Category: Human Migration

The summer before I entered the fifth grade, when I was around ten years old, my family packed up everything and moved across the country from Washington to Maryland. I grew up in a small town with my best friends simply down the street, and my extended family only a few towns over. My life was normal, I hadn’t gone through any life-changing experiences and I grew accustomed to the predictable lifestyle I had. When my dad received a phone call that he got a new job in Maryland, I was ecstatic at first and never really gave any thought as to how my life was going to change.

We packed up everything in our house, said our goodbyes, and journeyed across the country. This new adventure appeared exciting, we visited places we hadn’t seen before and spent quality time as a family. I felt hopeful, but that quickly faded once school started. I was put in an environment with kids who had known each other since birth, yet I knew nobody. Anxiously, I walked into my class and watched as everyone gathered to discuss their summers. The class suddenly became silent, I was greeted with unfamiliar eyes as my teacher introduced me. My shy, ten-year-old self, had to go out of my comfort zone to make friends, but they were only temporary. During lunch, I could be found sitting at the edge of the cafeteria table, unengaged in conversation, which followed into wandering off alone at recess. I started to hate where I lived and resented my parents for forcing us to leave the life I was so comfortable with.

After a long year of trying to get adjusted to this new life, I started middle school. Middle school opened up new friendships for me since it combined two elementary schools. I was able to find a new group of friends and didn’t feel completely hopeless. But, I still would have given anything to move back home. I spent more time talking with my family and friends back home rather than trying to make new ones here, I gave up easily. For years after we moved, I hated everything about Maryland, and everyone knew I wanted to be in Washington. I became miserable and I felt like I couldn’t enjoy anything going on around me. I was so unhappy and furious with moving that I made myself even more bitter by sulking instead of trying to make my situation better.

However, I finally reached a point, during my freshman year, that I wasn’t going to let this create a negative feeling towards everything I did. I wanted to enjoy where I lived and my last four years with the people around me. I was lucky enough to still visit my friends and family about once a year so I shouldn’t have wasted all that time being upset.

Recently, on one of our trips back home I visited my old elementary school. I stood on the basketball courts and imagined my eight-year-old self running around, but my outlook was different. The school that seemed gigantic now appeared small. As I walked around the playground, I noticed that it hadn’t changed at all; it had the same swing sets, monkey bars, and slides. I realized that the school wasn’t actually any smaller, but it was simply me who had grown.

Leaving everything and everyone I knew to move across the country allowed me to grow as an individual. Although it took time, I became more reflective, optimistic, and responsible. I didn’t let despair take control of my life and instead turned an uneasy situation into an opportunity to strengthen myself. Moving taught me that I am the only one who can control my outlook during difficult times.

Land acquisition has been a contentious issue in India with recurring reports of agitations or incidences of violence over land acquisition. All major development projects, whether it is the mining industry, dams, nuclear power plants, steel and iron refineries, etc. are being held up by one or another problem related to land acquisition. Land acquisition is a process by which the state forcibly acquires private property for a public purpose without the consent of the landowner. The law of land acquisition derives its legitimacy from the power of the Eminent Domain of the State – a power by which the state enjoys supreme control over all property in a state, with the right of expropriation. Eminent domain embodied in the Land Acquisition Act 1894, confers upon the central and state governments to acquire land for public purposes. The principle of eminent domain was used by the state to usher a path of progress based on industrial development; this industrial development was perceived to be much needed for the country which had just traversed from colonial rule to an independent country. The state forcefully evicted people out of their lands without any concerns for those being displaced and neither the administrative machinery foresaw the displacement or planned rehabilitation of the project-affected people. It was justified in the name of national interest.

Displacement of people arising due to development projects is majorly centered on land acquisition. Displacement of people is the immediate result of all development projects forcefully removing people from lands and areas controlled by them. They become the involuntary victims of their habitat, society, and culture. It not only leads to loss of economic assets, habitat, and livelihood but also disrupts communities, social relationships, and cultural identities, pushing them towards impoverishment. Displacement by development projects with the use of force and coercion is not new in India. It was an issue in the colonial age, intensified after independence, and is now a contentious issue in the context of the neoliberal era. Soon after India’s independence in 1947, the state took a path of industrial development largely depending on imperialist capital and technology. In this path of development and industrialization industries, mines, power projects, dams, infrastructural, etc. had been set up. Newly formed industries needed raw materials like minerals, hence, mines were dug up. Mines & industries needed a power supply, so power projects were developed for these mining & industrial activities. Mines & industries require a huge amount of water. Hence dams were set up blocking or diverting the natural course of the rivers inundating large tracts of lands inhabited by indigenous people. Moreover, this ‘development’ had been done with little respect for the ecological balances of the hills, forests, and habitats.

Since the 1990s this process was accelerated with further liberalisation of the economy. New economic policies along with a new industrial policy were introduced in 1991 clearing much of the obstacles for foreign corporates to extract the natural resources. Hence the foreign exploitation of the resources increased greatly. The erstwhile reserved sectors in the mining for the public enterprises were now opened up for the foreign and private monopolies. Public sector mining and mines-related industrial companies became privatized. With these processes of opening up, the rules for setting up mine-based smelting plants, sponge iron plants, power plants, dams, infrastructural utilities, etc. have been liberalized. In the name of economic growth, the state has witnessed rapid industrialization which has been marked by massive resistance by the local indigenous people who have been deprived of their lands and livelihoods through the forceful and illegal transfer of land.

One issue that has been so extensively researched and debated in recent years is ‘involuntary displacement and resettlement. The outcome of involuntary displacement is described by Cernia (2000) in terms of ‘major impoverishment risks’ in terms of landlessness, joblessness, homelessness, marginalization, food insecurity, increased morbidity and mortality, loss of access to common property resources, social disarticulation, differential risk identities and risks to the host population. The emerging vast literature on forced displacement and its consequences on the affected people amply brings out their sufferings leading to marginalization, deprivation, and exclusion. Development projects lay much emphasis and focus on dispossessing people. People relocated to new conditions and their avenues for improvement were a major concern. Displacement creates confusion and commotion where people do not know what to do and from whom to expect. Thus, pushing them towards marginalization and impoverishment.

Resettlement and the risks associated with displacement have remained a neglected issue. The first national resettlement and rehabilitation (R&R) policy was brought out in the year 2004 followed by improvements resulting in another policy in 2007. Until then, laws dealt primarily with the acquisition of land justified in the name of public purpose. The project affected peoples’ entitlement to resettlement and rehabilitation was disregarded. Compensation was paid only to the landowners for the loss of lands and it was very less. The new policy was a paradigm shift towards alleviating the miseries and risks people incurred post-displacement. Now the focus was on improving the standards of living and restoring them back to pre-displacement levels. However, displacement based on eminent domain continued to be indispensable without any effort to reduce it. The R&R has not been properly implemented due to a lack of guarantee from the state. Moreover, the decisions are made at the top level without considering the perspectives and participation of the people affected. Far from ensuring proper resettlement, the state has remained non-committed to the rehabilitation as a claim (Mathur, 2011). In 2013, the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Resettlement Act (RFCTLARR) was constituted, considered to be a significant step towards a humane and participative land acquisition. The key provisions of the act are consent, social impact assessment, and establishing a fair and transparent process of land acquisition.

Since 2004, there has been an evolution of resettlement policies by the state moving from mere compensation of the project affected to the actual resettlement and rehabilitation. These policies were enacted to address the recurrent issues of displacement and relocation. It was long overdue. Development projects are not new phenomena. However, the issues of involuntary displacement associated with those projects keep emerging in newer dimensions. It is estimated that 60 million people have been displaced from their land for development projects since independence in 1947 and the rate of dispossession increased after liberalization in the early 1990s (Fernandes,2008). Development has led some to develop and others are left out. In fact, the term development is seen to be a process benefitting society as a whole. On the contrary, the people affected have borne the cost of development with a series of changes becoming obstacles to their progress. Gilbert (2005) observed that the overall result of land policy towards Adivasis in India remains poor and the Indian legislation has so far failed to provide enough recognition of indigenous peoples’ traditional forms of land tenure systems. The state policies of the state, Chemmencheri (2015) states, work towards the subject-making of subaltern citizens. The people through their struggles have employed their agency in wresting social policies from the state and in the process become subjects of the state. The existing literature on involuntary displacement and resettlement has primarily dealt with issues resulting immediately from displacement. Besides, studies have also highlighted critical assessments about the resettlement and the programs being a failure.

