In 1995, an estimated 42 percent of the children in Kenya
worked full or part time; followed by Bangladesh, 30 percent;
Haiti, 25 percent; Turkey, 24 percent; and Pakistan, 17
percent.
The ILO report urged stepped up enforcement and stiffer
penalties for three types of child labor: child
prostitution, slavery and the use of children in hazardous
manufacturing
On November 1, 1996, Bangladesh agreed to stop using children
under 14 in its 2,000-firm garment industry. The firms
exported $2.5 billion worth of clothing in 1995-96, 60
percent to the US. Under the agreement, the 10,500 girls now
employed in the garment industry will be sent to school and
each child will receive a stipend of 300 take (US$8) per
month. Businesses caught using child labor could lose their
export licenses.
Children under 15 are employed in an estimated 300 types of
jobs in Bangladesh.
The UN on August 10 released a report on slavery throughout
the world. The report found that more than 55 million Indian
children are held in servitude despite a 20-year old ban on
slave labor.
In Pakistan, the UN found nearly 800 cases of employers
convicted for exploiting child labor. The Kamiya system in
Nepal keeps entire families in slavery through buying and
selling workers. The UN investigators also found that
Burmese local authorities are using more and more forced
labor in rural areas, infrastructure projects and oil and gas
prospecting.
Most offenses involving foreign workers found employers
confiscating an employee's passport, so that abused
immigrants usually did not have residence or work permits and
were dependent upon the employer.
The ILO has proposed a convention to protect foreign
seafarers. The ILO recommends a minimum monthly wage for
seafarers of $435 per month for a 72-hour work week beginning
in January 1998.
Kasra Naji, "Bangladesh bans child labor in garment
industry," Financial Times, November 2, 1996. "UN condemns
modern slavery," Agence France Presse, August 13, 1996.
_______________________________
Population Growth, Urbanization and Tourism
The world's population, expected to top 5.8 billion in
December 1996, is growing at about 79 million per year
(216,000 per day), reflecting 133 million births per year
(364,000 per day) and 53 million deaths per year (145,000 per
day). The world's population is projected to reach 6.2
billion in the year 2000 and seven billion in 2010.
In November, the UN announced that the world's population
growth had unexpectedly slowed to 1.48 percent per year, down
from an expected 1.57 percent per year. Fertility worldwide
is now about three children per woman. If these trends
continue, the world's population might be 9.4 rather than 10
billion in 2050.
By 2025, some five billion people, two-thirds of the world's
expected population of eight billion to nine billion, are
expected to be living in cities. Many fast-growing cities
are in developing countries and are increasingly populated by
young, unemployed men, creating a climate for rising crime,
political violence and the spread of diseases.
The New York metropolitan area was the world's largest city
in 1950 and third-largest in 1995. According to UN
projections, New York City will drop to 11th place by 2015,
behind Tokyo; Bombay, 27 million; Lagos, 24 million;
Shanghai, 24 million; Jakarta, 21 million; Sao Paulo and
Karachi. Beijing, Dhaka, and Mexico City will have 19
million residents each.
At a UN meeting in November, both Thailand and Zambia said
that illegal immigration was a major threat to their
countries.
The World Tourism Organization reported that France attracted
61 million foreign visitors, almost 10 percent of the world's
total of 567 million, followed by Spain and the US, with 45
million each. The top 10 countries--including Italy, China,
UK, Hungary, Mexico, Poland, and Austria--attracted 54
percent of all foreign tourists.
According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, worldwide
spending on travel and tourism is projected to be $3.6
trillion in 1996, up from $3.1 trillion in 1992 and $1.9
trillion in 1987. Travel and tourism employed an estimated
255 million workers in 1995, up from 130 million workers
worldwide in 1992 and 100 million in 1987.
Barbara Crossette, "U.N. Survey Shows Population Growth
Slowing," New York Times, November 17, 1996. Kaplan, Robert
D. 1996. The Ends of the Earth. New York: Random House.
_______________________________
India/Bangladesh
Bangladesh formally asked Taiwan if it would receive
Bangladeshi workers, but Taiwan responded on October 11, 1996
that it does not plan to import Bangladeshis now or in the
future.
About two million Bangladeshis work abroad, including nearly
40 percent in Saudi Arabia. They remitted $1.2 billion in
1995, accounting for 41 percent of Bangladeshi's foreign
exchange. Bangladesh began to export workers in 1987.
