22 - Principle Five: You Are Never In Control
2022 No 22
Man’s steps are ordained by the Lord, how then can man understand his way?
--Proverbs 20:24
When we began this section, we stated that there were five principles to migration.1 Some may argue that there are more. Before this journey is over, I may do the same. But at this point, the four previous were rather obvious. First, everyone is a migrant. Very few are living in the community of their birth. If they are, most will move at some point in their life. Second, everyone moves for a reason. One may be chasing an opportunity, fleeing danger, or seduced by a trafficker, but all have a motivation to go somewhere. Third, no one moves alone. Fourth, money directs the way. These two are related in that it is very difficult to go anywhere distant without some help and some money.
In this post, I want to gain altitude and see an even bigger picture. When one looks at global movements, it becomes obvious most migrants quickly lose control of their destiny. They are like leaves that drop into a flowing river. They go where the currents take them. This is true even for those with the resources and connections to travel legally. Since leaving the United States, my wife and I have lived in Mali, France, Morocco, Turkey, Egypt, and Senegal. Each of those movements was directed by governmental policies and COVID. I would like to think that we are in control of our directions and destiny... but in this world, we are not. This makes us so grateful that we serve a God who holds all things in His hands and that He is guiding our steps!
The Politics of Migration
It is impossible to separate migration from politics. One of the roles of government leaders is to protect their people and manage those who would enter their countries. We would expect them to do so with a measure of justice and respect. It truly is, however, a two-edged sword that requires wisdom, courage, and compassion. Without God's help, it is a responsibility fraught with pitfalls. Such is why we are instructed in Scripture to pray for our governmental leaders and to live peaceably under their rule.² Before we become critical of migration policies, we must consider our leaders' challenges.
The Need for Migrants
In most parts of the world, there is a desperate need for migrants. In Europe, for example, the median age of her citizens is 44, and 20% are above age 65.3 Most of her youth are studying for jobs that are critical if their countries are to maintain a national identity. They will become engineers, architects, attorneys, teachers, public servants, and even politicians. This leaves few to work in construction, agriculture, industry, tourism, and a host of other fields of labor. In 2021, Germany needed 400,000 skilled migrants per year to maintain its economy.4 In these cases, migrants are not taking jobs from anyone… they are filling vacant positions that German nationals simply could not fill.
The Need for Border Control
There is a need, however, to control one’s borders. One does not have to look far to see the horrific consequences of open border policies. As we will see in a moment, such only fuels the recruiting efforts of smugglers and will significantly increase the suffering of migrants. And yet closed border policies are challenging to manage. There is no one solution. If all you have is a border wall, it will do little to stem the tide of migration. There is no greater barrier than the Sahara Desert or the Mediterranean Sea, yet people still find ways to get across. Such border controls are only effective when paired with credible migration policies that address smuggling and trafficking networks.
Political Pressures
It would be wonderful if we lived in a utopia where everyone did what was right, and international leaders could sit around the table and sing "kumbaya."5 At one point, some believed that the United Nations could serve in that role. It doesn't take much attention to our world to see that we do not live in such a utopia. Every country in the world is faced with external and internal challenges. On the inside, there are competing voices for what their people and their political party believes is best for the country. On the outside, diplomacy requires careful navigation of issues that could easily spell economic or even territorial disaster.
Considering the above, it is no surprise that migration and migration policy rise above the desires and ambitions of any single immigrant. And clearly, the immigrants themselves are not in control of those policies. As such, they are incredibly vulnerable. Governments should always fight against those who would use migrants for their advantage. The challenge is that, at times, the very people taking advantage of the migrants are governmental leaders! One may compare it to the war on drugs. The battlefield is ever-changing in a cat and mouse game between governments, organized crime, and people smugglers. The end-users, the migrants, may think that they have a choice in the matter, but, in reality, they are just pawns in a larger game of chess.
The Economics of Migration
Underlying all of this is the simple reality that there are astronomical amounts of money involved in the movements of people. Remittances or the resources migrants send back to their home countries exceeded 589 billion dollars in 2021.6 Trafficking and smuggling added another 150 billion dollars to that number.7 This kind of money becomes an insatiable motivator for many. We know that water runs downhill, but one can build dams or dig canals to direct the water into certain places... with enough resources. Migrants caught in these flows have few options.
