scholarly journals Invisible children? Non-recognition, humanitarian blindness and other forms of ignorance in Sabah, Malaysia

2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (4) ◽  
pp. 455-470
Author(s):  
Catherine Allerton
Keyword(s):  
Migrant Workers ◽  
Cultural Discourse ◽  
Volunteer Teachers ◽  
Normal Children ◽  
Local Newspaper ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
Neutralization Techniques ◽  
Invisible Children

In the Malaysian state of Sabah, public antipathy towards the presence of large numbers of migrant workers influences a widespread ignorance of the educational and other exclusions of their children. Children of migrants are rendered invisible in Sabahan cultural discourse because they are not recognized as proper subjects, or even as ‘normal’ children. Cultural denial of such children’s circumstances can be seen in local newspaper reports that consider such children with reference to fears of ‘illegals’ and their threat to future Sabahan citizens. This discourse draws on a particular understanding of child deservingness, and utilizes what Cohen describes as ‘neutralization techniques’. However, such apparently wilful blindness can best be understood by considering it on a spectrum of different forms of ignorance and denial. This includes the blatant lack of recognition afforded by powerful individuals who should be more aware of the children of their workers, the humanitarian blindness of volunteer teachers who over-emphasize the saving power of education, and the complex and situational ignorance of children of migrants themselves. Appreciating other, potentially more benign or protective, forms of denial is crucial to understanding how ignorance of the complexity of the situation of children of migrants continues, even among those hoping to resolve it.

The Return of Malawian Labour from South Africa and Zimbabwe

1983 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 311-326 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert E. Christiansen ◽  
Jonathan G. Kydd
Keyword(s):  
Migrant Workers ◽  
Labour Force ◽  
Economic Stress ◽  
Labour Migration ◽  
Foreign Workers ◽  
Host Countries ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
Short Period ◽  
Unusual Phenomenon ◽  
International Labour Migration

This article examines an unusual phenomenon in the context of modern African labour migration. It explains how Malawi, which had long been a significant source of migrant workers for its neighbours, managed to withdraw over one-half of its international labour force from abroad in the first six years of the 1970s, and to integrate these individuals into the domestic economy within a very short period of time. Traumatic movements of large numbers of migrant workers have been all too common in contemporary Africa, usually manifested as expulsions from host countries during periods of economic stress. A recent notable example was the exodus of about a million foreign workers from Nigeria in the course of one month in 1983. What is unusual about the reduction in international labour migration from Malawi is that it was induced mainly by economic opportunities rather than by coercion.

scholarly journals The mental health needs of immigrant workers in Gulf countries

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 79-81 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Ajmal Zahid ◽  
Mohammad Alsuwaidan
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Migrant Workers ◽  
Mentally Ill ◽  
Psychiatric Morbidity ◽  
Ethnic Origin ◽  
Health Needs ◽  
Mental Health Needs ◽  
Gcc Countries ◽  
Gulf Countries ◽  
Large Numbers

The oil-rich member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) attract large numbers of migrant workers. The reported rates of psychiatric morbidity among these migrant workers are higher than among nationals, while the mental health services in the GCC countries remain inadequate in terms of both staff and service delivery. The multi-ethnic origin of migrants poses considerable challenges in this respect. The development of mental illness in migrants, especially when many of them remain untreated or inadequately treated, results in their premature repatriation, and the mentally ill migrant ends up facing the same economic hardships which led to migration in the first place. The availability of trained interpreters and transcultural psychiatrists, psychologists and social workers should make psychiatric diagnoses more accurate. Suitable rehabilitation services are also needed.

The Changing Characteristics of Migrant Workers in Kuwait

1989 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 31-55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nasra M. Shah ◽  
Sulayman S. Al-Qudsi
Keyword(s):  
Labor Force ◽  
Migrant Workers ◽  
Migrant Worker ◽  
Foreign Workers ◽  
Industrial Distribution ◽  
Gulf Countries ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
Temporary Migrant ◽  
Development Plans

Kuwait is one of the gulf countries that has imported large numbers of temporary migrant workers over the last decade or so. The import of such workers was necessitated by the ambitious development plans that were made possible by the oil bonanza after 1973. Even prior to this influx, however, more than 70 percent of the labor force in Kuwait consisted of foreign workers. As the country has gone through economic and other changes, its goals concerning the magnitude and structure of the migrant worker population have undergone substantial revisions. These changes are reflected in such indicators as number of migrant workers; occupational and industrial distribution of the labor force; demographic, ethnic, and educational characteristics of this labor force; and related wage levels. An examination of the above changes is the objective of the present study.

Multiculturalism and Temporary Migrant Workers

2018 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Migrant Workers ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Labour Migration ◽  
Political Rights ◽  
Practical Point ◽  
Cultural Rights ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
Temporary Migrant ◽  
Temporary Labour Migration ◽  
Liberal Perspective

Normative discussions of temporary labour migration have focused mostly on what social and political rights, if any, temporary migrant workers should have. This chapter focuses on a different set of potential entitlements: cultural rights. The question I am interested in is whether the cultural needs and preferences of temporary migrant workers should be accommodated or even supported by receiving states (note that ‘culture’ is construed broadly here so as to include religious needs and preferences). Specifically, I ask when, if ever, temporary migrant workers should have access to three kinds of cultural rights from a liberal perspective: (i) cultural exemptions from laws and working regulations; (ii) cultural subsidies; and (iii) cultural recognition. Asking this question is important not just to fill a lacuna in the literature on multiculturalism (most of which is concerned with the cultural entitlements of citizens), but also from a practical point of view, as many countries harbour large numbers of temporary migrant workers.

scholarly journals Poland in international migrations: the perspective of world systems theory

