A generationIt’s bad enough when the country violates its own rules and abuses the people-but when they start to change the rules, we really need to worry. Three recent stories from three different corners of Europe show that governments are crossing new thresholds of violence in how they regulate borders.These developments are inherently harmful, but they also set a disturbing precedent for how countries in the world’s wealthy regions respond to future displacement issues-not only because of war and persecution, but also From the climate crisis as well as.
In the United Kingdom, the Home Office is quietly trying to amend its strict Nationality and Borders Act, which is currently in the committee stage, by introducing a clause to empower border force staff Immunity from prosecution If they fail to save lives at sea. The Secretary of the Interior Priti Patel claimed that this is essentially a benevolent measure: If a ship in the strait turns around, it will eventually prevent people from attempting dangerous travel in the first place. In fact, it undermines a key principle of international maritime law, which makes it an obligation to rescue persons in distress.
In Poland, the government just passed Emergency law Authorities are allowed to repatriate refugees who have entered the country “illegally”. This is the latest development in the diplomatic stalemate with Belarus, which Belarus has been ridiculing. Encourage people It entered the European Union from Iraq, Iran and parts of Africa in response to sanctions imposed on it earlier this year. Poland’s tough response has left many people trapped in the no-man’s land between the two countries. As winter approaches, aid agencies warn of an imminent humanitarian crisis; At least eight people Have died so far this year, most of From hypothermia.
In Southeast Europe, an international team of investigative journalists revealed that Croatia and Greece are Use the “Shadow Army”, Plainclothes troops wearing balaclavas have ties to the regular security forces of these countries, forcing people to leave their borders. In Croatia, these units were photographed assaulting people with clubs at the Bosnian border. In Greece, they were accused of intercepting ships in the Aegean Sea and placing passengers on life rafts in Turkish waters. (Croatia has promised to investigate reports of abuse, while Greece denies this practice.) As shocking as the claim itself is that EU officials have largely dismissed the revelations, and their funds have helped support border defenses. These two countries.Twelve member states even require the EU Adjustment rules So that it can fund”Further preventive measures“, including walls and fences, at its outer boundaries.
In short, these stories show that “fighting back”—forcing people to leave the territory of a country, even if it puts them in danger or overrides their right of asylum—is becoming an entrenched practice. Once something happens to a large extent in the shadows, it will proceed more and more openly, and some governments try to find a way to legitimize this practice. The British proposal was strongly criticized by the UN refugee agency UNHCR. Whose representative said It “inevitably” puts lives in danger.
This is not just a question of today: it is a dress rehearsal of how our government might respond to the effects of the climate crisis in the coming years.It is well known that forecasts of climate-related migration are vague and easy to exaggerate, but A new report from the World Bank It is estimated that by 2050, 216 million people may be displaced in their own countries due to water shortages, crop failures and rising sea levels. If they face poor economic prospects or domestic conflict and instability, some people may end up going further. In April of this year, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris stated that drought and “extensive storm damage caused by extreme weather” are part of the reason for the increase in Central American immigration.
Unfortunately, many of our politicians are prepared to regard displacement as a threat to civilization in the first place. This is the logic of Boris Johnson’s comments before the Cop26 in Glasgow, when he claimed that – wrongly -“Uncontrolled immigration” is the cause of the decline of the Roman Empire, and today’s world is facing a similar fate. In this story, an environmental disaster that affects all of us is transformed into a question of how the rich and powerful maintain their privileges.
The wealthier regions of the world have begun to militarize their borders, a process that has been accelerated by the movement of refugees in the past decade.In this regard, they have received emerging support Border defense industry. A recent report Multinational Institute The warning calls it the “Border Industrial Complex,” a growing multi-billion dollar industry that ranges from security infrastructure to biometrics and artificial intelligence. By 2025, the global market for fences, walls, and surveillance alone is expected to be worth US$6.5-68 billion.
However, this is a false security. Restrictive and violent border control will only make the societies that use it more authoritarian—it cannot completely prevent the movement of people. Its role is to force people to take a more dangerous journey and become a greater target for xenophobic backlash. Countries or regions that are seen as desperately shutting people out have become targets of illegal neighboring countries that want to use the issue to exert political pressure. As we have seen constantly on the European border, the end result is a cold ignorance of life.
On the contrary, in addition to taking action to reduce emissions, a plan to help people adapt to the changing living environment and reduce global inequality is also needed, as well as an immigration policy that recognizes the reality of people’s situation.Last year, the UN Human Rights Commission ruled that governments Shouldn’t let people return to the country Their safety will be directly threatened by the climate emergency. However, for the time being, there is no proper legal framework to protect people who have been displaced due to environmental reasons.A sort of American New Research The Biden administration commissioned a proposal for a new law to protect climate immigrants, but it is very clear in the details.
The next few years may mark a turning point in the way our government responds to displacement. Either they work together to build a system that protects people’s lives and dignity, and can adapt to the ever-changing reality of the 21st century, or their boundaries will continue to harden and they will pay considerable labor costs. If we want to avoid the latter, then before it is written into our law, now is the time to challenge the violent logic of pushback.
