An article about illegal immigration

 Illegal immigration

              The Arab Spring nations for the most part have failed to put a halt to the economic and social problems plaguing the Middle East. On the contrary, they seem to have exacerbated social class differences, and increased both unemployment and poverty. This has had a direct effect on the increased immigration through illegal channels either to Arab or European states. The common goal is to seek a better chance at life and look for a safe haven to avoid the security crises in the region. This seems to be an issue that will continue through 2015 and is set to further increase due to citizens having increased motives to leave their countries behind. 

A Widespread Phenomenon

There has been a dramatic increase of the phenomenon of illegal immigration in the Arab states. This is in both case of being Arab-to-Arab and Arab-to-European immigration. Despite an absence of a formal estimate on the numbers of immigrants, unofficial reports and estimates have remained the primary source for determining the size and reasoning behind the spread. The phenomenon is no longer limited to a single nation but rather an entire region; it has increased in to include Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, Yemen, and Morocco. It is also common amongst African states that use the Arab states, especially Mediterranean countries, as a transit point to Europe.

According to some statistics and estimates from official western sources, the numbers of immigrants that have reached Europe number are over 140,000 from 2011 until mid-2014. In Tunisia, the number of youths taking part in illegal immigration since the start of the Jasmine Revolution has reached approximately 60,000, 80% of who were part of poverty stricken areas. According to recent statistics published by the Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights, 18% of illegal immigrants hold university degrees, 10% are female, and the majority of these trips begin at staging points along the Tunisian coast. At the head of these staging points are Girgieus, Safakes and El Mansateer, with the Island of Lampdosa as the destination.

Egypt suffers from the spread of this phenomenon, primarily in the form of land immigration to neighbouring Arab states such as Libya through Saloum, despite the warnings issued by the Foreign Ministry of not traveling to Libya. The issue of tabulating accurate numbers on illegal immigrants is difficult, but the number of people captured can be used as a yardstick. For instance, in 2014 border guards were able to stop a total of 14,690 cases of attempted border crossings, which is a substantial number when compared with other nations. Egypt also suffers from immigration via the Mediterranean to European states, especially Italy and Greece, from staging points such as Alexandria. There are a large number of trips being made; however, boats tend to capsize, which has left behind a large number of dead and missing.It is important to note that a larger percentage of Egyptian illegal immigrants come from poorer provinces, especially Fayoum, Beni Suief, Menia and Assuit. This further confirms the link between increased poverty rates and illegal immigration.

Algeria is also considered an example of the increased rates of illegal immigration, as the coast guard exerts a daily effort to stem these attempts. The Algerian coast guard recently rescued 20 people on a boat 15 miles away from the shores of the Mostaghnem province. The majority of the main staging points for illegal immigration are centred on the coast of Wahran.

Morocco is also considered to be one of the largest exporters of illegal immigrants, since it is considered to be both a receiving nation and transit point for all African states to Europe. These states are mostly from south of the Sahara, notably Cameroon, Mali and Nigeria. According to statistics from the government of Morocco, the numbers of illegal immigrants living on its soil are between 25,000 and 40,000; most are centred in a number of camps around the areas of El Ahrash and Mount Gorogo.

Two Main Trends: 

The previous revolutionary phases have uncovered two main patterns regarding illegal immigration, which are:

Internal Illegal Immigration: This is spread through the trend of human migration from some states that are experiencing worsening economic and security situations to neighbouring states. This is a pattern spread amongst Egyptian workers who, despite the threatening security situation, cross the border with Libya looking for a chance to work. This is due to the increased control of armed groups in Libya over vast territories, which makes the situation worse than before. This trend is also becoming common amongst Libyans who are seeking safe haven in Tunisia. Meanwhile, in Yemen, the trend is also spreading with an outward look towards the Gulf States.

External Illegal Immigration: This is represented by the immigration of citizens of North African states to European states via the Mediterranean. Almost all of these movements end in failure, as the boats capsize, taking with them the immigrants on board. These movements have earned the nickname, “The Boats or Trips of Death,” even though the main motivation behind these trips is to seek better economic conditions and a better life.

Possible Future Scenarios:

In regard to the future of the illegal immigration phenomenon there seems to be two possible scenarios: First is the continued increase of illegal immigration from Arab states, despite repeated failures, due to the continued factors that encourage illegal immigration. The continued reduction of development levels and the increased poverty rates, in accordance with the worldwide poverty line, as well as the continued lack of stability in the security field are the main factors.

The second scenario is that the situation will remain the same, where this phenomenon cannot disappear, especially considering the large criminal rings that operate these movements. The inability of security forces, whether on the receiving end or the traveling end, to end this phenomenon completely is another way, which will keep the situation unchanged.

In conclusion, the Arab Spring has not yet achieved the desired results in reference to the economy or the social sector, especially in the case of social justice and increasing the standard of living. This is considered to be the main motive behind illegal immigration, however despite these factors there is still a way to reduce this phenomenon: First, solving the main reasons for immigration in the first place especially the economic and security situations in a fully fledged and all encompassing strategy. Secondly, to expand the areas of coordination between the security forces of the receiving states and the sending states, for example, to tackle criminal immigration rings and related groups. Then as a preliminary step to completely wipe them out, decrease their size indefinitely. Finally, governments need to take drastic measures to raise awareness levels regarding the dangers behind illegal immigration in order to help put a stop to it.