The Hirakud Dam was one of the first multipurpose river valley projects of Independent India that was aimed at flood control, irrigation, and hydropower generation. The very purpose of setting up this project was to accelerate the process of economic development in a very backward and poverty-stricken state, Orissa. It may be noted that the dam project caused the direct displacement of 101,000 people and 22,000 families fifty years ago.

The dispossession resulting from displacement took various forms such as economic and social, cultural and political, psychological and environmental. One of the most obvious and visible unwarranted outcomes of dam projects is the displacement of people from their habitat. This means that not only are persons living in and around dam sites asked to vacate their homes and settle in other places but also that they are expected to give up their land, their homes that they have nurtured all their lives and surroundings they have been familiar with so that the dam could be built for the anonymous beneficiaries. It is difficult for the ousted to comprehend the benefits of dams, as to how they can possibly bring prosperity and well-being. Large numbers migrate to the already overcrowded and overburdened towns and cities in search of work and live in dismal urban conditions.

Among all such oustee families, the majority were of tribal origin. Given the rate of population growth in India and the limited success of the past resettlement and rehabilitation process, which is about 40 percent of the total displacement cases, it is not unfair to say that about 200,000 people or 40,000 families of the original Hirakud oustees might have been subjected to a state of impoverishment to the present day.

Thus, the principle of eminent domain is always pitted against the project-affected people as Daniel Magraw put forward, “the doctrine of eminent domain clashes with local communities, particularly to indigenous people’s right to their property, to be free from forced displacement and to be treated fairly in their ancestral domains. Therefore, there is always a tension between eminent domain, on one hand, where governments will seize property and take property rights, and with individual and community rights, on the other.” Admittedly, coercion and surrender of individual autonomy are inherent to the theory of eminent domain in general.

Medha Patkar asserts that development is a magic word securing maximized extraction of natural resources, and with consumerism and modernism as the basic paradigms proposed and imposed on the majority, the eviction of rural communities has reached an unprecedented scale. The old theories of sacrifice and trickle-down are no longer acceptable for justifying displacement. These processes have led to destroying livelihoods and human socio-cultural relations as well as land, water, and forest resources. The expansion and acceleration of displacement have caused much of human distress, and destruction. The exploitation and expansion take place without the concerns of the oustees who are only to be seen as project-affected people. The compensation provided to them does not replace their livelihoods, forests, and common-pool resources. Worse the benefits of a project such as employment or profit are rarely shared equitably with the oustees. The government has always remained apathetic to the plight of the poor, while the tribals continue to bear the brunt of rapid industrial growth by losing their land and means of livelihood and remain aloof from the so-called exclusive growth.

According to Smitu Kothari, the issue of displacement and resettlement has to be viewed within the broad question of distribution of power. She states that despite constitutional mandates and an emphasis on favoring the underprivileged, in an overwhelming number of cases, national and regional (and increasingly global) interests -the primary beneficiaries of the developmental process -transgress from or violate the interests of politically and economically weaker groups and individuals. In decisions on who should be displaced and what should be the treatment meted out to them, the more powerful interests have continued to prevail, especially when they have encountered poor and politically weak populations. Consequently, she raises the question essentially linked to democratizing the planning process and integrally involving the historically underprivileged and disempowered in decisions that so crucially affect their lives, livelihoods, and lifestyles. For the tribals, geographical space and an evolved relationship with it have contributed to their cultural identity and their complex patterns of subsistence which primarily depend on the land, forests, water bodies, and animal and plant life.

In the last two decades, there has been a significant change in our population. The number of Latinos living and working in the USA has usurped the number of African Americans in the country (Sequeira, Nunn & Qian, 2017). Immigration has become an extremely normal phenomenon. Wealthy people worldwide are looking for better investment opportunities, while poor people are looking for a better life, employment opportunities, and betterment for themselves and their families. Some argue that incoming immigrants are a bonus for our economy, while others see a lot of problems in this.

Biologically speaking, there are no distinct races, even in a country as diverse as the United States. However, racist people in the USA have created racial and gender stratification that discourages outside potential immigrants from relocating despite the appeal of a better life (Miller & Garran, 2017). People also experience religious discrimination due to their country of origin and religious affiliation. In several instances, Arabs, who are predominantly Muslim, suffer unfair temporary detention at airports and are often denied entry into the country (Schaefer & Schaffer, 1995). Consequently, some Arabs fear relocating to the US for fear of being profiled as terrorists because all it takes is a pattern of incidents to cause a new norm.

Another harmful effect of immigration is racial segregation. This practice is physically separating two or more groups at the workplace, residence, or social functions. Sometimes racial groups create their own haven where they do not want any form of segregation. One of the most prominent physical segregation efforts is the rise of Chinatowns, where people from Asian countries often cluster to reminisce about their culture and diet (Schaefer & Schaffer, 1995). Moreover, not even members of dominant communities would feel welcome in such neighborhoods, even in the absence of malicious racism. For example, in Detroit, blacks and whites are very segregated from each other in all jurisdictions in the country. Research among white men revealed that many of the respondents spent most of their lives in a white ‘bubble’ in which they learn in white-majority schools, neighborhoods, and workplaces that have a minimal composition of other minority races (Schaefer & Schaffer, 1995). These men had a deeply embedded superiority complex over other men from minority communities. Thus, it is difficult for them to mingle freely with these people.

In the instances when migrants are unskilled and have poor education, they are unfit for most of the well-paying jobs (Miller & Garran, 2017). Consequently, they cannot provide for their families and resort to criminal activities, especially those that provide quick revenue. As a result, many drug traffickers and robbers are usually from minority groups.

Additionally, the ballooning of the population places excessive pressure on natural resources, social amenities, and public services (Schaefer & Schaffer, 1995). A knock-on effect is that the natives experience a reduced quality of life as the government strives to accommodate incoming immigrants.

A final, slightly less visible consequence of migration to new countries is that incoming migrants are introducing foreign breeds of animals and crops that may alter the landscape. Sometimes when immigrants start raising domestic animals in foreign countries as an economic activity, wild animals are displaced or killed for fear that they might prey on domesticated animals (Schaefer & Schaffer, 1995). In the 21st century, only those who have deep-seated hobbies such as hunting and gathering can adversely affect the natural ecosystem in their new home. They are unlikely to stop their habits even after immigrating to other countries.

Since the turn of the millennium, the composition of the United States has been changing rapidly due to the changes in migration patterns. The main reasons for relocation include the search for better employment, better education, running away from political and religious persecution in their home countries, and better amenities. The influx of immigrants into a country has both merits and demerits, however, if we talk about the latter, the main one is that immigrants often lead to the stretching of natural resources, an increase in crime, and the rise in levels of racial discrimination and segregation.

References

1. Lee, P. D. (2019). Looking at Illegal Immigration in the United States through the Lenses of Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
2. Miller, J., & Garran, A. M. (2017). Racism in the United States: Implications for the Helping Professions. Springer Publishing Company.
3. Schaefer, R. T., & Schaffer, R. T. (1995). Race and Ethnicity in the United States. HarperCollins College Publishers.
4. Sequeira, S., Nunn, N., & Qian, N. (2017). Migrants and the Making of America: The Short-and Long-Run Effects of Immigration during the Age of Mass Migration (No. w23289). National Bureau of Economic Research.
5. Thomas, A. (2016, Jun, 7). The Cost of China’s Millionaire Migration. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZs2i3Bpxx4

Scott Russell Sanders, American novelist, responds to an essay by author Salman Rushdie in his novel ‘Staying Put: Making a Home in a Restless World’. Rushdie maintains the perspective of the human race constantly migrating, rooting themselves in places rather than ideas, and praises these ideals. Sanders chooses to refute this, discussing the dangers of finding solace in ideas as opposed to places. His conflicting opinion to Rushdie may have been what prompted him to write this passage, but the topic they revolve around is more relevant than ever – Immigration. In recent decades, immigration has become universally easier, also leading it to be a much more widespread experience. However, immigration is not always a beneficial thing. Sanders argues that “people who root themselves in places are likelier to know and care for those places than are people who root themselves in ideas”, to the moving population of America. He adopts a variety of different strategies, such as examples in American history, using language following the American dream, and an environmentally focused cycle of cause and effect.