An estimated 25,000 Bangladeshis were returned home from the
United Arab Emirates in September, 1996 and another 8,000
were expected return after the UAE's extended amnesty for
illegal migrant workers expired on October 31, 1996. Another
100,000 may be expelled from Malaysia.
The Bangladeshi government has offered to export workers to
Malaysia, South Korea, Mauritius, Brunei, Taiwan, Singapore,
Japan and South Africa. The Bangladeshi work force is
estimated at 25 million.
Bangladeshis also migrate north to Assam, India. One of the
largest day labor markets is the Indian state of Assam, in
Gauhati's Laktakia quarter, where hundreds of Bangadeshis
congregate at rail and bus stations for jobs. According to
local officials, the Bangladeshis go to work on farms or in
construction, build a shelter for themselves and then send
for their families.
If a Bangladeshi worker can get the Indian employer to
provide him with a work permit, he can use the permit to get
a ration card, which signifies that the bearer is an Indian.
In 1993, the Indian Election Commission struck three million
names of alleged Bangladeshis from the voting rolls in Assam
because they got ration cards in this manner, but a court
overturned the action.
About 35 percent of Assam's residents are believed to be
foreigners. Most of the "native Assamese" immigrated from
Burma in the 1300s and were later Hinduized by immigrant
Brahmans from Bihar and Orissa. The indigenous inhabitants
of the Brahmaputra Valley are the Bodo tribes, who are
opposed to both the Bengali immigrants and the Assamese.
It is not clear what the Indian government intends to do
about illegal Bangladeshis. In 1985, the Assam Accord
pledged to remove all Bangladeshis who had immigrated
illegally after 1971. On January 28, 1983, not far from
Gauhati, thousands of "illegal Bangladeshis" were killed.
Plans for a 600-mile border fence have not yet been
implemented. The border police estimate that about one
thousand Bangladeshis cross the border into India each day.
A new book by Ashok Swain, The Environmental Trap: The Ganges
River Diversion, Bangladeshi Migration and Conflicts in India
(1996), argues that Indian water and environmental policies
may be a factor that encourages Bangladeshi migration to
Assam. Since 1975, India has diverted water from the River
Ganges at the Farakka Barrage before the water reached the
south-western part of Bangladesh, encouraging some people
there to migrate because they did not have enough water to
irrigate their crops.
There are some 15 million ethnic Indians scattered around the
world, more than a million in each of Burma, South Africa and
the US and 700,000 in Canada.
Government officials from the state of Kerala, in southern
India, report that the clampdown on foreign workers in the
United Arab Emirates, will hit them hard. Nearly half of the
50,000 to 60,000 Indians in the UAE are Malayalees, native
from Kerala, and 90 percent are unskilled or semi-skilled
workers.
In the run-up to Indian elections, sketches of life in rural
India emphasized that moneylenders and local power brokers
still maintain an iron grip on the countryside, where most
Indians live.
"Many illegal residents defied UAE amnesty," Reuters,
November 6, 1996. "Taiwan does not plan to import
Bangladeshi workers," Deutsche Presse-Agentur, October 11,
1996. Shakeel Anwar, "Bangladesh looking for new overseas
job markets," Reuters, October 9, 1996. Hari Kartha, "UAE
Labour Clampdown to Hit South India Worst," Reuter Asia-
Pacific Business Report," September 21, 1996. Nadim Kawah,
"UAE sees sharp drop in foreigners as more Asians leave,"
September 20, 1996. Caroline Drees, "Foreign workers in UAE
flock out ahead of new law," Reuters, September 19, 1996.
"Bangladeshi Illegals Seek a New Life in India," Swiss Review
of World Affairs, August 2, 1996. "Nepal, Bhutan fail to
resolve differences on refugees," Japan Economic Newswire,
April 5, 1996. Rahul Jacob, "Passage from India: 15 million
expatriates have made their mark around the globe," Time,
March 25, 1996. Swain, Ashok. 1996. The Environmental Trap:
The Ganges River Diversion, Bangladeshi Migration and
Conflicts in India. Uppsala: Sweden. Department of Peace
and Conflict Studies Report 41. Fax 4618-69-5102 or
ashok.swain@pcr.uu.se
_______________________________
Foreign Workers in the Middle East
About 40 percent of the population of the six Gulf nations
are foreigners and their per capita incomes, including
foreign residents, have fallen sharply. In Saudi Arabia, for
example, per capita income has fallen from $19,000 in 1980 to
about $7,000 in 1995, below the World Bank's line for rich
countries ($7620).
