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Migration and Borders: Empirical Patterns and Theoretical Implications in the Case of Spain

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Global Change and Human Mobility

Part of the book series: Advances in Geographical and Environmental Sciences ((AGES))

Abstract

In the last decade, the analysis of irregular migration and migration control has led to a fruitful debate among disciplines in the social sciences. At the heart of this discussion, which has also resulted in new dialogue between migration and border studies, lie the new functions and spatial dimensions of border action. The purpose of this paper is to reflect on the connection between migration and border studies by considering the role given to borders when analyzing international mobility, with the backdrop provided by the analysis of migration control initiatives undertaken along the southern border of Europe and in Spain over the last decade. An empirical analysis of the Spanish case puts forth a series of considerations concerning the scope that the study of border control can have on the expansion of migration theory.

Research developed in the framework of MIND Research Project (grant number CSO2014-53680) funded by the Spanish National Research Program (Programa Excelencia), 2015–2017.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Various specialists have stated that despite the surge in border studies in the last decade and the expansion of the disciplinary boundaries involved in this type of research, this “disciplinary encounter” has not managed to yield a body of ideas of a shared common lexicon that is relevant to every specialist, whose analyses are firmly anchored in the theories of different disciplinary traditions (Newman 2006).

  2. 2.

    Let us not forget that social institutions, including borders, are not only containment mechanisms, but they may also become mechanisms that foster certain types of transactions and means of mobility.

  3. 3.

    COM (2008) 68 final. Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee, and the Committee of the Regions, Examining the creation of a European Border Surveillance System (EUROSUR), Brussels, 13.2. 2008

  4. 4.

    “The concept of an integrated border management involves combining control mechanisms and the use of tools based on the flows of persons towards and into the EU. It involves measures taken at the consulates of Member States in third countries, measures in cooperation with neighboring third countries, measures at the border itself, and measures taken within the Schengen area” (European Commission 2008b).

  5. 5.

    The Africa Plan is a political plan approved as part of Spain’s cooperation policy, the goal of which was to enhance collaborative migration measures with African countries (see Alcalde 2007).

  6. 6.

    A secure regional satellite communications network coordinated by Spain to exchange information on maritime irregular immigration in which police authorities from Mauritania, Morocco, Cape Verde, and Senegal participate. The Seahorse Mediterranean project, established in 2013, is an extension of the cooperation accord in place since 2006 between African countries on the Atlantic coast. Seahorse aims to support the direct exchange of information on “incidents” at sea and the presence of patrols in the area. This includes using satellite imagery to obtain near-real-time information. Seahorse is a subregional project of the surveillance network Eurosur (European Border Surveillance System).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Applied Economics and Quantitative Methods, University of La Laguna, Campus de Guajara, 38071, La Laguna, Spain

    Dirk Godenau

  2. Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Institute of Economics, Geography and Demography, Albasanz, 26-28, 28037, Madrid, Spain

    Ana López-Sala

Authors
  1. Dirk Godenau
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  2. Ana López-Sala
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Correspondence to Dirk Godenau .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Las Palmas, Spain

    Josefina Domínguez-Mujica

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Godenau, D., López-Sala, A. (2016). Migration and Borders: Empirical Patterns and Theoretical Implications in the Case of Spain. In: Domínguez-Mujica, J. (eds) Global Change and Human Mobility. Advances in Geographical and Environmental Sciences. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-0050-8_3

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