In The News

15,000 Families Granted Asylum

October 24, 2003
With more asylum seekers fleeing conflicts in various parts of the world, receiving countries are experiencing some hard times. The UK, for example, is already feeling over burdened. Recently, the government announced that it would grant 15,000 families indefinite leave to remain and enable them to work in the UK, a right they don't currently enjoy. According to the Secretary of the Home...

Bangladesh Faces the Challenge of Globalization

Wahiduddin Mahmud October 22, 2003
Bangladesh's economy grew rapidly during the 1990s as the country liberalized its markets and became increasingly integrated into the world economy. Until the 2001 global recession, Bangladesh ranked third for improvement of human development - behind only Cabo Verde and China - thanks in large part to exports from its blossoming garment industry. Wahiduddin Mahmud, economist and former...

Unnatural Disasters

Andrew Simms October 15, 2003
In less than fifty years, there could be 150 million refugees fleeing environmental disaster, says this article in the UK's Guardian. Already outnumbering political refugees, environmental refugees are still not afforded the attention their plight demands. Oftentimes it is the countries least responsible for global environmental change that are most affected and least capable of dealing...

US Court System is Big Opening for Immigrants

Jesse Bogan October 14, 2003
Non-Mexican undocumented immigrants crossing the southern US border have a pretty easy out if they're apprehended by immigration authorities. By claiming to be from Honduras, Guatemala, or somewhere else, undocumented migrants from Central and South America are processed through the court system, not immediately turned back at the US-Mexico border. Short on money and space to house them,...

US Agents Target Indonesia in Rigid Visa Checks

Tiarma Siboro October 9, 2003
As part of America's global war against terrorism, the US Department of Homeland Security announced it will deploy agents to oversee visa approval at US embassies and consulates in Indonesia and four other Muslim countries. The plan is not yet official – the Indonesian government said it was unaware of the proposed measures, and US embassy officials say Washington "is still discussing...

Social Capital Key to Globalization

Leonard Wang September 24, 2003
The standoff at the most recent WTO meeting in Cancún has illuminated the plight of small farmers in developing countries, who struggle to compete with subsidized farmers in the US and Europe. Leonard Wang argues that the economic hardships these farmers face are only the beginning of a larger problem. When the world's economic powers transform developing countries, communities based on...

A Journey for Change

Jessie Mangaliman September 24, 2003
The Statute of Liberty, who promises open arms to all immigrants rich and poor, will soon be greeted by some of her new Americans. In an attempt to recapture the spirit of anti-racism activism in the 1960s, thousands are traveling across America's 'Heartland' to decry anti-immigrant prejudice. The US has long prided itself on being a nation of immigrants, but this pride –...