Saunders begins by playing with a cause and effect method, while placing a value on the state of the environment. He describes the outdoors and our surroundings, and explains how when one aspect of that disappears, we as a population relocate to another place where it is still present. “If we fish out a stream or wear out a field”, Sanders states,“ Off we go to a new stream, a fresh field”. Saunders is claiming that as we negatively impact the environment in one place, later deeming it to be unliveable, we simply seek out a new environment. Yet, instead of doing things differently than in the last location, we continue with our same ways, finding ourselves in an endless cycle, always leading to a different fresh field. As Sanders states in the final sentence of his introduction, “By settling in, we have a chance of making a durable home for ourselves, our fellow creatures, and our descendants”. Sanders is emphasizing his concern for the future of the environment in this sentence, and encouraging his audience to do the same, using comforting words such as “durable”, and “fellow”, when describing the way things could be if we (the audience) make an effort to settle in, and care for our surroundings.

While continuing the undertone of environmental concern, Sanders explores the utilization of language and ideas circulating around the American Dream. The American dream is something his audience – Americans – can find familiar, and something that remains to be relatable even in the modern era. Although the concept of the American dream changes with our nation, certain ideals stick with our country to this day – specifically expansionism. Even the mention of the American dream will instill a sense of pride in the majority of Americans, grasping their attention and giving them something that is easily understood. Cliché American personas such as “sailors, explorers, cowboys, prospectors, speculators, backwoods ramblers, rainbow chasers, and vagabonds of every stripe”, are characters often thought to be pioneered by Americans since the beginning of our nation, and when listing these characters, Saunders is able to set the stage for what is to come in terms of this strategy. Sanders brings out the themes of “Our Promised Land” as well as expansionism overall, in our “nation of restless movers”. Sanders brings up the point that our nation has “dug the most canals, laid the most rails, built the most roads and airports of any nation”. He then contrasts this with the statement, “our sprawling system of interstate highways is crumbling”. By uplifting the sense of American pride through achievements, Saunders shows his audience that he understands where they are coming from, but is able to counter this by also showing that while the achievements are numerous, they are often lacking in quality. We seek bigger and better things constantly – always on the move, valuing quantity over quality, even in the places we choose to live in. These things all create the sense of Americans truly always being in motion, always seeking what is bigger and better, though Saunders wants to explain that just because something is bigger, doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s better. Saunders wants to demonstrate that we as a nation are constantly growing and changing, raising up new developments, all without giving the earth itself time to catch up. This comes in the form of a wake up call to his audience, showing them that although moving may be what they want, it isn’t always what they need, or what is worth sacrificing at the stake of the wellbeing of their past surroundings.

Sanders then moves on to enforce his argument through various examples in American history. This is most prominently seen in the third paragraph, which is almost entirely composed of historical events such as The Dust Bowl, colonization of the Americas, and the expansion of the Spaniards into the New World. This convinces the reader that movement is not inherently good by explaining events surrounding migration that ended in varying degrees of catastrophe for the places involved. “Colonists brought slavery with them to North America”, is one example he gives of movement resulting in something undesireable. Another way to provide this evidence may be the dust bowl, stating “The Dust Bowl of the 1930s was caused not by drought but by the transfer onto the Great Plains of farming methods that were suitable to wetter regions”, which also shows how movement is, unlike what Rushdie believes, not necessarily inherently good. He explains how the Spaniards “devastated on Central and South America by imposing on this New World the religion, economics, and politics of the Old”. Old ways that have proved to cause only destruction in old places will only continue to do so in new ones. In terms of effectiveness, these specific quotations make it harder for an audience to ignore these pieces of history they studied for years in school, which the general population knows to be true. Examples like these that are based on a real and familiar event are more impactful and convincing than Sanders imposing his own opinions on the matter, and leaving the reader with little room to build and change their feelings based on his own.

Sanders argues that people who root themselves in places are likelier to know and care for those places than are people who root themselves in ideas to the adult population of America. He uses a multitude of different rhetorical strategies to enforce his large scale argument throughout the passage, speaking his ideas to the easily influenced “restless movers” in America, but also responding to Rushdie and his supporters. By using rhetorical choices such as examples in history, using language following the American dream, and description of the outdoors to enforce this argument, Sanders is able to enforce his argument of anti-expansionism.

Since time immemorial human beings aspire for comfort and keep searching better locations to live in throughout their lives. The factors which drive humans to move from one place to another principally include economic, safety, etc. They often struggle in order to be in clover. But this struggle outright comes to an end with the feeling ambivalence and hiraeth and subsequently people feel down in the dumps and are left grief-stricken. There may also be several other causes not listed above to leave one’s own homeland to settle on alien lands across the world, but somewhere or the other, this shift results in fretfulness and concurrently resuscitates the feelings of nostalgia and disillusionment. The present study aims at recording and highlighting such unregistered emotions, portrayed in Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Namesake.

In this current age the people are not having any fixity of their homeland. They move from one place to another, convergence of the heterogeneous cultures, creolization of languages and hybridization of identities. Therefore, the concepts of homeland and fixed identity in this era of global migration form, is a complex framework. According to the critics like Homi K. Bhabha and Avtar Brah the floating nature of home and fluid identity both have replaced the age-old concepts of fixed ‘home’ and identity as well. The idea of ‘home’ evokes the spatial politics of home, the sense of self, its displacement, intimacy, exclusion and inclusion. The shift of the mass to different countries makes the concept of actual home, a wrong one. The idea of home provides the self sense which binds human emotion, feelings, sentiments, proximity and attachment all together in one. Apart from it actually home is made of emotional properties. And as it is accepted by all that culture shows the identity and belongingness of humans. After leaving the homeland the people leave their identity behind and they suffer and miss their originality or identity.

The mixed identity that the immigrants hold creates a multiple situations in regard of their belongingness. In the opinion of Bhabha, hybridity is the ‘third space’ which makes the other positions to rise. The identity as suggested by Bhabha, indicates the impure and imperfect identity rather than stable identity. Mixed or hybrid identity creates an identity crisis in one’s construction of home of familiarity in the foreign countries. The next generation immigrants hate to the identity of the original or parental land, the national identity of the first generation may be changed by political reasons, but they are attached to their original homeland culturally, linguistically and ethnically. In the contemporary era, immigration, exile and expatriation are related to the actual home, identity, memory and seclusion. These are the current themes in the diasporic writings of the post-colonial writers like Salman Rushdie, Bharti Mukkerjee, Jhumpa Lahiri, Kiran Desai and other writers.

The present paper focuses on the first and second-generation immigrants’ who are showing their hate to the old and new lands as it can be found in Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Namesake (2003). In this novel, Lahiri has tried to find out the psychology of the first generation immigrants, Ashima and Ashok and the second generation immigrants, Gogol, Sonia and Moushumi. The present novel is critically indicating the concept of own homeland which generates an atmosphere to construct home as well as identity of proximity. The current era of transmigration, ‘home’ is signifying its temporariness. There are several critics, who had indicated that the immigrants hold dual identities, out of them even one is not fixed. In the novel, Ashima is pinning for her homeland for she feels loneliness and misses her near and dear in her odd days in foreign land while Gogol, Sonis and Moushumi are closely attached to the USA, where they took birth. They don’t give importance to their original land i.e. India. They think that USA is the place where they are more comfortable and happy.

The research targets at recognizing the integumentary anxiety among the immigrates as well as the problems rising because of the cultural differences. The immigrates who are living away from their home land, whatever the problems they encounter there and their anguish and anxiety for their original land. All these aspects are focused and an attempt is made to mirror the pain of the immigrates through this research. From the cultural points of view it is reflected that the second generation has forgotten their own values and culture and they try to involve in the culture of foreign land. Actually it is the way to evaluate and analyze the pain, sufferings, problems and Integumentary anxiety of the immigrates specially the women and the new generation and the differences and clashes between their views and perspectives.

