Implementation

The Labour Migration Policy Index (LMPI) aims to assess on a national level the mechanisms which allow employers to meet their labour needs, and which provide favourable conditions for migrant workers. The LMPI focuses on assessing the formal rules and regulations of labour migration programmes, as opposed to actual policy implementation and migration outcomes, which are more difficult to evaluate. The LMPI considers two fields of labour migration policy -- Administration and Entry Mechanisms, and Migrant Worker Entitlements. Each of these two fields is divided into two ‘macro indicators’, for example, ‘Administrative mechanisms’ and ‘Entry mechanisms’. The LMPI only assesses migration programmes in a limited number of countries. In order to ensure some geographical balance, research has been conducted on the following thirteen countries: Australia, Canada, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Spain, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Le projet MITRANS vise à rendre compte des transformations des modèles migratoires confrontés aux processus de mondialisation. Notre projet prend en compte non seulement l'intensification des échanges et des flux, mais également la politique des Etats et les effets de la fermeture des frontières. Il se propose d'étudier les stratégies des migrants qui vivent de façon prolongée dans une situation de liminarité et de décrire les sens variables que prend l'errance en fonction des territoires traversés. Sur le plan empirique, ce projet prend en compte la diversité des destinations : territoires de départ, de destination, de transit et de passage. Démarche comparative et multi-située. Quatre axes thématiques : politiques migratoires des Etats et politiques publiques d'accueil dans les lieux de passage ; ancrage dans les espaces locaux et développement de réseaux transnationaux ; Trajectoires migrantes et configurations urbaines ; le transit comme source de catégorisation, de valeurs et d'identités nouvelles.

Als ein Teil des Projekts Einwanderung und Transformation der chinesischen Gesellschaft werden hier die sozialen Dynamiken und die Umsetzung des neuen chinesischen Ausländergesetzes von 2012 aus der Perspektive staatlicher und nicht-staatlicher Akteure untersucht. Dabei stehen die folgenden Fragen im Mittelpunkt: Wie positionieren sich bestimmte nationale Ministerien oder die Regierungen von Megastädten wie Guangzhou zur Zuwanderung und zur Ausländerintegration in China? Wie bilden sich demografische Herausforderungen, Wirtschaftsentwicklung und Sicherheitsbedenken in öffentlichen und fachlichen Diskursen über Rechtsreformen und die Umsetzung des neuen Ausländerrechts ab? Wie verhält sich der formale Vollzug des Ausländerrechts gegenüber informalen Praktiken, etwa informalen Arrangements und Aushandlungsprozessen zwischen Einwanderern und Verwaltungsbeamten? Das Projekt wird in Peking, dem Sitz des nationalen Gesetzgebers durchgeführt sowie in Guangzhou, einem Zentrum ausländischer Zuwanderung. Um die Perspektiven des Gesetzgebers, der Verwaltung und der Einwanderer zu integrieren, verwendet dieses Projekt einen interdisziplinären Ansatz, der sich Methoden aus der Rechtswissenschaft, der Enthnologie und der Geografie bedient. Die im nationalen Gesetzgebungsverfahren involvierten Interessen werden mittels der Analyse von Texten und Experteninterviews in Ministerien, Parteiorganen, Universitäten und Thinktanks erforscht. Die Untersuchung des Vollzugs des Ausländerrechts in Guangzhou beinhaltet eine Aktualisierung bereits vorhandener qualitativer und quantitativer Daten sowie Interviews mit örtlichen Behörden, Konsulaten und Ausländerorganisationen. Die Perspektive der Einwanderer wird mittels Methoden der ethnografischen Forschung untersucht, wobei insbesondere Einwanderergruppen aus Westafrika und aus Europa betrachtet werden.

