TRANSIT MIGRATION IN ASIA by Graeme Hugo, Federation Fellow Professor of Geography and Director of the National Centre for Social Applications of GIS, The University of Adelaide Paper presented to Annual Bank Conference on Development Economics, Mita Conference Hall, Tokyo, Japan May 2006

Outline of Presentation Introduction Conceptualising Transit Migration in Asia Forced Migrants as Transit Migrants in Asia South-North Movement and Transit Migration in Asia The Chinese as Transit Migrants Conclusion

Reasons for Neglect Lack of migration data generally Much involves undocumented migration Focus on economic and labour migrants

“Internal” Transit Migration False dichotomy Link with international labour migration Indonesian case studies

Features of Transit Migration in Asia Part of growth of temporary migration Transit point distinguished by its “way station” character rather than as a destination It’s “midway to nowhere character” Key role played by the migration industry Often involves movement without documentation

Forced Migration and Transit Migration in Asia Asia: Refugees by Countries of Asylum and Origin, 1980 to 2004 Source: UNHCR Statistics Countries of Origin Countries of Asylum

Migrants from Vietnam, Afghanistan, Cambodia and Laos living in OECD Countries, 2000 Source: OECD data base

Afghanistan Families in Pakistan – Source of Livelihood 2005 Source: UNHCR 2005, 24

2005 Census of Afghans in Pakistan 3,049,268 individuals 548,106 families Total population of Pakistan 143,500,000

Pakistan: Location of Self Employed Afghans (%), 2005 Source: UNHCR 2005, 55

Burmese (Myanmar) Refugees in Thailand ,000 in border camps 1 million elsewhere

Occupational Segregation of Burmese Migrants Low skilled – domestic services, agriculture, factory work, rice mills, fishing Labour shortages Occupational segregation Labour market segmentation

Labour Immigration and Labour Market Segmentation in Thailand

Corollaries of Labour Market Segmentation (Massey, et al. 1993) Migration is demand driven Migration is structurally entrenched Wages held down Government intervention limited Demand independent of economic vicissitudes

Some Involvement of High Skill e.g. Exodus of intelligensia from Burma in 1988

South African Refugees (Weiner 1993) The exodus of Tamils from Sri Lanka to Southern India Pakistanis stranded in Bangladesh after Bangladesh was created from East Pakistan Burmese Muslims moving to Bangladesh Hill Tribe Groups moving from Bangladesh to India Other Bangladeshis moving to India Tibetans moving to India Bengalis moving to Assam Nepalis moving to India Nepalis moving to Bhutan

Australia: Unauthorised Arrivals, to Source: DIMIA 2002 and 2005a

Onshore Unauthorised Boat Arrivals by Country of Citizenship, to Source: DIMIA 2005a, p. 31, 25 Onshore Unauthorised Boat Arrivals by Country of Citizenship Note: No boat arrivals in and

Onshore Unauthorised Boat Arrivals by Country of Citizenship, to Source: DIMIA 2005a, p. 31, 25 Protection Visas Claims By Countries or Territories of Citizenship

Staging Points for People Smuggling to Australia Source: DIMIA 1999

Routes Taken by Iraqi and Sudanese Settlers Coming to Australia Source: Hinsliff 2006

South-North Migration and Transit Migration in Asia Stocks of Asia-Born Persons in OECD Nations Around 2000 Source: Dumont and Lemaitre 2005, 31

The Key Role of the Migration Industry In both documented and undocumented migration Channels migration into selected transit points Stepping off points to OECD countries Complex linkages between Asylum Seekers and economic migration

Asians Using Central and Eastern Europe As Transit Points “constitute the only land neighbour to the European Union directly accessible from the South. As a consequence, they are, and will continue to be, a transit point for migrants from less developed parts of the world (mainly Asia and Africa) heading for countries of the “old” European Union. Having in mind the growing migratory potential of developing countries we can expect a rise in the scale of transit migration in CEE.” Kaczmarczyk and Okólski (2005)

Why CEE and Russia? A weakening of the CEE migration infrastructure (see also Rybakovski and Ryazantsev 2005) which has made it easier for Asians to enter (usually as tourists or students) and then overstay. The demographic pressures in the CEE countries which have been exacerbated by emigration and created job opportunities for Asian migrants in these countries to earn the funds to pay for their entry into the European Union. The expanding activities of the migration industry in the region which is developing cities in the region as transit points for eventual migration into the European Union Countries. The growing communities of Asians in these countries who facilitate transit migration and provide the migrants with assistance during their period of transit.

“Thailand has become a major transit country for Indians, Pakistanis, Bangladeshis, Sri Lankans and Nepalese headed to the United States, Canada, Europe, Korea and Japan. Many of those migrants wind up as illegal workers in Thailand and Malaysia. Police estimate that about 1,000 illegal migrants move through Thailand each month with fake passports and visas arranged in Bangkok and that 50,000 are in Bangkok at any one time”. Bangkok Post, 22 July 1997

The Nexus between Transit Migration and the Sex Industry Key role of Thailand Bangkok as the transit point for Thailand and neighbouring countries Role of migration industry Link with people smuggling and trafficking Link between transit and sex-work

Bangkok as a Transit Point in the International Sex Industry Europe – often involving links with sex tourism and with former migrants and tourists getting commissions and playing a role. Malaysia and Singapore – often are transit points where Thai women work as prostitutes while waiting to go to Japan, Taiwan, Australia and Europe. Hong Kong and Taiwan Japan and China USA and Canada Australia and New Zealand

Types of Agents (Skrobanek, et al. 1997) Local people, often either influential community leaders or women who have already experienced migration for sex work. They are involved in initial recruitment. Agents who work for an employment agency and located close to major transit points like railway stations and bus stations in Bangkok. They send girls to work in night clubs and bars in return for their first three months wages. Agents involved in actually sending women abroad, often also former sex workers Companies with links to overseas employers of sex workers.

Legal Transitting : New Zealand - Australia Trans Tasman Agreement Substantial migration of New Zealand citizens to Australia Substantial migration from Asia-Pacific to New Zealand Differences in Points Assessment Test Qualifying as New Zealand Citizen 25.4 percent of New Zealand Citizens in Australia foreign-born

New Zealand Citizens(a) Present in Australia by Country of Birth at 30 th June 2005 Source: DIMIA 2005b, p. 40

The Chinese as Transit Migrants Number of Chinese Travelling Abroad for Business and Tourism and Total Number of Outbound Trips from China, Source: Far Eastern Economic Review, 24 June 2004, p. 30; Asia Times Online, 9 February 2006

One sixth of world population 100 million floating workers 40 million overseas Chinese Yakuza (snakeheads) The role of Fujian province

The Golden Venture Incident 1993 Public realisation in US of scale of Chinese people smuggling Crackdown produced proliferation of routes and increase in places of transit Transit points both within and outside Asia Growing significance of Canada, Caribbean and Latin America

Conclusion Data issues Need to be considered as a distinct phenomenon Increasing focus since 9/11 because of security dimension (Bali Process)

Transit Migration is Likely to Increase in Significance Scale of migration is increasing The proliferating migration industry The involvement of a wider range of people Network extension Increasing barriers to migration to OECD and Asian high income nations