Lahiri focuses on the condition of the immigrates, she is also making an effort to improve the conditions of diasporic immigrants. The characters, she has portrayed, are not showing any contrast. They all are living a normal life in the foreign land, from Brown” (Waldman, 2008). It can’t be said that it is not only their parents’ culture but the era is equally responsible for their concerns of literary works. The background of Lahiri’s foreign family is another prior factor and aspect of her fame and name in the field of literature in a short period of time. It was her first book of Lahiri which brought a status of a literary personality to her. Jhumpa Lahiri was quite unfamiliar and unrecognized personality in the literary field just before her first literary work. However the present paper is focusing on Lahiri’s first novel, The Namesake. This novel gives the picture of the lives of the Ganguli family. But the main focus is concentrated on the life of Gogol Ganguli. The novel begins with the prominent character’s mother, Ashima, who is admitted in the hospital of America, at the time of her delivery.

The story of the present novel describes the life of Ashok, his accident by the train as well as his arranged marriage to Ashima. The novelist tried to characterize the lives of the immigrant parents and made an effort to “preserve the ‘home culture ; while on its contrary they (parents) are also making an effort to groom the children in the American culture and style”. (Mishra, 2006). There is an immense quality in Lahiri, i.e. to understand the immigrant experience may be extracted in this manner that Lahiri depicts the feeling of seclusion and otherness. It is the ability of Lahiri to understand the experience of immigrants, may stem from the fact that she describes the general experience of seclusion and abandonment. In the very first chapter of the novel, when Ashima is all lone she feels like an alien on the alien land.

The Namesake is a story of two generations of the immigrants. It portrays cultural struggle of two generation for the original land. It explores various problems in the identity building for the first and the second generations of the immigrants. It’s a story of Ashima Ganguli who arrives in Boston as a young bride after her arranged marriage and realizes how isolated she has become while preparing to deliver her first child in a hospital at Massachusetts. In fact, an Indian woman wishes the emotional support at least at the time of her first delivery. In America she feels nothing normal.

However, Ashoke gives name to his son as ‘Gogol’, actually it is the name of his favorite famous Russian author .The author is the same whose book he was reading during the rail accident and his life is saved.

Several people lost their lives in that accident so he thinks that the author’s book is very lucky to him. So by luck he is saved from a great danger. He faced only one problem during that accident that hir back is broken. As it is the Bengali culture to give two names to their children, one as pet or nick name, which is called at home while the other one is official name to use it outside the home. Even Gogol also has two names and his public name becomes ‘Nikhil’. Ashima stresses that the second name is also given after the same Russian author, i.e. Nikolai Gogol. But Gogol doesn’t like his name, so he decides to change his name.

Lahiri, therefore describes Indian culture and traditions, she throws light on those customs and rituals which she has already experienced and sensed in her personal life. The representation of Lahiri’s ethnic fevour is quite different from Bengali traditions of putting names of the babies, Indian ethnic dressing sense and food habits etc. The plot lines of the novel starts when Gogol’s expected pet name becomes his official name. Lahiri is lashed with gross experience of the Bengali customs, rituals and culture of providing two names to a child. Actually the official name of Lahiri was Nilanja Sudeshna, Lahiri but she didn’t like to be called with this name so she choses to be known as Jhump Lahiri, the present name which was once Lahiri’s pet name (Dhingra & Cheung, 2012). It is equally prominent and important that Asian Americans never depict or act as isolated individuals but on its contrary, they have often maintained contacts either with one another or with the same country from where the people or their families arrive. Therefore the term diaspora is important in this relation.

The Story of the novel starts in 1968, the novel clarifies that the arranged marriages are very ordinary and common even in this period. As per the culture of Bengalis, the arranged marriages are existing as the specimen not only in rural areas but also in urban sectors (Klass, 1966). In fact Lahiri has not focused deliberately on the peculiarity and speciality of Indian culture but rather she tries to show that the Indian Bengali communities are very less problematic. The overall narration of the story of the novel rotates around the arranged marriage and there are no problems and traces of contrast between the two Indian and American culture and custom. On the other hand the story takes its turn at the layers of the background. Ashima, the main character of the novel, is portrayed as the suppressed woman or an obedient daughter. Even the marriage of Ashima and Ashoke is not depicted as the forced one.

The dominant movement of individuals within the mega-deltas of Tamil Nadu is from agriculture-dominated rural areas to urban settlements, driven by growing opportunities, but leading to new human development challenges.Human development can be viewed as the process of achieving optimum slevels of health and well being. The main goal of this article is to identify the factors related to the decision to migrate taken by economic outcome. Despite an outsized growth in domestic and international migration and remittances in recent decades, there are limited works that systematically identify and establish interactions between internal and international migration. The main reasons for poverty, unemployment debt due to failure in agriculture due to the lack of rains, more employment opportunities in the destination place and they set more jobs and a handsome salary which leads to improvement of the living conditions. This paper analyzed the effects of international migration and remittances on the human-capital investment behavior of rural–urban migrant households. In-depth interviews were conducted from the respondents for the Collection of data. The preliminary study show that migration has left deep social economic impacts on life standards of families left behind in kumbakonam. As a result, there is large scale endues of the farmer from CDZ to the neighboring state of Kerala and another country.

Migration is a form of geographical mobility or spatial mobility between geographical unit and another, generally involving a change in residence from the place of origin or place of departure to the place of destination or place of arrival. Such migration is called permanent migration and should be distinguished from other forms of movements, which do not involve a permanent change of residence. Prabakar and Sitadevi explain the various reasons quoted for labor scarcity in agriculture,. The higher wages in other locally available jobs was ranked, first because the higher wages rate prevailing in the non-agricultural works like machineries, carpentry, electrical men and plumbing works, which are locally available attract the labors. To explain Low income, increasing price, decreasing purchasing power are the most important economic factors that influence migration decision. More and more people are getting higher education, and after that, to make life more luxuries and satisfactory, they move to big cities to search good jobs with higher wages.

Migration is a very selective process. Migration is not for a pleasure. Migration is not merely the physical movements of individuals and groups involve a lot of strain in their social, economic, cultural and other aspect of life. It is a subject of keen interest not only to the demographers but also to sociologist, anthropologist, economist and political scientist movements of people, specially rural people from the land to the cities, from one country to another and from one continent to another is an international phenomenon and not a phenomenon of modern times. It concerns not only developing countries but also those which are highly industrialized and affects not only the more or capitalized countries but also the socialist change of the move or open the voluntary and involuntary nature of the act and destination. Is made between external and internal migration. Mayer Fort has distinguished between mobility while represents movement within boundaries and migration in which person cross countries cap low states that the migration is strictly speaking a change of residence and need not necessarily involve any change of occupational but is closely associated with occupational shifts of one kind or another. Human development can be viewed as the process of achieving optimum levels of health and well being. It includes physicals biological, mental, emotional, social educational, economic, and culture components. Only some of these are expected at birth, adult literacy rate and mean years of schooling, and income as measured by real gross domestic product per capita. the study that economic remittances from their working abroad fathers are enabling the children to have better education as a majority of them are studying in private English medium schools. Due to the absence of their fathers at home, children have become self-reliant, independent and courageous. The massive global attention paid to cash remittances over the past decade has provided an extremely solid evidence base for understanding remitting behaviour at international, regional and national levels.

Human migration is movements by humans from one district to another, sometimes over long distance or in large groups. The movement of population in modern times has continued under the from of both voluntary migration within ones region, country, or beyond, and involuntary migration people who migrate are called migrants, or more specifically, emigrants, immigrants, or settles depending on historical setting, circumstance and perspective. In December 2003 the Global Commission on International Migration (GCIM) was launched with the support of KofiAnan and several countries, with an independent 19 member’s commission, three fold mandates and a finite life spent, ending December 2005. its report, based on regional consulting meetings with state holders and scientific reports form leading international migration experts, was published and president to United Nations (UN) Secretary General KofiAnnan on 5 October 2005.Thompson and Lewis say, whether Roman settlement directly affected the wider distribution of population in Europe is not known. However it seems more likely to have in created the density of population in areas of settlement than to have led soon to the settlement of the new areas. According to Pratikshya Bobra and Massey, in terms of human capital effect as well as economic development, results are consistent with neo-classical precepts. In terms of physical capital and economic development, results are consistent with the new economic of labor migration; and as always, we find strong effects of social capital and migration-specific human capital This could be explained by Harris-Todaro model of expectations of high earnings in the destination area as opposed to the current area of residence. Higher earnings are correlated with higher education and as such those individuals with higher education will want to move to areas that they expect to receive higher earnings. On the contrary, those with no education will also want to migrate and this could be explained by the expected job opportunities that are perceived to exist in the urban areas Harris, J.R. and Todaro, M.P. This paper analyzed the effects of international migration and remittances on the human-capital investment behavior of rural–urban migrant households. Chakra Pani Acharya & Roberto Leon-Gonzalez The results also suggest that in both delta regions remittances have a significant positive effect on household well-being in the source rural areas, including overall income, investments in health, food security and access to sanitation.

