The world has changed a lot since the early 1990s. The rich nations across the globe are facing similar problems, as a huge number of foreigners plan to settle in those countries permanently. The relation between the US and Europe has also deteriorated in recent times. They differ on various issues, such as environmental policy, trade policy and immigration policy. Very recently, Washington has decided not to allow ‘migrants’ to stay with their children. Even South Asian migrants are facing the same problem in the US.
As expected, the UN has strongly criticised the US’ decision. Liberals and humanitarians, too, have slammed President Donald Trump’s ‘inhuman’ immigration policy. They are of the opinion that rich nations (especially world powers) should accommodate people of war-torn nations (who are also oppressed by the state) and allow them to live a peaceful life. They also urged the US and European countries to protect the migrants.
Their argument is apparently irrefutable. But, we have to admit that people often avoid unpleasant truth only because they are politically incorrect. And the immigration policy (of various countries) is no exception.

Dr Sugata Marjit – the Professor of Industrial Economics at the Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Calcutta (India) – visits Europe on a regular basis, as he teaches at different universities. Dr Marjit arrived in Greece a couple of years ago. While waiting for his flight at an airport, he noticed that a group of foreigners were purchasing a lot of expensive items from a shopping mall inside the airport. They were carrying some bags which were marked with the symbol of the UN Refugee Department. Later, the Indian professor came to know that all of them were international refugees who had left their country because of extreme poverty. They wanted to settle in a rich country.

Dr Marjit

Dr Marjit claimed that he had experienced the same in Zurich. In the Swiss capital, he met some Sri Lankan ‘Tamil’ people who had burned their passports in order to hide their identity. They also told the Swiss officials that the Sri Lankan government had forced them to leave the island nation. They even requested the concerned authorities in Switzerland to accept their applications for political asylum. Interestingly, none of them was the member of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) – a Tamil militant organisation that was based in north-eastern Sri Lanka.
Once, an American gentleman had advised Dr Marjit to stay in the US permanently, saying that he would arrange everything! He also said that the Indian professor could get a Green Card, if he agreed to work in a gas station in Texas or in an agricultural farm for just two months.

Migrants at the Greece-Macedonia border

In Germany, an old shopkeeper asked Dr Marjit (in 2017) whether it would be possible for Berlin to provide shelters to migrants, if wars broke out across the globe and people of all the countries wanted to settle in her country. According to the lady, the senior citizens had enjoyed many facilities provided by the government. Now, they don’t enjoy those facilities as the German government has started an austerity drive. The frustrated shopkeeper did not forget to mention that the government had already spent a huge amount of money for the migrants. Dr Marjit tried to explain the current global situation, telling the lady that rich nations had no other option, but to take the responsibility of such wars which were outcomes of the long-term policy of exploitation of the US and the European countries at the international level. The Indian’s (humanitarian) argument shocked the lady, who said: “But, I did no harm!”
The overall scenario is same in Asia. When Dr Marjit arrived in Chittagong in February 2018, his Bangladeshi friends told him that the Rohingya refugees were destroying the local economy. According to them, the arrival of Rohingyas in Bangladesh from neighbouring Myanmar has not only triggered a competition among low-income people, but also increased the crime rate. They don’t know how to confront this harsh reality. No…. humanitarian steps can’t solve this ‘problem’.

People should realise the fact that they can’t demand asylum from a foreign government. Many aggressive slogans advise people to take possession or to snatch rights forcefully. However, this is a matter of self-respect. May be, this mentality is a by-product of colonialism. The young generation is fully absorbed with technology…. So, they don’t have time to think about false nationalism. People can easily blast leaders of foreign countries, criticise their immigration policy and promote the liberal ideas. But, the fact is some people are begging rich nations for asylum. The most important question is: how much comfort can they enjoy by begging? People should not forget this simple fact. And even if the people forget, top UN officials should keep this in mind.

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Published by Koushik Das

Koushik Das (born on May 16, 1976 in Kolkata) is a career journalist. Based in the Indian capital of New Delhi, Koushik writes mainly about foreign policies and current geopolitical issues, and rarely about other topics. His own political ideas are highly influenced by Antonio Gramsci, Louis Althusser, Michel Foucault, Michael Oakeshott and others. English philosopher and political theorist Oakeshott (Dec 11, 1901-Dec 19, 1990) says that “in political activity, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea. There is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place, nor appointed destination. But we have to keep afloat”. (Rationalism in Politics, 1962) As a student of Political Science, Koushik loves to share his views on issues, which have great impacts on his thought process (and also on India, South Asia and of course on the global community), with his readers through his website – Boundless Ocean of Politics. By doing so, he tries to keep himself afloat. You will find some of his articles in https://inserbia.info/today/ (https://inserbia.info/today/author/kou_das13_i/), as he has been trying to assess the global geopolitics since 2003. You can also mail him at kousdas@gmail.com View all posts by Koushik Das