Pub Date : 2024-08-09DOI: 10.1177/01171968241266333
Matt Withers
Remittances have been characterized as resilient flows of capital that provide financial relief to migrant households and emerging economies during downturns, crises and other periods of hardship. This article examines patterns of remittance transfer to Sri Lanka between January 2020 and December 2022, drawing on Central Bank statistics and online remittance surveys with migrant workers to test prominent assumptions about the drivers of remittance behavior. Findings indicate little evidence to support explanatory factors linked to the resilience hypothesis, instead pointing to the likelihood that fluctuations in official remittance figures reflect shifts between formal and informal remittance channels.
{"title":"Are remittances “resilient?” Evidence from Sri Lanka between COVID-19 and the crisis","authors":"Matt Withers","doi":"10.1177/01171968241266333","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/01171968241266333","url":null,"abstract":"Remittances have been characterized as resilient flows of capital that provide financial relief to migrant households and emerging economies during downturns, crises and other periods of hardship. This article examines patterns of remittance transfer to Sri Lanka between January 2020 and December 2022, drawing on Central Bank statistics and online remittance surveys with migrant workers to test prominent assumptions about the drivers of remittance behavior. Findings indicate little evidence to support explanatory factors linked to the resilience hypothesis, instead pointing to the likelihood that fluctuations in official remittance figures reflect shifts between formal and informal remittance channels.","PeriodicalId":46248,"journal":{"name":"Asian and Pacific Migration Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2024-08-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141924832","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Providing parental care within transnational families poses significant psychological costs for migrants in their migration and return migration decisions. The facilitation of transnational elderly care is complicated by associated stressors and mediated by systems that ease the emotional burden. The recently growing skilled emigration from Sri Lanka, often as a means of escapism, poses unique challenges in navigating the care needs of the left-behind elderly. Our study explored how 10 skilled migrants from Sri Lanka attempted to provide transnational care. Findings revealed that emigrants resorted to many conventional and novel coping mechanisms, which in turn, mediated their return decisions.
{"title":"Caring for elderly parents while living away: Sri Lanka’s professional and skilled emigrants","authors":"Udeshika Chandrarathne, Asel Hettiarachchi, Oshadhie Silva","doi":"10.1177/01171968241264907","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/01171968241264907","url":null,"abstract":"Providing parental care within transnational families poses significant psychological costs for migrants in their migration and return migration decisions. The facilitation of transnational elderly care is complicated by associated stressors and mediated by systems that ease the emotional burden. The recently growing skilled emigration from Sri Lanka, often as a means of escapism, poses unique challenges in navigating the care needs of the left-behind elderly. Our study explored how 10 skilled migrants from Sri Lanka attempted to provide transnational care. Findings revealed that emigrants resorted to many conventional and novel coping mechanisms, which in turn, mediated their return decisions.","PeriodicalId":46248,"journal":{"name":"Asian and Pacific Migration Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2024-07-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141805098","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-07-24DOI: 10.1177/01171968241264034
B. Khadria
{"title":"Book review: Migration and development in India: The Bihar experience","authors":"B. Khadria","doi":"10.1177/01171968241264034","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/01171968241264034","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":46248,"journal":{"name":"Asian and Pacific Migration Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2024-07-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141807684","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-07-22DOI: 10.1177/01171968241263363
Sophie Henderson
This paper critically analyzes the Sri Lankan government’s management of return migration. Adopting an intersectional lens, it examines how exclusionary policies and programs fail to protect the rights and welfare of returnee women migrant domestic workers, resulting in poor reintegration outcomes. The paper focuses on three interconnecting issues that disproportionately impact upon their rights, as revealed by empirical fieldwork carried out in Colombo in 2018. Research findings from interviews and focus group discussions with civil society organizations (9), government agencies (3) and international organizations (3) highlight the need for an inclusive policy approach. Such an approach would involve a holistic response guided by inter-agency coordination and comprehensive data that would better tailor services to the specific skillsets and diverse circumstances of returnee women domestic workers.