The study has been conducted in the Cauvery Delta Zone Tamil nadu in Thanjavur district for the year 2020, where paddy is the major crop rotation. The paddy belt was purposively chosen as the major agricultural operations like transplanting of paddy, harvesting in paddy, spraying of pesticides, etc. are performed mainly by migrant laborers. From this zone, Fourteen Block out of majority agricultural labor in kumbakonam Block and 106 panchayat village in out of majority agricultural labor from 7 villages, one from each ten (15)selected using migrant laborers were interviewed making a total sample of 105 respondents. The data from selected respondents were collected by personal interview method using a specially designed schedule.

All respondent migrants were classified into two groups, viz. short-term migrants and long-term migrants. Migration during peak agricultural season being a common feature in the state, all persons who come to Kumbakonam Block only during peak periods and return to their native places within the same year, were considered as short-term migrants. Persons working permanently with farmers on a yearly contract or year after- year contract and visit their native place occasionally for a few days, were considered as long-term migrants. Thus, the sample was comprised of 76 long-term and 29 short-term migrants.

Simple statistical tools like averages, percentages, etc. were used in the study. The existence of difference between the wage rates for various agricultural operations for local and migrated laborers. The results have been discussed under various subheads: Socio-economic Profile of Respondents The distribution of in-migrants according to their socio-economic background has been discussed under various heads

According to the socio-economic profile of the respondents, 59.2 per cent of the long-term migrants and 65.6 per cent of the short-term migrants were in the age group of 21-40 years, while 32.9 per cent and 17.2 per cent were in the age group of 0-20 years, respectively. Thus, the number of migrants was more in 21-40 years age group because it is the preferred age-segment by employers because laborers in this group can undertake agricultural operations. Also, this age group has to should majority of the social and domestic responsibilities. The percentage of over-forty years laborers was small, only 10.5 per cent of the respondents.

The gender wise majority 84.2percent of the respondents were of male migrant in long-term and short-term male migrants in 62.1 percent. The majority of female migrant in 37.9 percent of the respondents were short-term and long-term female migrants in 15.8 percent.

The caste wise majority 40.8 of the respondents were of schedule caste category in both long-term and short-term in 20.8 percent migrants. While Backrward caste majority 31 percent in short term migrant and long term migrant in 30.2 percent. As far as the religion of the long-term and short-term migrants was concerned, nearly 75 per cent of the respondents belonged to the Hindu religion, While Christian majority 13.8 percent in short term migrant and long term migrant in 7.9 percent.

The illiteracy of migrants was an important factor which gave impetus to migration, as revealed by the study. Among long-term migrants, 65.8 per cent were illiterate, 25 per cent had studied up to the primary level, 6 per cent up to middle standard and metric level. There were 58.6 per cent illiterates among short-term migrants, while 20.7 per cent had studied up to the middle standard and 13.8 per cent up to matriculates and only 6.9 per cent per cent were primary level. Thus, the majority of migrants were illiterates and only a few had studied up to fifth standard.

It is the low income in the native place which low level income In the present study, the monthly income of 72.4 per cent long-term migrants was in the range Below-5000 and short term migrant in 82.8 percent of equal number was in the range Below-5000. 5001-10000 while 26.3 percent of respondents’ long-term migrants and were earning 5001 to ` 10000. Among short-term migrants also, 17.2 per cent were earning income. In the range of Above-10001 and 1.3 per cent had income in the range. So, nearly 75 per cent respondents had monthly income of ` 3000 to ` 10000.

It is the low income in the native place which induces migration to the areas of better livelihood opportunities. In the present study, the monthly income of 65.8 per cent long-term migrants was in the range 15001-20000 and of short-term migrants were in the range 15001-20000 while 86.3 per cent of respondents. The second income range was earning below – 15000 long-term migrants were in the32.9 percent. Among short-term migrants also, 10.3 per cent were earning income in the range of below – 15000 and 1.3 per cent had income long term migrant and short term migrant 3.4 percent in the range above – 20001. On overall basis, maximum income of ` 15001-20000 was being earned by 71.4per cent respondents, followed by Below – 15000 by 26.7 per cent, and Above – 20001 by 1.9 per cent. So, nearly 70 per cent respondents had monthly income of 15001-20000.

The study has revealed that most of the migrants were in the age of thirties and forties, belonged to general castes with faith in Hindu religion, were mostly illiterates and migrated in the first decade of 21st century. Nearly 72 per cent of the migrants were earning a monthly income of ` 3000-5000. Low wages and rain-fed agriculture in the native place have been found the economic factors leading to migration, while poverty, poor civic amenities, leading a poor life, high aspirations and demonstration effect were social and psychological factors resulting to migration. As far as income is concerned, before migration 70 per cent migrants were earning greater than ` 15001-20000 per month. , 70 per cent of respondents their income as remittances back home.

Homo sapiens is part of a group called hominids, which were the earliest humanlike creatures. Based on archaeological and anthropological evidence, we think that hominids diverged from other primates somewhere between 2.5 and 4 million years ago in eastern and southern Africa. Though there was a degree of diversity among the hominid family, they all shared the trait of bipedalism, or the ability to walk upright on two legs.

Scientists have several theories about why early hominids evolved. One, the aridity hypothesis, suggests that early hominids were more suited to dry climates and evolved as the Africa’s dry savannah regions expanded.

According to the savannah hypothesis, early tree-dwelling hominids may have been pushed out of their homes as environmental changes caused the forest regions to shrink and the size of the savannah expand. These changes, according to the savannah hypothesis, may have caused them to adapt to living on the ground and walking upright instead of climbing.

Hominids continued to evolve and develop unique characteristics. Their brain capacities increased, and approximately 2.3 million years ago, a hominid known as Homo habilis began to make and use simple tools. By a million years ago, some hominid species, particularly Homo erectus, began to migrate out of Africa and into Eurasia, where they began to make other advances like controlling fire.

Though there were once many kinds of hominids, only one remains: Homo sapiens. Extinction is a normal part of evolution, and scientists continue to theorize why other hominid species didn’t survive. We do have some clues as to why some species were less successful at surviving than others, such as an inability to cope with competition for food, changes in climate, and volcanic eruptions. ^44start superscript, 4, end superscript

Between 70,000 and 100,000 years ago, Homo sapiens began migrating from the African continent and populating parts of Europe and Asia. They reached the Australian continent in canoes sometime between 35,000 and 65,000 years ago.

Scientists studying land masses and climate know that the Pleistocene Ice Age created a land bridge that connected Asia and North America (Alaska) over 13,000 years ago. A widely accepted migration theory is that people crossed this land bridge and eventually migrated into North and South America. ^66start superscript, 6, end superscript

How were our ancestors able to achieve this feat, and why did they make the decision to leave their homes? The development of language around 50,000 years ago allowed people to make plans, solve problems, and organize effectively. We can’t be sure of the exact reasons humans first migrated off of the African continent, but it was likely correlated with a depletion of resources (like food) in their regions and competition for those resources. Once humans were able to communicate these concerns and make plans, they could assess together whether the pressures in their current home outweighed the risk of leaving to find a new one.

Map of the world showing the spread of Homo sapiens throughout the Earth over time. Homo sapiens are reflected with red arrows (shown populating the entire world over time), Homo neanderthalensis is reflected in orange in what is Europe and the Middle East today, and Homo erectus is represented in yellow in Africa, South Asia, and Southeast Asia.

