Editorial

While the flow of refugees and asylum seekers from the Middle East and North Africa continues into Europe unabated, the war of words within their intended destination countries escalates. Practical concerns about the ability of European destinations to manage the large numbers of arrivals are being supplanted by concerns over social cohesion and, especially since the attacks on Paris, security. Public figures and members of the public alike have voiced worries over who is coming, whether they are refugees, economic migrants, or potential terrorists. The term ‘refugee’ itself has taken on widely differing connotations, invoking deep sympathy from some, scepticism from others, fear from others. It is rarely acknowledged that ‘refugee’ serves as a label to be attached to individuals, and that this label is not value-neutral. In this first issue of 2016, Bernadette Ludwig asks us to pay more attention to the labelling of persons as refugees, noting that for some the label confers advantages but that others wear it as a burden that they would prefer to shed. Much of this issue is devoted to the different modes of migration to which our authors devote their attention. The flight of refugees and asylum seekers from danger is covered by Ludwig and by Francesco Vecchio who looks at how asylum seekers in Hong Kong take advantage of that city's status as a global city. Living there, even as an undocumented migrant, offers the advantages of global interconnections that support economic activity across borders, resulting in asylum seekers making net contributions to Hong Kong's already vibrant economy. We learn from Kyungran Roh and Romee Lee that being a defector, although potentially a symbol of political advantage for the receiving society, brings with it liabilities in the labour market of South Korea whose modern economy requires skills that few defectors possess. South Korea is urged to take the unique needs of North Korean defectors into account in the services that they provide. Staying in Asia, Rezaul Islam and Stefan Cojocaru help us to understand the contemporary challenges of migrating as a domestic worker, particularly challenges that the ILO's Domestic Workers Convention of 2011 was to guide receiving states through. But the goal of decent work for all domestic workers is yet to be realized owing to uneven adherence to its principles across Asia. Spain, like some other European countries, has experienced a reversal of fortunes, now as a receiving society whereas it previously was a net emigration country. Perhaps better known as a destination for migrants from sub-Saharan Africa, María Hierro shows us it has become a major draw for Latin Americans aspiring to a better life in a country that shares their language. The United States, now the world's second largest country after Mexico of those who speak Spanish, attracts large numbers of undocumented Honduran migrants. Jana Sladkova describes the challenges of their journeys as well as of their lives as undocumented migrants in a society increasingly uneasy with their presence. Blessing Uchenna Mberu and Roland Pongou take us to Cameroon to explore the many facets of the highly dynamic migration, both internal and international, in this under-studied country. Timothy Mechlinski offers a theoretical advance in our understanding of migration by looking at the important role of transportation workers in Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, and Ghana. Mechlinski, who covered thousands of miles of travel in those countries, brings us a rich account of the role of transportation systems in border control. Also of theoretical interest, Peter Loeback and Kim Korinek test Douglas Massey's hypothesis of cumulative causation. By looking at data from 1990 to 2000, they find that the hypothesis requires nuancing, at least in their test case of the Philippines. The city has taken centre-stage in many discussions, perhaps because now more than half of us live in cities. This is just as true of studies of migration and its societal effects as nearly all migration is to cities and, despite national governments having jurisdiction over their borders, it is in cities where migrants integrate, work, learn, and socialize. Cities offer the greatest returns on human capital, and it is to be expected, then, that migrant entrepreneurs would choose to locate their businesses in cities where they will enjoy larger markets, a greater supply of workers, and access to local, national, and international networks that can enhance their prosperity. But despite these potential advantages for both the migrant entrepreneur and the prosperity of the city itself, Jan Rath and Anna Swagerman demonstrate that few cities in Europe explicitly use their regulatory powers or program supports to advance migrant entrepreneurship. One might wonder at the wisdom of these omissions. Although nearly all migration is to cities, there are some who prefer the tranquility of the countryside and the spirit of a rural community. Branka Krivokapic-Skoko and Jock Collins show us, however, that these advantages of a rural destination can be accompanied by isolation and parochialism. Their study of migrants in rural Australia indicates that rural communities that hope to maintain their populations and their vitality need to invest in measures to attract migrants and retain them.

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