2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 94-103
Author(s):  
Cezary Żołędowski
Keyword(s):  
Systems Theory ◽  
Migrant Workers ◽  
Western Europe ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
World Systems ◽  
World Systems Theory ◽  
Distinctive Features ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
The Status ◽  
The One

AbstractThis article presents the special status of Poland, namely as a country that both sends out and takes in large numbers of migrant workers. Drawing on the world systems theory, the role attributed to Poland is that of semi-periphery, which means a specific kind of suspension between the status of an immigration centre, resembling western Europe, and the status of a migration periphery, such as the one constituted by the eastern part of the continent. Poland continues to be viewed as peripheral by its own citizens who decide to emigrate and, at the same time, becomes an immigration sub-centre for migrants coming from less-developed countries. In this article, the distinctive features of the special position of Poland are discussed. The conclusions drawn are supported by empirical evidence, including data on migration flows and interviews both with Poles working abroad and foreigners employed in Poland.

scholarly journals What Drives the Recruitment of Migrant Workers to Work in Social Care in England?

2011 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 285-298 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shereen Hussein ◽  
Martin Stevens ◽  
Jill Manthorpe
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Migrant Workers ◽  
Social Care ◽  
Adult Care ◽  
Demographic Profile ◽  
Individual Interviews ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
The Social ◽  
British Commonwealth ◽  
The Uk

This article outlines the reasons for the recruitment of migrant workers by the adult care sector in England, as revealed by participants in a multi-method study. The background to the study is the changing socio-demographic profile of the social care workforce, notably the employment of non-UK citizens in large numbers from outside traditional recruitment sources within the British Commonwealth. The article reports on 136 individual interviews with different stakeholders from the English social care sector undertaken in 2008–2009. Drawing on a theoretical framework developed during the first phase of the study, the analysis revealed a two-fold explanation of the demand for migrant workers in the English care sector. First, to fill specific staff vacancies, either through direct recruitment of workers from outside the UK or among those already in the UK; and, second, a more strategic, but less common, decision to recruit migrants with specific characteristics. The implications for social policy are set in the context of political concerns about migration and concurrent political aspirations to improve social care through resolving recruitment difficulties.

scholarly journals The Western European Countryside From An Eastern European Perspective: Case Of Migrant Workers In Norwegian Agriculture

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 327-346 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johan Fredrik Rye
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Migrant Workers ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
Rural Studies ◽  
Agricultural Industry ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
The Social ◽  
Western European ◽  
Depth Interviews

AbstractIn the wake of the EU enlargements in 2004 and 2007, large numbers of migrant workers from Eastern Europe in-migrated to the Western European countryside. In this paper I discuss how these migration streams in important ways challenge the dominant perspectives in contemporary rural studies, in particular their focus on lifestyle-related rural in-migration, on the post-productivist character of the countryside, and on the social constructions of the rural as idyllic space. These perspectives are examined based on qualitative material from in-depth interviews with 54 migrant workers in the Norwegian agricultural industry. These migrants’ everyday experiences in the rural West add important nuance to the dominant scholarly images of rural idylls and dullness, descriptions of rural communities as less marked by class structures than urban regions, and traditionalist presentations of rural social life and communities.

scholarly journals The relative aetiological importance of birth order and maternal age in mongolism

1934 ◽  
Vol 115 (795) ◽  
pp. 431-450 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Birth Order ◽  
Maternal Age ◽  
Aetiological Factor ◽  
Normal Children ◽  
Ample Evidence ◽  
Birth Rank ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
Child Bearing ◽  
The Family ◽  
Two Factors

Mongolian imbeciles are very often born last in a long family. The fact, which was pointed out many years ago by Shuttleworth (1909), has led clinicians to believe that mongolism is to believe that mongolism is to some extent a product of the exhaustion of maternal reproductive powers due to frequent child-bearing (Still, 1927; Fantham, 1925). The conclusion is widely accepted with the reservation that the affected child is not necessarily born at the end of the family (Thompson, 1925). Several cases are first-born, in fact, and it is sometimes stated that the condition occurs more frequently in first and last children than in other ordinal positions. There is, however, ample evidence that mongolian imbeciles have a significantly later birth rank than normal children (Hogben, 1931). It is also established, from large numbers of figures which have been collected, that the maternal age at the birth of mongolian imbeciles is unduly high. Though some of these imbeciles have young mothers, most of the cases (about 70%) are born after the mother has reached the age of 35 years. Thus the maternal age itself is likely to be an aetiological factor quite as important as birth order. I Know of no serious attempt, however, to distinguish between the aetiological significance of these two factors: to do this is the task I have umdertaken.

A Survey on Nepali Migrants in India: An Empirical Study

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 54-64
Author(s):  
Keshav Bashyal
Keyword(s):  
Social Networks ◽  
Social Network ◽  
Empirical Study ◽  
Migrant Workers ◽  
Income Level ◽  
Destination Country ◽  
Living Standards ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
The Status ◽  
Employment Education

This article examines the status of Nepali migrants in Delhi-NCR, India. Due to open border, shorter distance and long-established social network, migration from Nepal to India has been unending. India has been an origin and destination country for large numbers of migrants. A treaty in 1950, between Nepal and India facilitates movement between Nepal and India. This paper analyzed the nature and pattern of migrants’ employment, education, social network, and causes of migration. Nevertheless, the improved income level, the condition of most of the migrant workers is deplorable, most of them are staying together in either poor rented houses or at slums with sharing rooms without proper provision of hygienic sanitation. Social networks are the major entry point for getting jobs, shelter and loans and for saving money. Nepali migrants in Delhi are working for basic survival rather than improvement in their living standards.

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