AMORE (Awareness & Migration: Organizations for bi-national family Rights Empowerment) aims to bring an action-research approach to the study of migration policies and administrative practices regulating access to citizenship and residence permits. This project will focus on bi-national married families formed by a third country national (TCN) and a European Union (EU) citizen. A TCN is a citizen of a non-EU country who resides in a EU Member State, and is thus affected by a specific administrative practices and regulations. In bi-national families, these practices unexpectedly affect the EU spouse too. By focusing on the unintended consequences of migration policies for EU citizens, the question that this project addresses is at what point these policies and practices threaten family life freedom, considered a universal human right. While their problem is still largely unknown, bi-national family members are actively participating in bottom-up Civil Society associations to defend bi-national families and migrants' rights. Using the biographical policy evaluation method to achieve its goals, the project will compare different scenarios in three cities: Brussels, Strasbourg and Turin. In order to be effective and reduce variables, only one foreign nationality will be studied, namely migrants from Morocco (TCN) married to an Italian/Belgian/French citizen (UE citizen). The study of the impact of migrations policies on family members' experiences and strategies implies investigating also those public officers involved in the implementation of the administrative practices concerning these bi-national families and taking into account people from their social surroundings. After studying individual agency, the observation will be turned to associations that have competences to solve juridical cases and to carry out political lobbying involving directly those bi-national family members. This particular kind of association represents a form of active bottom-up citizenship.

Efficient NII (non-intrusive inspection) of containerised freight is critical to trade and society. Freight containers are potential means for smuggling (e.g. tobacco), illegal immigration, trafficking of drugs, mis-declared goods and dangerous illicit substances, including explosives, nuclear material, chemical and biological warfare agents and radioactively contaminated goods. One inspection NII technology cannot cope with all these targets. The C-BORD Toolbox and Framework will address all these targets and enable customs to deploy comprehensive cost-effective container NII solutions to potentially protect all EU sea- and land-borders, satisfying a large range of container NII needs. The C-BORD Toolbox will include 5 complementary innovative detection technologies: delivering improved X-rays, Target Neutron Interrogation, Photofission, Sniffing and Passive Detection. User interfaces and data will be integrated to optimise effectiveness and efficiency of end-users and systems. The C-BORD Framework will help customs analyse their needs, design integrated solutions, and optimise the container inspection chain; it will address detection levels, false alarm levels, throughput, health & safety, logistics and cost & benefits. C-BORD will increase the probability of finding illicit or dangerous content with at least equal throughput of containers per time unit, reduce the need for costly, time-consuming and dangerous manual container inspections by customs officials, and in case a container is opened, increase the probability of finding illicit materials. C-BORD involves stakeholders from 8 EU countries, as partners (5) and advisory group members (3). On 3 custom sites integrated solutions will be trialled, respectively addressing the needs of big seaports, small seaports and mobile land-borders. To optimise sustainable impact, C-BORD will actively engage with a large community, will support policy implementation, evolution and start early exploitation planning.

The fundamental weakness of nation state and EU efforts to effectively manage migration to Europe lies in ensuring the return of foreigners who pass or avoid border controls but are then neither granted asylum nor a residence permit. Many Member States thereby increasingly rely on public policies for the so-called ‘voluntary return’ of irregular migrants and (refused) asylum seekers. Very little is known about how these approaches work in practice and whether they meet stated policy goals and discharge state obligations regarding migrants’ human rights. The project REvolTURN addresses this research gap through a close and comparative analysis of ‘voluntary return’ policies in Austria and the UK, including their adoption, implementation and immediate outcome. It examines 1) how voluntariness of return is constructed and framed in law, policy and public discourse, 2) which notions of voluntariness are crucial for policy implementation, and 3) what impact this has on migrants’ own decision-making about their return. My innovative and interdisciplinary mixed-method approach combines comparative policy and discourse analysis, detailed institutional ethnography through observation and in-depth interviews and a survey among potential returnees. REvolTURN addresses a key priority of the Horizon 2020 work programme for 2016-17: to better manage migration, and will also contribute to recent scholarship regarding the in/effectiveness of migration policies and the agency of migrants holding no or highly precarious statuses. The project has three main objectives: 1) to better understand the role and functioning of voluntariness in the context of state-managed migratory return; 2) to develop a framework for assessing and comparing these roles and functions, including their effectiveness; and 3) to thereby contribute to evidence-based and workable policy solutions that increase the number of genuinely voluntary returns without undermining the very logic underlying this approach.

