The seventh session of the 4th International E-Conference on “Migration, Governance, and COVID-19: Perspectives, Policies, Opportunities, and Challenges”, was held on November 3rd and 4th, 2022. The theme of the session was “Forced Migration & Human Rights”. The session was chaired by Dr. Monika Bisht Ranjan, an Executive Committee member of the Global Research Forum on Diaspora and Transnationalism.
The first speaker of this session was Fiore Bran Aragon whose paper was titled, “Forced Migration, integration, and solidarity: Experiences of Nicaraguan “Autoconvocado” women in Costa Rica during Covid-19”. In her paper, Fiore Bran Aragon highlighted and analysed the socio-economic and cultural integration of Nicaraguan forced migrant women in Costa Rica in the context of COVID- 19. Her paper seeks to understand how integration processes are shaped by government policies, public discourse, and xenophobic practices. In this context of social polarization, some groups of forced migrants, whom she call ‘autoconvocados’ (self- organized) have used their previous experiences as community organizers to create self-organized initiatives for integration, focusing on integration among newcomers, and between migrants and locals. However, she argues that these initiatives have developed ‘solidarity practices’ that focus on human rights and the contributions of migrants to their host communities, thereby creating spaces for exchange and ‘interdependence’ between migrants, locals, and institutions.
Nazh Tore presented her paper on “Missing Migrant Children in Europe”. Her paper examined the huge impacts of COVID-19 on individuals and societies, challenging humanity to adapt to new lifestyles, working conditions and social relationships. She also argues that the restrictive measures to limit the spread of the pandemic have heightened the risks to which certain children are exposed. According to her paper, data from a research association known as Lost in Europe, 18,292 children in migration went missing in the region between the years 2018 and 2020. The data was collected by Lost in Europe in 30 European countries. Her paper explicitly examines the plight and vulnerability of missing migrant children who continue to face precarious experiences as result of war etc. She highlighted that there are mainly three different, but interrelated factors contributing to the special needs of children on the move: their dependence, their vulnerability and their developmental needs (i.e., their requirements for healthy growth and development at different ages). Particularly in their early years, children are dependent upon their parents or other adults to provide the basic necessities for their survival.
Manjima A & Tanay Thakur presented the paper titled, “Racial profiling of immigrants: Do some bodies matter more?”. Their paper sheds light on the hypocrisy of the current international order, where racism and xenophobia underline the glossed notions of multilateralism, collective security, and shared prosperity. They argue that the concept of racism encompasses a wide variety of social phenomena, ranging from systemic inequality, institutional discrimination, internalized stereotypes, and racial attitudes. They further argue that the promises of unbiased and accessible human rights by liberal democracies and multilateral institutions, as well as key documents like UNDHR or GCM, racism continues to be an unjust reality that confronts immigrants across the world. Their paper attempts to uncover the racialization of migration discourse in the policy practices of governments, international institutions, and at the grass root levels in the host countries, for instance, among the frontline public sector workers. As a result, this curtails the access of migrants and refugees to social welfare and healthcare entitlements and makes them vulnerable to violence and human trafficking. They concluded with an analysis of possible measures that can be undertaken to ensure inclusivity within the international order and root out the evil of racism.
The fourth speaker was Monica Verea whose paper was on “Biden Dismantling Trump´s Migration Policy”. In her paper, she examined Joe Biden’s campaign pledges during his run for the presidency, who radically pledged to shift the narrative away from the Trump administration’s anti-immigrant stance and toward the one that was more positive and humane. She claims that Joe Biden pledged to reverse all of Trump’s restricting and anti-immigrant acts and policies. Her research paper compares and contrasts the Biden and Trump administrations in terms of migration policy.
The final speaker was Saba Fatima whose paper was on “Syrian Refugee Women and COVID-19: Life is a Crisis within a Crisis”. She examined the plight of Syrian Refugee women and the precarious impacts of COVID-19 on their lives and livelihoods. She further argues that COVID-19 has exacerbated extreme poverty and violence against women. The pandemic has weakened an already precarious source of income for refugees andthe informal labour market, according to Omar Kadkoy, Policy Analyst at the Turkish Economic Policy Research Foundation. Her study concludes that women who have experienced a crisis or been displaced face a triple barrier of COVID-19, displacement, and gender-related problems. However, policies and enough finance have not yet been secured for Syrian refugee women’s economic empowerment.
The session ended with a concluding remark and a thankful statement from Dr. Monika Bisht, the chair of the session on Forced Migration and Human Rights with Andrew Mendy as the rapporteur of the session.
Andrew Mendy holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Political Science from the University of the Gambia. He is a research scholar at Global Research Forum on Diaspora and Transnationalism. His research interests include Global Politics, Postcolonial Africa Literature, and Migration Studies.