- What are the types of migration?
- Emigration and immigration
- Types of migrations
- Examples of historical migrations
We explain the types of migration, the characteristics of each one and examples. Also differences between emigration and immigration.
What are the types of migration?
The migration is the displacement of a person or a group of people, from the place they live to a new destination to settle semi-permanently or permanently.
The term comes from the Latin I will migrate which means "change residence, move" and should not be confused with the populations nomads (who go from one place to another, without settling in a region permanently) or with tourist travelers (people who travel or travel territories for pleasure, for a specified time).
In 2000 the UN (United Nations) established December 18 as International Migrants Day in order to raise awareness about the right of free and dignified mobility of all Humans.
The globalization, along with advances in communications and the transport, has increased the number of people who have the desire and ability to choose other places to live. Furthermore, migration can be an engine of economic growth that benefits both communities origin and destination.
Emigration and immigration
Migration is an action in which, depending on the type of displacement, the person can be categorized as:
- An emigrant. When an individual leaves his place of origin. The term i will emigrate comes from Latin and means "to march out of his town."
- An inmigrant. When an individual enters and settles in a new territory. The term immigrate comes from Latin and means "to come from one place to settle in another."
- A refugee. It occurs when an individual forcibly leaves their place of origin, due to life-threatening situations.
Migration is a global and complex phenomenon, which can generate impacts on a day-to-day basis. For example, a high rate of immigration in the cities it can cause overcrowding and affect the availability of public services, increase pollution, etc.
On the other hand, a high rate of emigration in the city can cause shortages, shortages of services and lack of developing.
In the report prepared by CELADE (Latin American and Caribbean Center for Demography) presented at the Ibero-American meeting on "Migration and development" in July 2006, it was detailed that 25 million people of Latin and Caribbean origin reside outside their countries of origin.
In the case of Mexico, which is one of the most populated countries in the world with almost 125 million inhabitants, 10.5% of its population has emigrated to another country.
Migration is a constant phenomenon throughout the history of the humanity and has shaped the different societies Worldwide. It is usually a voluntary action, although many times the reasons why populations decide to move are forced by environmental, political, social and economic issues.
Types of migrations
The types of human migrations are classified into six large groups:
Migrations according to their geographical scale
- Internal. Displacement occurs within the same region, state or country. They are less controlled by the Condition because the citizens of a country have the right to decide where to reside.
- External. People move to a country other than the country of origin. They are more controlled and are governed under a double legislation, the country of origin and the country of destination.
Migrations according to origin and destination
- From rural areas to urban areas.
- Between different cities.
- From urban areas to rural areas. The latter is a recent phenomenon influenced by ecological tourism, the most sustainable and improvement in quality of life (away from noise and pollution of the big cities).
Migrations according to the degree of Liberty
- Voluntary. For free choice and the search for an improvement in the quality of life.
- Spontaneous. For a job or academic training opportunity in order to acquire a experience enriching in the professional career.
- Forced. For political, religious, war, environmental reasons, etc., that threaten the life of migrants.
Migrations by time period
- Seasonal People change their location for a certain period of time and later return to their place of origin, ranging from a season to a few years.
- Definitive. Migration is carried out indefinitely or for life.
Migrations according to age
- Adult migration. It is the most common type of migration.
- Child migration. They are the children who migrate together with their parents.
- Migration of the elderly. It represents only a minority and is usually of the obligatory type (for natural disasters, political, economic issues, etc.).
Examples of historical migrations
Some examples of migrations throughout history are:
- The migration of the WWII. Between 1939 and 1945 the Nazis displaced 12 million European Jewish communities (Poles, Russians, French, Belgians, Dutch, among others) to carry out forced labor in concentration camps in Germany and at least half of them died in those camps. . Thousands of Jews emigrated from the USSR, Poland, Germany and Austria bound for America, in an attempt to save his life. The war It ended with the fall of the Nazis and the surrender of Japan, on September 2, 1945. Records documented a total of 30 million displaced persons (a figure well above the 8 million consequent migrants of the First World War between 1914 and 1918).
- Refugees from the wars in the East. According data From UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees), half of the world's refugees (53%) come from Syria, Afghanistan and Somalia. The causes are varied, such as the civil war in Syria (since 2011), the constant instability in Afghanistan (since 1978) and the failed state of Somalia (since 1994).
- Colombian emigrants bound for Venezuela. The migratory process began in 1950 and had a very intense stage in the 1970s with the "boom" of the Petroleum and an internal war that forced millions of Colombians to emigrate from their country due to the difficult economic, social and political situation. According to the records of the time, about 5.6 million Colombian immigrants were nationalized in Venezuela.
- The caravan of the North Triangle of Central America. It is a migratory flow that began in 2018 and today has 450,000 emigrants from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador, where in recent years the Social inequality, political instability, violence and the poverty They have triggered a humanitarian crisis. The dangerous migratory crossing crosses Mexico to reach the United States. The government Mexico closed the border gate that borders Guatemala to prevent the passage of immigrants. However, the Mexican people did receive the immigrants who were stuck on the bridge over the Suchiate River, which links their country with Guatemala.
- Refugee children from the Caribbean due to the climate crisis. In 2018, 761,000 children were registered who had to leave the region due to floods and natural disasters. As reported UNICEF (United Nations Children's Funds), children and adolescents living on islands or nations prone to major storms and floods are among the most vulnerable to their lives and rights being affected. The impacts of climate change they are a reality, so governments and international communities should act immediately to mitigate these consequences.
- Venezuelan refugees awaiting asylum. The UN registered 750,000 Venezuelan refugees who since 2018 fled the violence, threats and lack of food, medicines and essential services. It is one of the largest exoduses in the recent history of the region. In 2019, Brazil granted refugee status to 20,000 Venezuelans who met the requirements of living in the country, being over 18 years old, showing an identity document, and not having a criminal record in Brazil. Meanwhile, the majority of Venezuelan immigrants are still waiting and UNHCR continues to encourage governments in the region to follow Brazil's example.
In 2018 the IOM (International Organization for Migration) published a report on global migration indicators in which it registered a total of 258 million migrants (representing 3.4% of the world population) and estimates that there are also 50 millions of illegal immigrants around the world.
The total of registered migrants is made up of:
- 150.3 million labor migrants.
- 68.5 million displaced from their country.
- 25.4 million refugees.
- 4.8 million international students.
- 5 million foreign-born people.
What conclusion of the report, IOM makes clear the urgent need to unify efforts at the global level to improve the migration process in order to make it safer and more orderly, under the support of the GCM (Global Compact for Migration), which is part of the of the objectives to be met by the Nations in the 2030 agenda.