{"title":"The realities of return migration: Reintegrating women migrant domestic workers in Sri Lanka","authors":"Sophie Henderson","doi":"10.1177/01171968241263363","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/01171968241263363","url":null,"abstract":"This paper critically analyzes the Sri Lankan government’s management of return migration. Adopting an intersectional lens, it examines how exclusionary policies and programs fail to protect the rights and welfare of returnee women migrant domestic workers, resulting in poor reintegration outcomes. The paper focuses on three interconnecting issues that disproportionately impact upon their rights, as revealed by empirical fieldwork carried out in Colombo in 2018. Research findings from interviews and focus group discussions with civil society organizations (9), government agencies (3) and international organizations (3) highlight the need for an inclusive policy approach. Such an approach would involve a holistic response guided by inter-agency coordination and comprehensive data that would better tailor services to the specific skillsets and diverse circumstances of returnee women domestic workers.","PeriodicalId":46248,"journal":{"name":"Asian and Pacific Migration Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2024-07-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141816072","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-07-21DOI: 10.1177/01171968241262529
Valerie Francisco-Menchavez
Unique to this paper is a gendered examination of return migration from the point of view of male return migrants. I analyze the perspectives of repatriated male migrant workers during their return migration in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic. Through a discussion of time as “accumulated delay,” I suggest that the (de)constructions of masculinity concerning overseas Filipino workers’ (OFWs) experiences of waiting and delay under repatriation and quarantine can be understood through the theoretical lens of immobility in migration research. I suggest that systemic delays in the circulation of global capital, necessitated by the global health pandemic, challenged migrant men’s cohesive narrative of migrant productivity.
{"title":"Accumulating delay: Filipino Time, COVID-19 and experiences of male returnees in Cebu","authors":"Valerie Francisco-Menchavez","doi":"10.1177/01171968241262529","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/01171968241262529","url":null,"abstract":"Unique to this paper is a gendered examination of return migration from the point of view of male return migrants. I analyze the perspectives of repatriated male migrant workers during their return migration in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic. Through a discussion of time as “accumulated delay,” I suggest that the (de)constructions of masculinity concerning overseas Filipino workers’ (OFWs) experiences of waiting and delay under repatriation and quarantine can be understood through the theoretical lens of immobility in migration research. I suggest that systemic delays in the circulation of global capital, necessitated by the global health pandemic, challenged migrant men’s cohesive narrative of migrant productivity.","PeriodicalId":46248,"journal":{"name":"Asian and Pacific Migration Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2024-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141817953","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-23DOI: 10.1177/01171968241253850
Maria Borovnik
This paper builds on the situation of seafarers, who found themselves stuck in the global crew change crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. This crisis, caused by countries going into lockdown and closing their borders, had affected more than 400,000 seafarers worldwide. Some were stranded overseas, some were trapped aboard ships and others were waiting in transition. A number of international organizations highlighted safety and human rights issues of what was recognized as a humanitarian crisis. They called out the international responsibility of allowing seafarers to cross borders and access health services, and for governments to facilitate safe journeys home for seafarers. The year 2021 was proclaimed as the “year of action for seafarers” to recognize them as essential workers. Building on media and other materials, this paper explores the global crisis and difficulties for many governments in dealing with this exceptional global pandemic with a particular focus on seafarers from Kiribati.
{"title":"Trapped in the COVID-19 pandemic: Seafarers and the global crew change crisis","authors":"Maria Borovnik","doi":"10.1177/01171968241253850","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/01171968241253850","url":null,"abstract":"This paper builds on the situation of seafarers, who found themselves stuck in the global crew change crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. This crisis, caused by countries going into lockdown and closing their borders, had affected more than 400,000 seafarers worldwide. Some were stranded overseas, some were trapped aboard ships and others were waiting in transition. A number of international organizations highlighted safety and human rights issues of what was recognized as a humanitarian crisis. They called out the international responsibility of allowing seafarers to cross borders and access health services, and for governments to facilitate safe journeys home for seafarers. The year 2021 was proclaimed as the “year of action for seafarers” to recognize them as essential workers. Building on media and other materials, this paper explores the global crisis and difficulties for many governments in dealing with this exceptional global pandemic with a particular focus on seafarers from Kiribati.","PeriodicalId":46248,"journal":{"name":"Asian and Pacific Migration Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2024-05-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141106999","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-20DOI: 10.1177/01171968241253351
Sanley Abila, Serafin Malecosio
This paper examines the mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) interventions provided to Filipino international merchant seafarers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Given the significant labor participation in seafaring of Filipinos, examining the MHPSS provided to them during a crisis is necessary because these services remain unexplored. Using an online survey, this paper raises two questions: (1) what MHPSS was provided to Filipino seafarers during the pandemic and (2) how did the seafarers perceive the importance of MHPSS interventions? Twenty-two MHPSS interventions are presented and analyzed, and policy recommendations for various Philippine-based stakeholders are offered.
