Article: Towards equitable responsibility-sharing for forced migration Journal: International Journal of Migration and Border Studies (IJMBS) 2014 Vol.1 No.3 pp.253 - 275 Abstract: During the past decade, irregular migration has become a prioritised issue in the European Union (EU) (Triandafyllidou, 2010) and surveillance regimes have been adopted to make immigration control more effective. In many cases, such measures have collided with fundamental human rights. In this article, the ethical acceptability of mechanisms used to control and stifle the influx of immigrants to EU territory are explored by means of Pogge's (2008) moral cosmopolitan theory. It is claimed that forced migration is a global rather than national concern and that, contrary to common reasoning, nation states cannot be ethically justified in designing their immigration regimes as they see fit. To the contrary, against the backdrop of Pogge's theory, it is argued that developed nations such as the EU member states have moral obligations not only to respect the rights and needs of those currently forcibly displaced but to prevent forced displacement from occurring. Criteria for equitable responsibility-sharing regarding forced migration are extracted and used to analyse whether or not the common European asylum system (CEAS) under development and 'Mare Nostrum' - a reactive response to the tragic Lampedusa events - take due responsibility for forced migration. Inderscience Publishers - linking academia, business and industry through research

Title: Towards equitable responsibility-sharing for forced migration

Authors: Elin Palm

Addresses: Department of Culture and Communication, Centre for Applied Ethics, Linköping University, S – 581 83 Linköping, Sweden

Abstract: During the past decade, irregular migration has become a prioritised issue in the European Union (EU) (Triandafyllidou, 2010) and surveillance regimes have been adopted to make immigration control more effective. In many cases, such measures have collided with fundamental human rights. In this article, the ethical acceptability of mechanisms used to control and stifle the influx of immigrants to EU territory are explored by means of Pogge's (2008) moral cosmopolitan theory. It is claimed that forced migration is a global rather than national concern and that, contrary to common reasoning, nation states cannot be ethically justified in designing their immigration regimes as they see fit. To the contrary, against the backdrop of Pogge's theory, it is argued that developed nations such as the EU member states have moral obligations not only to respect the rights and needs of those currently forcibly displaced but to prevent forced displacement from occurring. Criteria for equitable responsibility-sharing regarding forced migration are extracted and used to analyse whether or not the common European asylum system (CEAS) under development and 'Mare Nostrum' - a reactive response to the tragic Lampedusa events - take due responsibility for forced migration.

Keywords: border control; ethics; EU migration governance; surveillance; equitable responsibility sharing; moral cosmopolitanism; forced migration; European Union; immigration control; fundamental human rights; ethical acceptability; global concerns; national concerns; moral obligations; forced displacement; common European asylum system; CEAS; Mare Nostrum.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMBS.2014.068968

International Journal of Migration and Border Studies, 2014 Vol.1 No.3, pp.253 - 275

Received: 16 May 2014
Accepted: 06 Oct 2014
Published online: 30 Apr 2015 *

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Title: Towards equitable responsibility-sharing for forced migration

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