In The News

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...

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...

A Nation of Immigrants Clashes Over the Future

Georg Mascolo April 12, 2006
In 2005, the US arrested 1.2 million people attempting to cross the US-Mexico border in Arizona’s Arivaca Valley. About half that number were successful journeying through the treacherous desert, encouraged by words on the Statue of Liberty that welcome immigrants from the world over – “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be free.” The US estimates that 11 million...

¿Vender crisis humanitarias?

Clifford Bob February 21, 2006

Marketing Humanitarian Crises

Clifford Bob February 21, 2006
In an era of human rights accords and global benefit concerts, international tribunals and rubber wristbands for any cause, attention to humanitarian crises seems both pronounced and profuse. Yet, as political scientist Clifford Bob writes, the world has far more crises than what catch the proverbial eye, and he questions why certain “hot zones” receive more attention than others. An entire...

Migration: Illegal But Integral to Economy

Sanjay Suri January 25, 2006
Europeans often blame illegal immigrants for a number of social ills, including high rates of crime and unemployment. Yet “people with irregular status” are the invisible bedrock for many social institutions in the developed world, suggests this article in Terraviva Europe. Without the work of illegal immigrants from Africa, Asia and parts of Eastern Europe in fundamental sectors like healthcare...

Musharraf's Islamist Challenge

November 10, 2005
Islamist groups have long used charity to boost their support amongst poor Muslims. They are now coming to the aid of the millions left homeless, injured, or hungry by last month's devastating earthquake in Pakistan—to great effect. Refugee camps run by organizations like Jamaat-i-Islami, Pakistan's most powerful Islamist group, feature far better medical care than their state-run...