{"title":"Filipino seafarers’ experiences and perceptions of psychosocial interventions during the COVID-19 pandemic","authors":"Sanley Abila, Serafin Malecosio","doi":"10.1177/01171968241253351","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/01171968241253351","url":null,"abstract":"This paper examines the mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) interventions provided to Filipino international merchant seafarers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Given the significant labor participation in seafaring of Filipinos, examining the MHPSS provided to them during a crisis is necessary because these services remain unexplored. Using an online survey, this paper raises two questions: (1) what MHPSS was provided to Filipino seafarers during the pandemic and (2) how did the seafarers perceive the importance of MHPSS interventions? Twenty-two MHPSS interventions are presented and analyzed, and policy recommendations for various Philippine-based stakeholders are offered.","PeriodicalId":46248,"journal":{"name":"Asian and Pacific Migration Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2024-05-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141121832","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The purpose of this study was to understand the determining factors of in-migrant population registration in various counties or cities in Taiwan. Panel data from counties and cities in Taiwan from 2000 to 2021 were adopted, and spatial econometric analysis was conducted using the spatial Durbin model. In terms of spatial spillover effects, the in-migrant population of each county or city is influenced by the fiscal expenditure and economic opportunity factors of neighboring counties or cities, such as (1) expenditure on education, science and culture, (2) number of employed population, (3) average annual regular income per household, and (4) average disposable income per household.
{"title":"Spatial spillover effects of fiscal expenditure and economic opportunity on internal migration in Taiwan","authors":"Hao-Chen Huang, Po-Hsun Hung, Chin-Fu Hung, Ting-Hsiu Liao","doi":"10.1177/01171968241253047","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/01171968241253047","url":null,"abstract":"The purpose of this study was to understand the determining factors of in-migrant population registration in various counties or cities in Taiwan. Panel data from counties and cities in Taiwan from 2000 to 2021 were adopted, and spatial econometric analysis was conducted using the spatial Durbin model. In terms of spatial spillover effects, the in-migrant population of each county or city is influenced by the fiscal expenditure and economic opportunity factors of neighboring counties or cities, such as (1) expenditure on education, science and culture, (2) number of employed population, (3) average annual regular income per household, and (4) average disposable income per household.","PeriodicalId":46248,"journal":{"name":"Asian and Pacific Migration Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2024-05-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140981151","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-08DOI: 10.1177/01171968241245731
Desai Shan, Cory Ochs, Sriram Rajagopal, Hugo Andres Rojas Aldieri, Pengfei Zhang
The COVID-19 pandemic significantly affected the world and work in particular, but its effects on the labor market were not evenly distributed. Seafarers, who are essential workers engaging in international maritime transport, encountered exacerbated challenges to labor conditions at sea during the pandemic. Notably, the inability to conduct crew changes violated their right to rest, increasing the risk of fatigue-related safety accidents at sea. Additionally, the precarious nature of maritime employment relationships delayed seafarers waiting to enlist on the vessels, creating extended financial hardship ashore. Socio-legal analysis revealed how the pandemic, related public health measures and precarious employment heightened the vulnerability of seafarers during the pandemic. Applying the Pressure, Disorganization and Regulatory Failure model and supported by qualitative data collected through a policy review, media coverage analysis and semi-structured interviews, we identified how seafarers’ health and safety rights were significantly compromised during the pandemic. Even though various initiatives were raised by international governmental and non-governmental organizations to address the “humanitarian crisis” at sea, maritime labor regulatory failures were not effectively addressed throughout the multiple waves of the pandemic.
{"title":"Precariousness and vulnerability: Seafarers in the COVID-19 pandemic","authors":"Desai Shan, Cory Ochs, Sriram Rajagopal, Hugo Andres Rojas Aldieri, Pengfei Zhang","doi":"10.1177/01171968241245731","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/01171968241245731","url":null,"abstract":"The COVID-19 pandemic significantly affected the world and work in particular, but its effects on the labor market were not evenly distributed. Seafarers, who are essential workers engaging in international maritime transport, encountered exacerbated challenges to labor conditions at sea during the pandemic. Notably, the inability to conduct crew changes violated their right to rest, increasing the risk of fatigue-related safety accidents at sea. Additionally, the precarious nature of maritime employment relationships delayed seafarers waiting to enlist on the vessels, creating extended financial hardship ashore. Socio-legal analysis revealed how the pandemic, related public health measures and precarious employment heightened the vulnerability of seafarers during the pandemic. Applying the Pressure, Disorganization and Regulatory Failure model and supported by qualitative data collected through a policy review, media coverage analysis and semi-structured interviews, we identified how seafarers’ health and safety rights were significantly compromised during the pandemic. Even though various initiatives were raised by international governmental and non-governmental organizations to address the “humanitarian crisis” at sea, maritime labor regulatory failures were not effectively addressed throughout the multiple waves of the pandemic.","PeriodicalId":46248,"journal":{"name":"Asian and Pacific Migration Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2024-05-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141001387","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-04-22DOI: 10.1177/01171968241245382
Roderick Galam, I. Acejo, N. Turgo
{"title":"Asia Pacific and the global maritime industry: Hierarchies, vulnerabilities, solidarities","authors":"Roderick Galam, I. Acejo, N. Turgo","doi":"10.1177/01171968241245382","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/01171968241245382","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":46248,"journal":{"name":"Asian and Pacific Migration Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2024-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140677193","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}