Jordan. The Jordanian government is considering deporting
300,000 guest workers to reduce unemployment. Unemployment
estimates range from 15 percent to 25 percent of the 900,000
work force. There are currently about 400,000 foreign
workers in Jordan, three-fourths of whom are Egyptians.
Under one proposal, medicine, engineering and administrative
and secretarial positions would be closed to foreigners.
Analysts say that most competition for employment between
foreign workers and Jordanians is in low-paying jobs. A
proposed minimum wage for Jordanian workers might, analysts
say, make employers favor foreign workers for low-paying
jobs.
UAE. Water and power demand in the United Arab Emirates fell
10 to 15 percent since nearly 200,000 illegal foreign workers
left the country, according to government sources. Water and
electricity are heavily subsidized in the UAE, which has 2.4
million residents. About two-thirds of the population, and
90 percent of the work force, are foreigners.
Estimates of the number of illegal immigrants leaving the UAE
range from 167,000 to 200,000. Reports from the UAE say that
taxis are difficult to find and hiring a maid is almost
impossible. Work at several construction sites has stopped.
Most of the workers who left were construction workers and
service workers in restaurants, shops and some factories.
One bank official predicted that there may be a slight
decline in real growth through the rest of the year because
of the departure of the foreign workers. One effect of the
exodus has been to have illegal part-time workers take on
full-time jobs. Employers must pay taxes on full-time
employees and provide housing.
Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia continues its effort to intervene
in both the demand and supply side of the labor market,
denying employers permission to import e.g. secretaries, and
offering young Saudis courses in how to be better workers.
There are about three million Saudi workers and five million
foreign workers in the country.
The Saudi 1995-2000 plan calls for the creation of 650,000
jobs for Saudis, with 300,000 created by having Saudis
replacing foreigners.
Saudi Arabia's per capita income fell from about $18,000 per
year in the early 1980s to $6,000 in 1995.
Kuwait. The 1.2 million foreign workers and their families
in Kuwait are about 63 percent Kuwait's 1.9 million
residents. Since 1991, 440 foreigners were found to be HIV
positive and immediately deported.
Israel. Israel in November set up a camp near Tel Aviv to
hold some of the 200,000 illegal aliens in the country that
it apprehends. The camp, a former prison annex, can
accommodate 90 immigrants. Israel plans to deport 2,000
illegal immigrants each month, up from 1996 level of 150 per
month.
Most of the foreign workers are from Romania, Thailand, the
Philippines and African countries. Many overstay their visas
rather than return to a life of poverty in their native
lands. At one Tel Aviv school, half the pupils are children
of foreign workers illegally living in the country.
The 250,000 foreign workers in Israel enter into some 3,000
fictitious marriages each year, the Interior Ministry
estimates. Israeli women typically receive NIS 2000 to marry
a foreigner.
Israel will ask Thailand for 4,000 additional workers to pick
fruit for export to Japan.
In Palestine, the labor force is about 433,000 with
unemployment estimated to be over 50 percent. About 18,000
Palestinians work in Israel, down from 116,000 in 1992.
Douglas Jehl, "A Tutorial for Young Saudis On Ways to Toil
for Money," New York Times, November 21, 1996. "Israel is
preparing to deport 2,000 illegal aliens monthly," Associated
Press, November 7, 1996. "UAE Utility Demand Slides as
Illegal Workers Leave," Reuters, November 3, 1996. Patrick
Rahir, "Emirates could pay high price for exodus of foreign
workers," Agence France Presse, November 2, 1996. "Israel to
open detention camp for illegal immigrants," Agence France
Presse, November 6, 1996. "Israel wants more foreign
workers," UPI, October 4, 1996. "Jordan to deport foreign
laborers," Xinhua News Agency, October 14, 1996. "Jordan:
Unemployment moves," Middle East Economic Digest October 7,
1996.
_______________________________
RESOURCES
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The Atlantic: Can the US afford immigration?
The November 1996 Atlantic includes two immigration articles.
Historian David M. Kennedy asks "Can We Still Afford to Be a
Nation of Immigrants?" and economist George Borjas discusses
"The New Economics of Immigration."
Kennedy begins by noting that two extremes have framed US
views of immigrants. On the one hand, immigrants have been
often praised for being the best of their societies, the
risk-takers attracted to the US by opportunity and freedom.
The other extreme, common at the beginning of the 20th
century, is that immigrants are inferior to US-born
residents--supply-push factors such as overpopulation and
joblessness push them toward the US. Both views see
immigrants as individuals choosing where to live.
