In The News

Diaspora – Selective Immigration Policies and the Brain Drain

Bathseba H. Belai June 19, 2006
In an age of rapid information and globalization, developing countries need an educated workforce more than ever. However, the wealthiest nations entice the most talented workers with high wages – creating a void of intellectual capital in the most impoverished countries. As the populations of wealthy nations age, many governments have increased incentives for specialists to immigrate, although...

Mexico Worries About Its Own Southern Border

Ginger Thompson June 15, 2006
While Mexican authorities have chided the US for its policy of increasing militarization of the US-Mexico border, Mexico’s President Vicente Fox also makes plans for more patrols of the southern border in his own country. Indeed, Mexican regulations on immigration are far tougher than those in the US. Detentions and deportations have risen by about 74 percent in the past four years, according to...

In Praise of Migration

Kofi A. Annan June 8, 2006
UN secretary general Kofi Annan not only suggests that borders are meant to be crossed, but also that those crossing national borders “have always been the motors of human progress.” Migration offers myriad benefits, including an increased menial and skilled labor force comprised of incoming migrants, as well as the high level of remittances that migrants send home, which totaled around $232...

Somalis Brave a Sea of Perils for Jobs Abroad

Marc Lacey June 5, 2006
For individuals seeking an escape from the crushing drought, poverty and violence of Somalia, the width of the Gulf of Aden between the African coast and that of Yemen is tantalizingly narrow. The two-day journey, however, is deadly for the migrants who cram onto rickety fishing boats, waiting to be smuggled across the divide. Conservative estimates suggest that since September 2005, about 1000...

Why I Published the Muhammad Cartoons

Flemming Rose June 5, 2006
The furor and violence over the infamous Danish cartoons of the prophet Mohammad died down, yet crucial issues have not been resolved. “Jyllands – Posten” was the newspaper that originally published the cartoons. Editor Flemming Rose explains his motivation as well as the challenges arising from Europe’s unsuccessful attempts at multiculturalism. In the wake of the cartoon crisis, Rose argues...

The Gauls at Home in Erin

John Tagliabue June 2, 2006
Young Europeans now travel about the continent, overcoming language and cultural barriers in search of better work opportunities – a major cultural shift. One increasingly common migration trajectory is from France to Ireland. Ireland’s economy and job prospects, especially in fields like finance and computers, beckon young adults from France, who flee the nation’s high taxes and high...

EU Faces Complications in Plan to Halt Migrants

Dan Bilefsky June 1, 2006
The proximity of Spain’s Canary Islands to the coast of West Africa has historically been a vantage point for European westward endeavors and explorations. Today, however, the islands and other EU border areas experience an influx of migrants from the south. During one week in May, more than 1,500 individuals arrived at the Canary Islands from several West African countries, overwhelming border...