"The project explores protest against the deportation of rejected asylum seekers in Austria, Switzerland and Germany. Deportation has become a central element of immigration control, particularly of asylum seekers whose application has been rejected. At the same time, it can be seen as contradicting the intention of human rights obligations for individuals in need of protection, which raises normative questions related to justice and universal norms vis-à-vis state sovereignty and policy implementation adopted by lawful means. This tension is reflected by the fact that certain sections of the population and the public have become sensitive towards the forcible expulsion of non-citizens from the state territory. Such feelings of unease and moral outrage manifest themselves in various forms of protest that are directed against the most coercive measure a sovereign state can take. The central aim of the project is to explore and explain the goals, form and degree of diverse anti-deportation protest activities across countries and time (1995-2010). In particular, the project seeks to answer the following research questions: 1.What shapes the trajectories of protest against the deportation of asylum seekers and what is characteristic and even distinct about anti-deportation protest? 2. How can we explain variation in the goals, forms, and degree of anti-deportation protest, both across countries and over time? The project develops an innovative and integrated perspective by combining different theoretical approaches (political opportunity structure approach and resource mobilization perspective) and considering emotional processes into the analysis. Empirically, the study will be based on newspaper articles about deportation, protest material produced by protest groups and interviews with protesters. In methodological terms, the project combines quantitative and qualitative text analysis with a series of in-depth case studies on individual deportation cases that triggered protest. The project will make an important contribution to the literature on migration and social movements. More specifically, we will assess (a) the role of structural factors vis-à-vis agency and resources and (b) the motivational and strategic functions that emotions play in protest. "

Background In the context of the current development of the Global Compact on Refugees, as well as the recent experience of the Jordan Compact, responses to large-scale refugee crises, and the potential of development approaches, are key areas of potential study. Policy makers are (re-)examining policy options in the context of forced migration, protection and development, based on the priorities and challenges all stakeholders involved are facing. With this in mind, the study aims to assess potential policy options, with the goal of clarifying and incorporating the needs and priorities of relevant stakeholders, not least refugees and the countries hosting them. Objectives The study aims to enhance policy-relevant knowledge on the potential of regional protection policies to support durable solutions and resilience-based development. The study therefore seeks to provide a comprehensive assessment of viable policy options to address the development-displacement nexus for protection in the Middle East region and across the world. Findings Policy options presented in the final report focus on four main areas of work, all of which are considered equally important, and which were developed based on input from stakeholders in refugee hosting countries (Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey in particular). For more on the policy options, please see the report linked below. The first area of policy work for refugee-hosting countries and relevant organisations and donors is focused on analysing the situation and designing a tailored approach to it. Host countries (and donors) must ensure that all relevant information on refugees has been collected and assessed, in order to design and prioritise the most appropriate actions. Similarly, implementing a multi-stakeholder approach (across stakeholder groups and levels of national administration) can improve the effectiveness of policy implementation. Secondly, countries must ensure effective communication and coordination. This involves streamlining and communicating one’s approach both within and outside the national context to ensure a unified approach. Thirdly, countries, donors and implementing organisations should implement policies and programmes that integrate development perspectives into service provision. Longer-term impacts require implementing sustainable structures in refugee-hosting countries. Finally, countries, donors and implementing organisations should focus on programmes and policies aimed at boosting business and decent work – for both refugees and nationals.