Two supply-push factors in Europe, says Kennedy, were
responsible for mass US immigration in the 19th century--
population growth--Europe's population doubled from 200
million to 400 million in the 1800s, even after 70 million
people emigrated--and the agricultural and industrial
revolutions that displaced rural and urban peoples.
Kennedy then turns to three factors that he thinks helped to
integrate immigrants in the US; their relatively low numbers,
rapid economic growth, and the varied composition and broad
dispersal of the immigrants throughout the US. The 15
percent foreign-born persons enumerated in the 1910 Census
were less than the 18 percent foreign-born in Australia, or
the 20 percent foreign-born in Canada, or the even higher
percentage of foreign born in Argentina at the turn of the
century. According to Kennedy, the diversity of immigrants
meant that no group could forever maintain its cultural
identity and none could gain political power over more than a
city.
Kennedy argues that the same two supply-push factors--
population growth and economic change--are pushing migrants
from Mexico and other countries to the US at the end of the
20th century. Kennedy asserts that the US can absorb the
number of immigrants arriving. However, Kennedy says that
unskilled immigrants do not have the same economic payoff for
US natives that they did a century ago.
Kennedy then turns to Mexico, the source of about one-fourth
of US immigrants over the past 15 years. He notes that the
Hispanicization of the American Southwest is sometimes called
the Reconquista and goes on to speculate that the prospect of
continuing migration from a neighboring country is
unprecedented and that it is far from clear whether
geographic proximity will serve to speed integration or
isolation.
George Borjas says that immigration policies can be compared
by how they resolve two fundamental questions: how many
immigrants the country should admit and what kinds of people
they should be. According to Borjas, there is now a
consensus that:
1. The relative education or skills of successive immigrant
waves have declined over much of the postwar period, i.e.,
the gap between the average years of schooling of native-born
adults and recent immigrants has widened from about 0.4 years
to 1.3 years.
2. Many recent immigrants will never earn as much as similar
US-born residents and, as they crowd into the low wage labor
market, immigration may account for as much as one-third of
the drop in the wages of unskilled US workers. The net
economic benefits to the US from immigration are about $7
billion per year, according to Borjas, about what the US
spends on the Interior Department, or $30 per person per
year.
3. Households headed by recent immigrants are more likely
to receive some type of welfare assistance than households
headed by US-born persons. Unskilled immigrants are likely
to have children who also have below average levels of
schooling.
Borjas goes on to divide the world's people into three
groups--natives, immigrants and the persons left behind, and
asks how immigration affects the size of the economy after
immigrants enter and the distribution of income. Immigration
slows wage increases, but increase the size of the economy; a
10 percent increase in the labor force is associated with a
three percent drop in wages.
Borjas agrees with Briggs and many other economists that the
number of immigrants admitted annually should be linked to
conditions in the US economy.
Furthermore, Borjas suggests several immigration policy goals
and ways to achieve them. If the goal of immigration policy
is to increase the per capita income of the native
population, then immigration policy should encourage the
entry of skilled workers.
Both articles are available at
http://www.theatlantic.com/atlantic/election/connection/immig
rat/immigrat.htm
Maolain, Ciaran. 1996. European Directory of Migrant and
Ethnic Minority Organizations. Utrecht: ERCOMER.
ercomer@fsw.ruu.nl or http://www.ruu.nl/recomer/
This directory includes a listing of over 9,000 community
organizations, support organizations, anti-racism groups,
private and government agencies and research centers arranged
by country.
Geyer, Georgie Ann. 1996. Americans No More: The Death of
Citizenship. Boston. Atlantic Monthly Press
This book argues that Americans are gradually losing their
sense of citizenship. According to Geyer, it is too easy for
foreigners to become naturalized US citizens.
Klusmeyer, Douglas B. 1996. Between Consent and Descent:
Conceptions of Democratic Citizenship. Washington. Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace. Contact yasmin@ceip.org.
This monograph traces citizenship from ancient Greece and
Rome, through the Renaissance and the Enlightenment and the
American and French Revolutions.
National Research Council. 1996. Statistics on U.S.
Immigration: An Assessment of Data Needs for Future Research.
Committee on National Statistics and Committee on Population.
Available from National Academy Press, 2101 Constitution Ave.
N.W., Box 285, Washington, DC 20418.
This report calls for the inclusion of questions on nativity
and parental nativity in the Census, and that more socio-
economic data be added to the Public Use Microdata Sample
(PUMS) files so that researchers can more easily study
immigrant integration.