The Foreign Service Journal, June 2019

20 JUNE 2019 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL T ied to labor requirements in more advanced countries or asylum claims from refugees, migration has traditionally been an experts’ issue, discreetly handled. This is changing rapidly. In 2016 migra- tion exploded internationally as a major domestic political issue in many countries. In the United States, how we deal with visitors, migrants and asylum-seekers is a political hot potato that repeatedly ends up in the courts. On our southern border, questions about who gets asylum and why play out against the backdrop of policy decisions on the fate of beneficiaries of the DREAM Act and unaccompanied minors. While Mexico grapples with address- ing transit migration toward the United States, South America struggles with fleeing Venezuelans. In Africa refugee numbers soar as countries struggle to sustain millions fleeing conflict and crisis. Australia’s approach to asylum-seekers is a major political issue there. M igration Seizes the Spotlight Andrew Erickson, a retired Senior Foreign Service officer, was refugee coordinator for the former Yugoslavia from 1996 to 1997, then liaison on migration issues to the Luxembourg Presidency of the European Union. At U.S. Mission Geneva from 1998 to 2002, he worked with the Intergovernmental Consultations on Migration, Asylum and Refugees; the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees; the International Organization for Migration; and other humanitarian agencies. He has served at the U.S. Mission to the European Union and worked in conflict zones including Bosnia, Afghanistan, Colombia and the Horn of Africa. He lives in Europe. Migration is testing national policy in many countries. The questions it raises go to the heart of the international order. BY ANDREW ER I CKSON MILLIONS ON THE MOVE FOCUS Conflicts and poverty in the Middle East boost migration. Turkey hosts nearly four million refugees and also generates eco- nomic migrants. Europe also hosts millions. In 2016, motivated in part by concerns over immigration, Britons voted to leave the European Union. The rise of far-right parties across Europe is also tied to the impact of immigration. An American president with strong views on migration was elected. Recent elections in Ger- many, Italy and Sweden further underscore the deep unease with which elements of our electorates view immigration. Today the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees counts about 68.5 million forcibly displaced people worldwide, including 40 million internally displaced, 25.4 million refugees (among them 5.4 million Palestinians) and 3.1 million asylum- seekers. When I was stationed in Geneva as a migration officer at the beginning of the 21st century, the discussion was largely focused on the need for more refugee slots in the developed world. Today a less one-sided dialogue is required. A comprehensive diplomatic approach should include revisiting the 1951 Refugee Convention to recast the rights and responsibilities therein. This