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Securitization of Migration

  1. definition
  2. examples and/or illustrations
  3. other useful sources
  4. bibliography


Definition

  1. Securitization is an extreme version of politicization that enables the use of extraordinary means in the name of security. (Securitization. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved Feb 20, 2014, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Securitization_(international_relations)
  2. A process of social construction that pushes an area of regular politics into an area of security by resorting to a rhetoric of discursive emergence, threat and danger aimed at justifying the adoption of extraordinary measures. (Waever, O., Buzan, B., & Jaap. De W. (Eds.).  (1993). Identity, Migration and the New Security Agenda in Europe. New York, St. Martin’s Press.)
  3. As defined by Ole Waever from Copenhagen school of International Relations, Securitization is a discursive process by means of which an actor (a) claims that a referent object is existentially threatened, (b) demands the right to take extraordinary countermeasures to deal with that the threat, and (c) convinces an audience that rule-breaking behavior to counter the threat is justified. Thus, it implies from definition that Migration, by virtue of its nature, is seen as a security issue, which needs to be dealt with urgency without undergoing any democratic procedures. (Securitization. (n.d.). In Oxford Bibliographies. Retrieved Feb 20, 2014, from http://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780199743292/obo-9780199743292-0091.xml?rskey=XXPF6P&result=1&q=securitization#firstMatch)

 

Examples and/or Illustrations

  1. “With the end of the Cold War, the concept of security has undergone a transformation. As a result, migration has increasingly been described in security terms. The process in which migration discourse shifts toward an emphasis on security has been referred to as the securitization of migration.” (Ibrahim, M. (2005). The Securitization of Migration: A Racial Discourse. International Migration, 43(5), 163-187. )
  2. “Securitization is defined as a process of social construction that pushes an area of regular politics, such as asylum, into an area of security. The issue is therefore described as an existential threat to fundamental values of society and the State, a construction that helps in convincing a relevant section of society that exceptional measures are needed in response to this existential threat. In the name of urgency and survival, these measures often reach above and beyond the law and the ordinary political process.” (Atak, I.,  & Crepeau, F. (2013). “The Securitization of Asylum and Human Rights in Canada and the European Union”. In S. Juss & C. Harvey (Eds.), Contemporary Issues in Refugee Law (227-256). Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing.)
  3. “In the case of migration, it has been observed that securitization occurs either by one actor, for instance a political party, or by a group of actors such as a political party, the media, and a religious organization. The most common arguments used by the internal securitizing actors, are related with the fields of economic, social cohesion and political stability.” (Russo, R. (2008). “Security, Securitization and Human Capital: The New Wave of Canadian Immigration Laws,” International Journal of Human and Social Sciences, 296(3), 587-596.)
  4. “Multilateral and bilateral agreements have been signed, international and domestic institutions have been created, extradition and deportation agreements between receiving and sending states have been authorized, and conventions and protocols have been ratified with, at their core, the linkage between migration and security. A share increase in border control is also noticeable: by the end of the 1990s (i.e. before 9/11), the United States Immigration and Naturalization Service had more employees authorized to carry guns that any other federal enforcement force. International migration has become a key security issue and is perceived, in some eyes, as an existential security threat. Scholars have referred to this current state of affairs as securitized migration or as the securitization of migration” (Bourbeau, P. (2011). The Securitization of Migration: A Study of Movement and Order. New York: Routledge)

 

Other Useful Sources

Canada–U.S. Safe Third Country Agreement: An agreement with Unites States and Canada to enhance the security of the shared border and facilitating a smooth flow of travellers and goods. (Retrieved Feb 20, 2014 from http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/department/laws-policy/menu-safethird.asp)

Bill C-11, An Act to amend the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and the Federal Courts Act (Balanced Refugee Reform Act), (2010). S.C. 2010, c. 8. 1st Reading Mar. 30, 2010, assented to 29 June 2010. Retrieved Feb 20, 2014 from http://www.cic.gc.ca/English/department/media/backgrounders/2010/2010-06-29.asp

Bill C-31, An Act to amend the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, the Balanced Refugee Reform Act, the Marine Transportation Security Act and the Department of Citizenship and Immigration Act (Protecting Canada’s Immigration System Act). S.C. 2012, c. 17. 1st Reading Feb. 5, 2012, 40th Parliament, 2nd session, assented to 28 June 2012. Retrieved Feb 20, 2014 from http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/refugees/reform.asp

Bill C-24, An Act to amend the Citizenship Act and to make consequential amendments to      other Acts (Strengthening Canadian Citizenship Act). (2014). 1st Reading Feb. 6, 2014, 41st Parliament, 2nd session. Retrieved Feb 20, 2014 from http://www.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?Language=E&Mode=1&DocId=6410225

 Case Law

Charkaoui v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration), [2007] 1 S.C.R. 350, 2007 SCC 9

Jama Warsame v. Canada, CCPR/C/102/D/1959/2010, UN Human Rights Committee, 1 September 2011. Retrieved Feb 20, 2014 from http://www.refworld.org/docid/4ee0f0302.html

Related Terms

  • Illegal Migrant

http://rfmsot.apps01.yorku.ca/glossary-of-terms/illegal-migrant/

  • Undocumented Migrants

 http://rfmsot.apps01.yorku.ca/glossary-of-terms/undocumented-migrants/

 

Bibliography

Atak, I.,  & Crepeau, F. (2013). “The Securitization of Asylum and Human Rights in Canada and the European Union”. In S. Juss & C. Harvey (Eds.), Contemporary Issues in Refugee Law (227-256). Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing.

Bourbeau, P. (2011). The Securitization of Migration: A Study of Movement and Order. New York: Rout ledge
Canada–U.S. Safe Third Country Agreement, Ottawa, September 2003. Retrieved Feb 20, 2014 from http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/department/laws-policy/menu-safethird.asp

Charkaoui v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration), [2007] 1 S.C.R. 350, 2007 SCC 9. Retrieved Feb 20, 2014 from the Department of Justice Canada website: http://scc-csc.lexum.com/scc-csc/scc-csc/en/item/2345/index.do?r=AAAAAQAJY2hhcmthb3VpAAAAAAE

 Huysmans, J. (2000). The European Union and the Securitization of Migration. Journal of Common Market Studies, 38(5), 751-777.

Ibrahim, M. (2005). The Securitization of Migration: A Racial Discourse. International Migration, 43(5), 163-187.

Russo, R (2008).  “Security, Securitization and Human Capital: The new wave of Canadian Immigration Laws,” International Journal of Human and Social Sciences, 296(3), 587-596.

Waever, O., Buzan, B., & Jaap. De W. (Eds.).  (1993). Identity, Migration and the New Security Agenda in Europe. New York, St. Martin’s Press.

Jama Warsame v. Canada, CCPR/C/102/D/1959/2010, UN Human Rights Committee (HRC), 1 September 2011. Retrieved Feb 20, 2014 from http://www.refworld.org/docid/4ee0f0302.html