When humans migrated from Africa to colder climates, they made clothing out of animal skins and constructed fires to keep themselves warm; often, they burned fires continuously through the winter. Sophisticated weapons, such as spears and bows and arrows, allowed them to kill large mammals efficiently. Along with changing climates, these hunting methods contributed to the extinction of giant land mammals such as mammoths, giant kangaroos, and mastodons. Fewer giant mammals, in turn, limited hunters’ available prey.

In addition to hunting animals and killing them out of self-defense, humans began to use the earth’s resources in new ways when they constructed semi-permanent settlements. Humans started shifting from nomadic lifestyles to fixed homes, using the natural resources there. Semi-permanent settlements would be the building-blocks of established communities and the development of agricultural practices.

Migration is one the most prominent factor of population. Migration effects the population of a country in both right and wrong factors.AS it have positive and negative impact on the population and also on the country’s other factors, for example: Poverty, climate changes, development etc. These factors have influence on the people of the country.

In further, we will discuss these factors in both positive and negative aspects that how they are affecting the country’s conditions .As the recent migrant people in Pakistan is 3,628,956 and the from the 1960’s to 2019, the percentage of migrant people in Pakistan is decreased from 5.77% to 1.92% . The falling in the percentage of the migrants shows that in 60 years the people leaving the country due to many reasons. The people who came to our country because of education, jobs etc. going somewhere else or going back to their countries but why?

In literature review we will discuss that how the factors of development, economy, climate change and people migrated from rural to urban area and poverty effect the county’s population and the country’s conditions.

Migration is vast topic in which include the internal and international migrations that why people migrated from their countries to our countries or that why our citizen migrate from our country and go to other countries, The main factors are education and jobs, Unemployment and illiteracy is the biggest issue which we discuss in the further.

In critical analysis we will discuss that factors because our country’s condition become worst day by day due to the terrorism, due to bad economy, not having good government, issues of taxes and many more.

The number of people living together in a place, society, region or in a country is called population. The population of a certain place is not static, it can be increases or decreases with the passage of time. As the time passes the population of every country increases or decreases due to many factors such as new technologies, higher birth rate, improved agriculture and many more. Along his changing in population is also cause by the migration.

Migration is an approach to move starting with one spot then onto the next so as to live and work. Development of individuals from their home to another city, state or nation for an occupation, sanctuary or some different reasons is called migration.

These days, numerous individuals choose to move to have a superior life. Business openings are the most widely recognized explanation because of which individuals relocate. But this, absence of chances, better training, development of dams, globalization, catastrophic event (flood and dry season) and at times crop disappointment constrained townspeople to move to urban communities.

Individuals who move starting with one spot then onto the next looking for work or sanctuary are called migrants. The majority of the occasions transients individuals are not talented or instructed consequently they generally utilized as every day bets (laborers who are paid toward the finish of every day, for their administrations). Day by day bets don’t get enough cash for the endurance of their families and experiencing numerous issues, for example, they need more nourishment to eat, sanitation, cleanliness, a legitimate spot to live and so forth.

Migration has also positive and negative impact on society:

Positive Impact:

o Joblessness is decreased and individuals show signs of improvement openings for work.

o Movement helps in improving the personal satisfaction of individuals.

o It improves public activity of individuals as they find out about new culture, customs, and dialects which improves fellowship among individuals.

Negative Impact :

o The passing of an individual from country regions, sway on the degree of yield and advancement of rustic regions.

o The inundation of laborers in urban zones expands rivalry for the activity, houses, school offices and so on.

o Having huge populace puts an excessive amount of weight on normal assets, luxuries and administrations.

As the migration is the one of the factor of increasing and decreasing in population. This paper aims to provide a strategic overview over how the migration is the important factor and how it has effect the different aspects of the society. Migration is seek from the perspective of rights and sustainability.

Rural to urban migration plays an important role in the poverty reduction and rural development. Migration take place when the changes occurs in the society like when society transfer from the agriculture factor to industrial factor, lack of employment, education, healthcare, inability of agriculture sector etc. In all these socio-economic factor the most important factor is poverty which majorly promote the migration.

Richard et al., studied the effect of settlement and global movement of lightening of neediness. Worldwide studies shows that the migration and settlement of people to the new place had a great impact on the countries poverty level.

According to latest estimate the poverty level in Pakistan is that 24% of population live below the poverty line which include the 31%i in rural and 13% in urban areas.

Recent work on poverty has paying greater attention toward process, power and power relation in production of the poverty using very systematic methods. These methods are for the exclusion the poverty from the society. The concept of poverty can be understood on the basis of different category such as caste, kinship, family construction etc.

Burki.S.J., says that the migration in the development is the factor which is largely ignored by the researcher, After the independence millions of people migrated from India to Pakistan and made an huge difference in the development. As from the start, they made a burden but with the passage of the time as they settled, they has a great part in the development.

In history, migration has an important role in the development of Pakistan. As the Indians were really against the premised partition because of the minority population in India of Muslims. The people who migrated called Mohajirs .At that time Punjab and Sindh were two provinces where the most Mohajirs came and stay. These people mainly settled in the urban areas.

These were the people who had made everything on their basis as we did not have any industries and other things. These people start the agriculture and with passage of time they move toward industrial era where they further developed made everything easy for everyone.

Economy of every country plays an important role in the development of the country. And if the economy affects the country would be in loss. The migration of people in the country is the main cause. As the people come to the country and start to settle here the economy of the country would affect very badly.

In 2019, about 38 million international migrants migrated to Pakistan, which is equal to the 14% of global migrant population which are under age of 20 and 202 million international migrants which is equal to the 74% of migrant population which are in between of 20 to 64 according to age.

Many of them who are under 20, their responsible would be on the government of country and it may affect the economy of country. But now the government took the serious steps for balancing the economy of the country to send back the migrants. Some people who apply asylum and tend to seek it, reject their application because of incomplete documents and many other factors.

As migration has effects on many things so as same has effect on the climate of the country. The most influential thing is the conclusion of governmental panel of the climate change assessment report that the magnitude of human displacement and migration is rise in 21st century. The climate changes may effect the population of any place very badly. The climate changes may include rainfall shifts, heat stress, and water scarcity.

According to the Parry and Lovell, 2007 estimate that ,may it is possible that the climate changes can motivate about 25 million to 1 billion to migrate from anywhere. The migrated people are those who would live in the most unacceptable ad in a worst conditions in the rural areas of arid and semi-arid region.

Human migration has been happening despite atmosphere change. Nonetheless, logical proof proposes that ecological change has played a job in forming human versatility and settlement designs since the Holocene (McKone et al., 1998; Hughes and Brown, 1992). Fleeting and spatial variety in asset efficiency due to natural inconstancy constrained individuals to move and pushed them to agglomerate around heightened settlements for diminished presentation to dangers (Low, 1990; Morgan, 2009).

Even today the climate changes still trigger the migration of the people and have a huge impact the on the country where they migrated and where from they migrated.

As we overview the literature and upper given statistics shows that the migration from the Pakistan is decreasing day by day. The migrant people leave the country. As the literature review gave us information that the researchers only discussed the factors that the migrant people effect the country and how but no one ever talked about the declination in migrant people in few years. Why the people who migrated in the country leave the country. What are those factors which force them to leave the country.

The people came here all the from their countries are leaving away the country because of many factors. The government of ours not let them to live here. The people who applied the asylum here, their applications were not accepted by the government. Many of them were send back to their countries.

Another factor are that the environment of the country, as the terrorism. This factor is present in everywhere and in every country but our media plays a negative role in showing so much terror about the country. Everyone thinks that, Pakistan is not the save place to live peacefully even every country has this factor but their media do not show such content on their media but our media openly discuss these things and people do not take Pakistan as a save place.

Economy is another thing that day by day the economy of the country become worst. Everything is going to be expensive. The rates of necessities for living are become higher and higher. Poor and middle class people and not able to complete their needs, then how they think about the luxuries.

My analysis is here is that the government do no think about the people of the country that even our citizens leave the country and try to go out the country because they are not able to complete their needs. Many of them leave the country because of the education, jobs and many more. They do have to think about their future, about their children future. So they moved out. They moved to those countries where the government have some care about their people and they provide basic necessities to their people.