The European challenges in the field of migration have an impact on society, since the division between them opposed to newcomers and welcoming them has been continuously increasing. The project addresses the perceptions of the Belgian and European population about refugees/migrants and vice versa as well as their interactions with the policy agenda of asylum and migration with a European comparative perspective and a specific focus on Belgium. As Europe face important migratory challenges and political difficulties we have seen an increase of the public opinion’s polarisation regarding asylum and refugees, it is important to address this question. Including teams from our project will analyse this polarisation and its links to policies, as it is necessary for a better understanding of the current debate on migration in Europe and Belgium. The 2015 asylum crisis will be considered as indicative of the general European and Belgian citizens’ reactions about migration. The focus is then on attitudes, representations, discourses and practices about refugees, on the interactions at the local level between the majority populations and newly arrived migrants. The project will follow two objectives. First studying public opinion towards asylum seekers and refugees with a European cross- national perspective but also how these groups perceive Belgium, its asylum system and its reception policies. The second objective is to analyse the polarisation of the public opinion by focussing on pro and anti-refugees’ actions at the local level. This will allow understanding the links between public opinion and the implementation of asylum and reception policies. In order to fulfil these objectives, our project is based on 5 Work Packages that each focus on a specific dimension. The first two ones aim at developing a European comparative perspective on perceptions towards migrants, refugees and asylum seekers. This then includes a quantitative analysis of public opinion’s perceptions towards new immigration flows as well as a comparison of 5 European case studies (Sweden, Italy, Grece, Hungary and Germany). The three other work packages aim at a deep analysis of the Belgian situation. First, they consist of understanding actions and reactions towards asylum seekers and refugees at a local level. This implies to study the opposite reactions with an in-depth analysis of their content, justifications and determinants but also to focus on interactions between social groups (pro vs. anti migrants groups; ional citizens & refugees) as well as the interactions between the population’s reaction and the implementation of asylum and receptions policies. Second, studying the Belgian situation implies to analyse asylum seekers and refugees perceptions regarding the country’s asylum and reception policies. Lastly, it implies to realise a policy evaluation of those policies.

The European challenges in the field of migration have an impact on society, since the division between them opposed to newcomers and welcoming them has been continuously increasing. The project addresses the perceptions of the Belgian and European population about refugees/migrants and vice versa as well as their interactions with the policy agenda of asylum and migration with a European comparative perspective and a specific focus on Belgium. As Europe face important migratory challenges and political difficulties we have seen an increase of the public opinion’s polarisation regarding asylum and refugees, it is important to address this question. Including teams from our project will analyse this polarisation and its links to policies, as it is necessary for a better understanding of the current debate on migration in Europe and Belgium. The 2015 asylum crisis will be considered as indicative of the general European and Belgian citizens’ reactions about migration. The focus is then on attitudes, representations, discourses and practices about refugees, on the interactions at the local level between the majority populations and newly arrived migrants. The project will follow two objectives. First studying public opinion towards asylum seekers and refugees with a European cross- national perspective but also how these groups perceive Belgium, its asylum system and its reception policies. The second objective is to analyse the polarisation of the public opinion by focussing on pro and anti-refugees’ actions at the local level. This will allow understanding the links between public opinion and the implementation of asylum and reception policies. In order to fulfil these objectives, our project is based on 5 Work Packages that each focus on a specific dimension. The first two ones aim at developing a European comparative perspective on perceptions towards migrants, refugees and asylum seekers. This then includes a quantitative analysis of public opinion’s perceptions towards new immigration flows as well as a comparison of 5 European case studies (Sweden, Italy, Grece, Hungary and Germany). The three other work packages aim at a deep analysis of the Belgian situation. First, they consist of understanding actions and reactions towards asylum seekers and refugees at a local level. This implies to study the opposite reactions with an in-depth analysis of their content, justifications and determinants but also to focus on interactions between social groups (pro vs. anti migrants groups; ional citizens & refugees) as well as the interactions between the population’s reaction and the implementation of asylum and receptions policies. Second, studying the Belgian situation implies to analyse asylum seekers and refugees perceptions regarding the country’s asylum and reception policies. Lastly, it implies to realise a policy evaluation of those policies. The aim of this project and the main questions it addresses focus more on the relations and on the dynamics existing between the citizens and the migrants, asylum seekers and refugees. Hence, we propose to broaden the scope of what is usually done by extending the focus on actors that are often not implied in migration studies: the majority population and the impact of new migration waves on social cohesion. The expected results concerns: 1) an in-depth and comparative knowledge of attitudes towards migrants and refugees in Europe; 2) an analysis of the factors influencing the attitudes of rejections, disregards and support; 3) an in-depth analysis of the specificities of the current wave of migration compared to the last ones; 4) an in-depth analysis of citizens’ and migrants’ discourses, representation and practices and of their reaction on social cohesion at a local level;