Golden Rules
It has been said that he who has the gold makes the rules. Unfortunately, such is not far from the truth. This became evident during the European Migrant Crisis of 2015. Over a million migrants entered the EU during that period, crossing mainly from Libya and Turkey. These kinds of movements are always linked to the border control measures of each country. Just because one side does not want migrants to enter their territories does not mean that the other side does not want to see migrants leave theirs. Consider the following…
By 2015, some 2.5 million Syrians had fled to Turkey due to war. At that time, Turkey had spent 8 billion dollars to aid them.8 They joined another half million Afghans, Iranians, and Iraqis who were already in the country. Turkey was at a moment of crisis as its government attempted to manage the situation. The dam burst that year, and some 856,723 migrants crossed from Turkey into Greece.9 Smugglers made between 2.75 and 5.5 billion dollars that year alone.10 One could argue that Turkey could have curtailed the movements, but they had a long list of reasons to look the other way.
Then, in 2016, the European Union entered into an agreement whereby they offered 6 billion euros to Turkey to "assist" with the migration crisis. Conversely, Turkey stepped up their border controls and effectively impeded the flow of migrants. The agreement was renewed in 2021, with another 3.5 billion euros placed on the table.11 One could say that it was a payoff, or perhaps one could say that it was simply a sharing of the responsibilities in managing a migrant crisis. It is a matter of perspective.
Consider another example. Libya had been embroiled in civil war since the fall of Kaddafi in 2011. Factions were vying for power and control within the country, and the costs of war were draining resources. As one might imagine, partnerships with criminal elements could prove profitable as smugglers and traffickers sought to move people into Europe. These mafias had always existed, but now that the government was in shambles, they could operate with impunity. Europe was trying to stem the borders on her side, but the routes were wide open from Libya.
Consequently, in the Memorandum of Understanding of 2017, Italy gave Libya 236 million euros.12 They offered to assist the Libyan Coast Guard with training in migrant rescues if the migrants were returned to Libyan soil. They also agreed to prosecute any NGOs engaged in rescue operations within 225 kilometers of the coast. The agreement was renewed in 2019. Such effectively curtailed the smuggling operations in Libya, and the number of migrant arrivals in Italy decreased dramatically.
Have no doubt that these were political solutions to a migrant crisis. Everyone has an opinion on what the governments should have done. Once again, that is not the point of this article. The point is that migrants did not have a say in any of it. One day, a migrant could plan to get into a boat and arrive in Europe. The next day, they were stranded in a transit country… or worse.
Golden Keys
While one may not be able to make the rules, some are certainly in a position to buy the keys that will open particular doors. And those with the keys seldom make decisions that would place the interests of the migrants first. These "middle-men" use migrant money to buy their way past or through governmental processes. Bribes and corruption are rampant, and for enough money, a visa can be obtained to travel almost anywhere.
For example, there are a host of legal, albeit shady pathways to Europe. One can get a scholarship to several legitimate and a few fake universities if you have money to pay. Honestly, one can get a visa to almost anywhere for the right price. But all these pathways require the use of smugglers. Most are in the business of selling their product, and they ensure their future by delivering what they promise. However, there are others who promise one thing and then deliver another. I remember meeting some young African soccer players who were promised a spot on a Turkish national team. Their families had paid large sums of money to these “recruiters” to see their sons accepted on a national team. Once arriving in Turkey, however, they discovered that it was a scam. Not only had they lost their money, but they carried too much shame and lacked the resource to consider returning home.
For many, particularly on the Central and Western migration routes, their greatest challenge is having the money to get past the numerous official checkpoints. Corruption is rampant across Africa. Every border crossing, and often the entrance to each city, will have checkpoints. Each of them has a fee negotiated with the smugglers for passage.13 If you have the money, you can get through. But what do you do if bandits robbed you of everything along the way, or if your smuggler has abandoned you and you are trying to move forward independently? Suddenly you are at the mercy of others… and they will not have your best interest at heart.
We have spoken with hundreds of migrants who can testify that having the right amount of money at the right time is the key that enables or hinders movement. There are several million sub-Saharan migrants trapped in North Africa. Why? Because they do not have the means and cannot secure the means to get across the Mediterranean. Many may have gotten close to some magic number, only to have it stolen or confiscated by authorities.
The Impact on Migration
Bigger Game of Chess
All of this suggests that migrants are often nothing more than pawns in a bigger game of chess. They enter the system intending to arrive somewhere within a certain period of time and at a certain cost. They know that there are risks, but they calculate that they will be successful. Seldom does it work that way. Governmental policies can change, borders can close quickly, circumstances can go awry, and they are always at the mercy of those they must employ to help them. In the end, many become stranded and can neither move forward nor back to where they started.