The discussion above, conclude that the migration of people from one place to another do have many effects on may factors of the country. It may effect positively and negatively .The historical development, economy, climate changes etc have effect on the people also. The people who migrated and leave their countries for better jobs, education, better life style and for better future can face many problems to settle in other countries and those people who left their country Pakistan and moved to other countries also faces the same difficulties.

The people move due to fulfill their need and for better life have many issues, The government of others countries do not accept them easily, To give them asylum they have to do many things in a difficult situation. They have to face many problems.

People who left their countries do have this realization that where they are living is the best place. They do not have to leave that place for any other reasons, The up and downs came everywhere.

The migration percentage is decreasing because the country’s is not enough to fulfill the requirement of the public.

Small Island, Big Challenge: Irregular Immigration in Malta since 2000

Immigration and more specifically irregular immigration have been current and troubling topics that bear unexpected tasks and challenges for many European countries. Especially if the question of solidarity and burden sharing is raised by other EU members, that demand help and support. After joining the EU in 2004 Malta has experienced irregular immigration in vast amounts, which brings grave challenges to the small island. Therefore, this essay argues, that the EU should take action in helping Malta manage the task of irregular immigration because the country implemented a controversial detention policy, irregular immigrants arriving overwhelm the island’s navy as well as government, and immigration causes a rise of anti-immigration movements and violence in Malta.

Detention Policy

One of the most important reasons that justify that the EU should start to take action in helping Malta, is the initiation and maintenance of the country’s strict and controversial detention policy, which has been criticized by different EU institutions. Due to increasing numbers of irregular immigration to Malta, the island established its first Refugee Commissioner’s Office, in order to cope with the new situation (Mainwaring 2012a, p. 2). This newly established office incorporated a mandatory detention policy for all arriving immigrants and refugees (p.3). The policy entails an unlimited stay in a detention facility. However, after an assessment by the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture, the immigrant stay in the detention center was limited to 18 months in 2005 (p.2) These facilities are able to hold an amount of 80 people, which was quickly overwhelmed by a number of 2775 arriving immigrants in 2008 (p.2). Moreover, the detention policy is not only strict but also extremely expensive for the Maltese government (p. 3). In 2005 the government spent 6.8 million and in 2008 8.2 million euros on the required staff, facilities, and materials for this policy (p. 3). These expenses can be extremely damaging to the country, due to their weak financial position in Europe. Another controversial point that criticizes the policy is the bad conditions in the detention centers (p. 4). These conditions have been under scrutiny and critique by humanitarian organizations like Médecins Sans Frontières (p. 4). The conditions have been described as inhumane, as there is not enough adequate water, sanitary supplies, and no access to an outdoor area (p. 4). This criticism has been rejected by the Maltese government, as they justify the horrific conditions as necessary to maintain control over the vast influx of irregular immigrants to the small island (p. 4). Allowing such inhumane conditions for the people who come to the country seems harsh and unjustified, but one has to keep in mind that the Maltese island is geographically small and not financially strong. However, after the lengthy stay in the detention centers refugees and immigrants are transferred to open centers, facilities where immigrants can move more freely. (p. 4). Similar to the detention centers, the open centers also show controversial issues (p. 4). The open centers are mostly located in the far south of the island, which allows immigrants to move freely but does not allow any contact to the Maltese society, as well as tourist spots because of its isolated location and strict surveillance (Bernardie-Tahir & Schmoll, 2014, p. 46). This has been under critique because it will most likely create ghettoization and criminalization, as refugees and immigrants do not have the chance to access society or the labor market (p. 46). The aforementioned examples clarify that the EU needs to react and send help to Malta regarding its strict detention policy, as the conditions under which immigrants or refugees have to live are inhuman. This especially contrasts the core values that the EU is keen to represent. Furthermore, these conditions do not aim nor lead to the successful integration of immigrants into the country’s society or labor market, causing ghettoization and criminalization.

Arrival at Sea

Besides the detention policy, another important reason that indicates that the EU needs to assist Malta in its challenge of irregular immigration is the high number of irregular immigrants arriving at the coast of Malta, overwhelming the island’s navy and government. Although the island encompasses only a size of 312 km2, making it one of the smallest islands in the world (Mainwaring 2012a, p.1), Malta has a vast search and rescue zone of 250 km2, which obliges the country to help immigrants in distress (Lutterbeck 2009, p. 128). This zone encompasses such a vast size, as Malta is located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Africa and Sicily, and therefore surrounded by “blue” borders, which clearly shows great disadvantageous regarding irregular immigration and the challenge to control it (p. 119). For example, in 2002 1,686 immigrants arrived at the Maltese coast, which increased in 2004 with 1,723 and once more in 2005 with 2,416 immigrants (p. 121). These numbers may seem little, however, set in the context of the size of Malta, the challenge of irregular immigration becomes evident. For example, 2,000 immigrants arriving in Malta equals 2 million immigrants arriving in a country like Germany (p. 121). Therefore, the Maltese navy, consisting of 200 staff members is overwhelmed with the number of irregular immigrants at sea (p. 128). As a result, the country demands solidarity from other EU members and the aid of the “European External Borders Agency Frontex” (Mainwaring 2012b, p. 59). Moreover, due to the Dublin Convention, which states that the application for asylum of immigrants or refugees has to be processed by the country of their first arrival, Malta receives vast amounts of applications (Mainwaring 2014, p. 106). For instance, in 2005 there were 1,166 in 2006 1,272, and finally in 2007 1,379 applications for asylum (Lutterbeck 2009, p. 125). This clarifies that irregular immigration at sea affects not only the Navy but also the government, as they have to process a high amount of applications. These high numbers and demanding circumstances clarify that the EU needs to take action in the case of irregular immigration in Malta, as the high numbers of arrivals do not only overwhelm the government and the navy but also cause many refugees or immigrants to drown.

Anti-Immigration Movements and Violence

In addition to the high numbers of immigrants arriving at sea, another significant reason suggesting that the EU should help Malta regarding the high influx of irregular immigrants is the abrupt rise of anti-immigration movements, right-wing parties, and violence against immigrants and refugees, it causes. Similar to the US, Malta has two major parties representing their country, the Malta Labour Party and the Christian-Democrat Nationalist Party (Falzon & Micallef, 2008, p. 393). However, since 2002 right-wing parties have started to establish themselves (p. 393). These parties are the Imperium Europa, Vivamalta, and Azzjoni Nazzjonali, which all have a strong anti-immigration stance (p. 394). These right-wing parties especially gain sympathy due to their anti-immigration rhetoric and the media’s portrayal of immigrants and refugees (p. 398). For instance, the media connects the danger of terrorism as well as prostitution to immigration (p. 398). This portrayal fuels public concern that escalates into vandalism as well as violent attacks (p. 398). For example, in 2007 and 2008 two Sudanese immigrants were attacked by racially motivated individuals (Lutterbeck, 2009, p. 141f). The anti-immigration attitudes in the country become also evident in a poll which was conducted in 2005, where 90 percent of the participants stated that they would not want a neighbor of African or Arabic origin (Mainwaring, 2012a, p. 9). Additionally, a survey in 2009 shows that 84 percent of participants perceived immigration to their country as a “national crisis” (p. 9). The notion of “crisis” as well as “invasion” is also used by the government on a local level conveying it to the country’s society as well as on a global level to the EU demanding solidarity and support (p. 6). This shows the clear desperation of the country for the EU to assist the island with the demanding task of irregular immigration. Furthermore, the constant portrayal of a “crisis” undoubtedly influences Maltese society as well as public discourse and will most likely increase the support for right-wing movements, which is a phenomenon that already exists throughout Europe.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the EU should take action to help Malta cope with the task of irregular immigration because the country implemented a controversial detention policy that has been criticized by various EU institutions for its inhumane conditions, its vast rescue zone, and a high influx of irregular immigrants arriving at sea, overwhelming the country’s navy and government, as well as the sudden rise in anti-immigration movements and violence, caused by immigration. This is significant to acknowledge, as immigration and especially irregular immigration has and will continue to increase, due to various factors, such as climate change. Further research could be conducted on the question of the Maltese detention policy as well as anti-immigration attitudes have been increasing and worsening since the refugee crisis in 2015.

