Here
you will find a special in-depth focus on selected key topics and
regions: immigration detention around the world, the U.S.-Mexico border
at Arizona, Spain and African migration, Australia's treatment of
asylum seekers. We will keep adding to these Special Topics, and
hope to add other topics in the future. Check back!
Migrants
started to funnel through the Arizona-Mexico border when other parts of
2,000-mile boundary saw concentrated border enforcement. Initially
begun as a deterrent to migration, border enforcement did not stop
unauthorized migration; it only made it more dangerous. Migrant deaths
-most from heat exposure- near the Arizona border climbed steadily in
the first half of this decade.
In August 2001, the Australian government refused to let the Norwegian tanker, the Tampa,
offload its boatload of rescued asylum seekers onto Australian
territory. Thus began years of policies aimed at deterring asylum
seekers from coming to Australia. Among these policies were the
mandatory detention of asylum seekers, including children.
Detention
of immigrants is one of the fastest growing industries in the United
States. Many immigrants are detained in prisons run
by private, for-profit companies that contract with U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The detention network is ill-equipped
to deal with the health needs of detainees, and dozens have died from
abuse and neglect. Immigrant detention is also widespread in Europe.
Spain
has become the gateway to Europe, with migrants coming from Africa,
Latin America, Eastern Europe and Asia. Those migrants who travel
clandestinely by sea, most from northern and sub-Saharan Africa, face
special risks. Thousands have died, many will never be found.
Meanwhile, Europe continues to fortify its borders against unauthorized
migrants.
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