Damned If We Do, Damned If We Dont

Op-Ed: Balancing Foreign Policy and Immigration By: Alexandra Colonna Thursday, October 10, 2013 Just last week we have seen evidence of another desperate immigration attempt resulting in a mass loss of life. Hundreds of disenfranchised Somalians boarded a substandard vessel on an overnight journey through the southern Mediterranean to the Italian island of Lampedusa. Rough seas and a disastrous fire outbreak however caused the boat to capsize. Over 300 individuals perished in a single incident with a rumored delayed response from the Italian coastguard. As citizens of developed countries, we cant complain about those less fortunate than us immigrating to our country for opportunities if we continue to overlook and ignore the current hostile environment in which they are subject to. The reason that such dangerous expeditions exist is a direct result of unstable environments in third world countries, which force inhabitants to migrate elsewhere and this concept of migration is in no way a new phenomenon. In my lifetime I have witnessed events like the genocide in Rwanda, the civil war in Iraq between the Sunnis and Shiites, and the acts of the Assad regime who recently employed the use of chemical weapons against its own people. Both Syria and Somalia have been ripped apart by war, while in Eritrea thousands are either imprisoned on political grounds or face conscription into the army. As of September of this year, the death toll has risen to more than 100,000 in Syria with a total of 6.2 million displaced from their homes. Not to mention the violence, kidnappings, and fragmented institutions that plague countries like

Venezuela and Libya. It is these violent and unstable economic and politically corrupt environments that force individuals to emigrate and I ask you what is the worlds response? Approximately half of American citizens would rather immigrants stay put. In fact, 41% believe immigrants are burdensome, stealing jobs, health care and housing and argue that the influx of newcomers threatens traditional American values and customs. But what exactly are the leading international powers of our society doing to resolve the root of the issues, which are ultimately responsible for immigration. The answer, tragically, is nothing. Why? Take for example the United States. Not only are we constantly criticized when our government chooses to interfere with that of another country, like in the case of Iraq, but we are also attacked for sitting on the sidelines and allowing civil wars to ensue, like in the case of the genocide that occurred in Rwanda. As a leading global power, we are looked upon to do something. Whether that something is involvement or turning a blind eye however, we are judged. We are damned if we do and damned if we dont - so what is the answer? In my opinion, we currently live in a global society where we depend on one another. Everything we do as individual nations affects others. The acts of violence that occur in Northern African, for example, affect the immigration rates of the EU, Italy in particular. So how is it that we can shrug our shoulders and say

its not our problem? According to the department of Homeland Security, approximately 1.8 million foreign national immigrate to the United States. The Council on Foreign Relations has described the Europeans struggle to accommodate rising levels of immigrants from Africa. But if the EU and the U.S. are not happy about the increased number of immigrants they need to address the root of the problem. The solution is not immigration reform but rather working to make such unstable environments safe so that those individuals do not have a reason to migrate in the first place.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR RE: The Hidden Cost of Inequality: Migrants who die on the journey from poor to rich countries Max Fisher I appreciated the Washington Posts coverage of the recent accident involving a boat traveling from the coast of North Africa to the Italian island of Lampedusa in which hundreds of hopeful immigrants perished. World Bank economist Branko Milanovics explanation of migration as a result of inequality addressed a problem that I myself have contemplated. As a rising college graduate attending university in our nations capital, I am surrounded by students from 130 countries. I have also traveled extensively throughout Europe, Australia and North America so globalization has become ever engrained in who I am and what I do. However, the effects of such expansion do not always produce positive results. In this case, over three hundred innocent individuals lost their lives fleeing religious persecution, civil war and an all-together unstable environment. Seeking asylum in countries within the European Union and United States, these individuals have no other choice but to migrate. Milanovic focuses heavily on the income gaps between countries and how they influence migration but I disagree that such economic disparity should keep international leading powers from helping those who cannot help themselves. It should not take a tragic event like the capsizing of an immigration vessel for the world to act. Even still, we have no right to complain about the growing number of immigrants entering our country if we make no effort to make their home a safer place that they dont need to leave. It is our moral obligation to exercise compassion for our struggling compatriots and work harder to ensure tyrannical governments are eliminated from those countries. This will allow societies to grow and help individuals achieve a better quality of life. - Alexandra Colonna International Travel Enthusiast American University Senior (203) 984-2815