References

1. Bernardie-Tahir, N., & Schmoll, C. (2014). Opening up the island: A “counter-islandness” approach to migration in Malta. Island Studies Journal, 9(1), 43–56.
2. Falzon, M. A., & Micallef, M. (2008). Sacred island or world empire? Locating far-right movements in and beyond Malta. Journal of Contemporary European Studies, 16(3), 393–406. https://doi.org/10.1080/14782800802501039
3. Lutterbeck, D. (2009). Small Frontier Island: Malta and the Challenge of Irregular Immigration. Mediterranean Quarterly, 20(1), 119–144. https://doi.org/10.1215/10474552-2008-038
4. Mainwaring, C. (2012a). Constructing a Crisis: The Role of Immigration Detention in Malta. Population, Space and Place, 18(6), 687–700. https://doi.org/10.1002/psp.1721
5. Mainwaring, C. (2012b). Resisting destabilization? Malta and Cyprus’ Influence on EU migration and asylum policies. Refugee Survey Quarterly, 31(4), 38–66. https://doi.org/10.1093/rsq/hds013
6. Mainwaring, C. (2014). Small States and Nonmaterial Power: Creating Crises and Shaping Migration Policies in Malta, Cyprus, and the European Union. Journal of Immigrant and Refugee Studies, 12(2), 103–122. https://doi.org/10.1080/15562948.2014.909076

Abstract

The present paper is a case study of migration process from proprietary library automation software LibSys and open source library management software Koha.This paper aims to present a customized procedure flowed by the library University of Jaffna (UOJ) during the bibliographic data migration process. UOJ Library have different type of resources including books, journals, reports, government documents and huge number of electronic resources. Migrartion of bibliographic data from LibSys to Koha flowed a customized procedure according to our collection type. Data were transformed through LibSys Acquisition report and cataloguing report, finally two reports were merged to develop a final data sheet in Excel. Different excel functions were followed to extract some field from developed final sheet. MARC fields were arranged according to our cataloger’s needs, display in the OPAC system and searchable for the users. This migration was carried out by academic librarians using freely available tools: OpenOffice Calc, MarcEdit and the Koha Integrated Library System. The data migration pathway presented here was developed and successfully used to transfer over 150,000 records in less than two months. This case study presents an original process that is particularly effective for an academic library migrating from LibSys to Koha.

Introduction

The influence of computer has flooded all sectors of librarianship. These systems include number of housekeeping activities, cataloguing, classification, serial control, circulation control and reporting. Library automation is the application of computers to library housekeeping operations. It’s now firmly established in Sri Lankan libraries. At present academic, public, special and school libraries in developing countries had access to library automation systems (Hopkinson, 2009).

The library automation effort all over the world have been fast phased and it is now common to ensuring user satisfaction and saving time for library staff. Sri Lankan situation has been changing from commercial software to open source software. In the early stage most of the academic libraries were automated with commercial software and now the trend has been changed to open source software (Benahal, 2018).

In Sri Lanka, “CERC library automation consultancy project, The Open University of Sri Lanka” public, special and school libraries were automated with Koha. According to Koha community 2017, 32 public libraries, five special libraries, one school library and five academic libraries were automated with Koha in Sri Lanka. Many integrated library management systems provide number of features through their modules. Example of this include Koha, Evergreen, New Gen Lib, Virtua and software for university library (SOUL). Koha is the oldest open source library management software and provides all essential modules for a library function including cataloguing. The University of Jaffna library have started it’s migration from LibSys to Koha in 2018. This paper is revealed the experience gained through this migration process.

University of Jaffna Library, Sri Lanka

University of Jaffna offers different academic programs in Bachelor of Arts, Agriculture, Engineering, Science, Management, Medicine and Technology through eight faculties and also provide postgraduate degree program through Faculty of Graduate studies. Here the library is acting as a central information system for the whole academic programs and support for teaching, learning and research activities. It has six branch libraries from Medicine, Engineering, Agriculture, Technology, Sidha medicine unit and Fine Arts attached to the respective faculties. Three branch libraries were established at Kilinochchi, which 100 Km away from Jaffna. The main library is well-equipped with a collection of books, journals, reports, audio-video materials, e-books, online databases and other resources to serve its users. Library is automated with LibSys from 2005 and during 2018 it started to migrate from LibSys to Koha. We maintained three different accession series, such as books, pamphlets, government documents and bound periodicals. As the first stage we migrated books series.

LibSys

LibSys is an integrated library management software package designed and developed by LibSys Corporation, Gurgaon. Hariyana. It covers all the activities related to acquision, circulation, cataloguing, serial control, article indexing, abstracting, OPAC and etc. LibSys follows international standards such as CCF, MARC, etc. It has some special characters, such as interactive, and screen oriented, menu driven, user defined security, multilingual and powerful editing facilities.

Literature Review

Number of research articles and case studies has been reviewed during the data migration process, customization and implementation of Koha, which are mentioned in the reference.

Migration Preparation

To ensure that our export process transferred all data fields uniformly, we began the migration preparation by surveying our catalog records for internal consistency. This included the standardization of location codes and elimination of cataloging inconsistencies that had accumulated through successive ILS platforms and catalogers.

During this phase, we uncovered several major cataloging issues that presented during the data migration challenges. While developing the export process, it quickly became clear that many of the bibliographic records in our system did not adhere to accepted spelling, missing entries, and mistakes in entries. As we try to correct these inconsistencies, our e-resource unit created a partition on the current ILS server, allowing us to run a test installation of Koha alongside our active LibSys system. This enabled us to test our data mapping process and to verify that the information had migrated successfully by crosschecking both systems.

Data Transformation

Data transformation is an essential step in data migration as the target format may have a different system format, which is differentiable from the previous one. We followed the following steps, during the data import from LibSys, this includes combination, filtration, reformat etc. We find an efficient and effective method, for the same. To improve quality of data we have experienced the following steps during the process of data transformation.

Discussion and Conclusion

This case study presents a functional model for a fully in-house data migration from LibSys to Koha. Koha software has an extremely user-friendly interface and it is cost effective which makes more challenging to the traditional LMS software like LibSys. Koha facilitate browser based facility. The ‘Tools’ module is the prime area for customization and batch functions. This data migration process overcome several challenges. By handling all aspects of data extraction, clean up, and formatting, our library gained an in depth knowledge about our collection and the basic principles of digital information management. Our library decided to run Koha alongside our active LibSys system in the same sever. The Library University of Jaffna migrated around 150,000 bibliographic records from LibSys to Koha. At present Koha database is fully function at our branch level. Our library has considerable amount of Tamil books and this was a major challenge for us to customize our cataloguing module. Main we focus on uniform title and subject keywords. After migration also we try to modify the cataloguing entries, which we made through the copy cataloguing by changing the call number and subject keyword according to our user’s needs. This migration process gave number of practical experiences to our team and gave chance to learn more about our collections. The impact of Koha on cataloging practices at the University of Jaffna Library has been monumental.

References

1. Benahal, A. R. (2018). Self-reliance of the Koha acquisition module for managing procurement of printed books: An academic library perspective. Electronic Library, 36(2), 338–349. https://doi.org/10.1108/EL-12-2016-0263
2. Central, C., & Chattopadhyay, S. (2000). Circulation Module of Koha and LibSys : An Observation at St . Introduction : LibSys : Koha : The Library : An Overview Problems encountered during day to day transactions in St . Xavier ’ s College Central Library with the previously used software LibSys, 1–6.
3. Hopkinson, A. (2009). Library automation in developing countries: The last 25 years. Information Development, 25(4), 304–312. https://doi.org/10.1177/0266666909349678
4. Mishra, V. K., Librarian, A., & Rourkela, N. (n.d.). Systematic approach of data migration, customization and implementation of Koha: a case study of Saharanpur Campus Library, IIT Roorkee.
5. Titilola Bayero Abdussalam, A., & Ajisafe Saliu, U. (2014). Using Koha for cataloging and classification: a case study. Library Hi Tech News, 31(2), 15–21. https://doi.org/10.1108/LHTN-11-2013-0070
6. Todd, C. R. (2018). Librarian as data migrator: a functional pathway from Millennium to Koha. Digital Library Perspectives, 34(1), 60–69. https://doi.org/10.1108/DLP-09-2017-0035