I must confess that seeing how the systems work can become incredibly frustrating. Even the best government policies can have unintended consequences. At times, little can be done to make things better for those caught in the system. But it would seem that it is always possible to make things worse! Some policies defy logic in that they serve only to encourage irregular migration and play directly into the hands of people smugglers and traffickers. I work with pastors and churches who are helpless to do much more to alleviate their suffering than to offer a bag of rice and perhaps a pathway to secure medical care.
Real-Life Consequences
The consequences of failed policies are profound. The degree of suffering and the loss of life is beyond measure. I once spoke with a migrant in Morocco who told of how he paid a smuggler nearly two thousand dollars to get him from Côte d’Ivoire to Italy. Five in his group of twenty-five died on the trip across the Sahara Desert. However, when he arrived in Libya, the passage was closed, and he was sold to work on a construction project. Fortunately, he escaped and made his way to Morocco intending to cross into Spain by boat. The cost of passage across the Straits of Gibraltar at the time was between two and three thousand euros. The voyage is perilous. He told me that for every five boats that attempted the crossing, one would be successful, two would be turned back, and two would be lost at sea. He had raised money from his family back home for a boat, but he had been caught by the Moroccan Coast Guard and returned. There was no more money to make a second attempt. When I met him, he was begging on the streets, trying to find a way to survive.
Conclusion
Stories like this can be repeated thousands of times. Places of transition are often like bloody battlefields. Non-Government Organizations and Faith-Based Organizations often serve as medics, caring for those they can. It is not easy, and it is complicated to manage. There is always a delay in arrival... but by the time they get ramped up, supply lines built, and people on the ground... the battle has moved somewhere else.
This is why we put so much emphasis on the local church. The church was there before the crisis began and will be there long after the media has focused their attention elsewhere. And while outside groups may play a vital role in meeting the humanitarian needs, only the church can offer hope and a sense of community for those who become stranded. At an individual level, one may be pressed to understand or even direct one's own steps. Fortunately, God does not struggle with such limitations. He has a plan, and much of that plan is to use His church, His people, to remind a moving world that He is truly in control.
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1See the introduction to this series of articles. https://m2m3.org/11-a-search-for-the-principles-behind-migration-2/
2 Romans 13:1-7
3 "Population Structure and Aging", EuroStat https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Population_structure_and_ageing (accessed April 3, 2022).
4 "German Labour Chief Says Germany Needs 400,000 Skilled Immigrants Yearly to Tackle Skilled Workers’ Shortage", Schengen Visa https://www.schengenvisainfo.com/news/german-labour-chief-says-germany-needs-400000-skilled-immigrants-yearly-to-tackle-skilled-workers-shortage/#:~:text=German Labour Chief Says Germany,Workers'%20Shortage%20%2D%20SchengenVisaInfo.com (accessed April 3, 2022).
5 “Kumbaya” is pidgin English (African dialect) that reflects a prayerful plea to God to guide, direct and heal all problems.
6 Dilip Ratha, "Global Remittance Flows in 2021: A Year of Recovery and Surprises", WorldBank https://blogs.worldbank.org/peoplemove/global-remittance-flows-2021-year-recovery-and-surprises#:~:text=In 2021%2C we expect remittance, higher than foreign direct investment. (accessed April 3, 2022).
7 2021 Trafficking in Persons Report, (Washington D.C.: Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, 2021). See also Channing May; Christine Clough, Transnational Crime and the Developing World (Washington D.C., 2017), xii.
8 Kemal Kirisci, "As Eu-Turkey Migration Agreement Reaches the Five-Year Mark, Add a Job Creation Element", Brookings Institute https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2021/03/17/as-eu-turkey-migration-agreement-reaches-the-five-year-mark-add-a-job-creation-element/ (accessed April 3, 2022).
9 Yiannis Sakellis; Natalie Spyropoulou; Dimitris Ziomas, The Refugee Crisis in Greece N the Aftermath of the 20 March 2016 Eu-Turkey Agreement (Geneva: European Commission, 2016).
10 Rob Wainwright; Jürgen Stock, Migrant Smuggling Networks (Europol-INTERPOL, 2016), 8.
11 Kirisci.
12 Arezo Malakooti; Chiara Fall, Migration Trends Across the Mediterranean: Piecing Together the Shifting Dynamics (Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC), 2020), 8.
13 Corruption and the Role of State Officials in Human Smuggling, (Dakar: Mixed Migration Centre, 2021).