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International Migration in the Pacific Islands Region: Networks, Regionalism, and Institutions
Authors/Editors
Takehiro Kurosaki and Shinya Imaizumi
Publication date
March 2023
ISBN
978-4-258-04656-0
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About this book
About this book
In the Pacific Island region, the movements of people, companies, and international organizations in and out of the region have had a major impact not only on the island nations in the region but also on the politics, economy, and society of countries outside the region, including Australia and the United States.
This book examines how borders and immigration policies have affected the lives of people who have experienced “movement” in the Pacific Island region, and how these have been both tools and obstacles. It also explores the effects of these policies on the immigrants and the political economy of their home countries. While shedding light on the reality of immigrants facing various vulnerabilities, the book also considers immigrants as resilient beings who are striving for self-actualization while adapting their strategies in response to changes in various regulations and restrictions.
Contents
Introduction Dynamism of Migration and Institutions in the Pacific Island Region
Author：Takehiro Kurosaki and Shinya Imaizumi
Chapter 1 Political Exchange with Countries Outside the Pacific Island Region and the Transformation of Regional Integration
Author：Takehiro Kurosaki
Chapter 2 Rethinking “the Pacific” as a Region: Impact of Institution-building and Network Formation on Transnational Labour Mobility in the Region
Author：Yoko Ogashiwa
Chapter 3 Socio-economic Status of Polynesian Migrants in New South Wales: Pacific Islanders in Multicultural Australia
Author：Noriyuki Segawa
Chapter 4 Welfare Disparities and Equal Protection in Unincorporated Territories: The Case of Micronesia
Author：Shinya Imaizumi
Chapter 5 The Kingdom of Tonga as a Destination for Chinese Migrants
Author：Takuya Kitahara
Chapter 6 The Influence of U.S. Immigration Policy and Laws on Filipino Migration in Micronesia
Author：Izumi Chibana and Shinya Imaizumi
Appendix A Brief Statistical Overview of Migration in the Pacific Island Region
Author：Shinya Imaizumi
Preface
Preface
It is not surprising that countries in the Pacific Island region adopted extremely strict countermeasures against the spread of the novel coronavirus in January 2020, given that the region once experienced a drastic population decline due to the spread of infectious disease, such as the Spanish Flu around World War I. Consequently, the number of people infected in each Pacific Island nation in the first half of 2021 remained in the single digits, which stood in great contrast to the situation in the overseas territories of France and the United States. However, the spread of COVID-19 did not stop, and wave after wave of new infections continued worldwide, eventually leading to mutant strains. Ultimately, a pandemic broke out in the urban areas of Papua New Guinea, which shares a border with Indonesia, as well as Fiji, which has two-way migration with India, resulting in considerable strain on the fragile local medical system. A year later, the pandemic had taken a severe toll on the domestic economy, particularly tourism, which is the main industry of the Pacific Island region. Indeed, there were 90% fewer visitors to the region in May 2020 compared with 2019. Virgin Australia, the main airline connecting the Pacific Islands declared bankruptcy, and a large number of employees, especially those in the tourism sector, were laid off in many areas. After a long struggle with the pandemic, many Pacific Island nations implemented “Post-COVID” or “With COVID” policies. In the second half of 2021, the Cook Islands and Niue adopted a travel bubble policy to accept tourists from New Zealand, which had relatively few infections. Fiji Airways, the national carrier of Fiji, restarted flights to major international airports. At the time of this writing, the tourism situation is still very far from back to normal.
This book is the result of the research project “Migration and International Institutions in the Pacific Island Regions” (Project Leader: Takehiro Kurosaki) organized by the Institute of Developing Economies, Japan External Trade Organization during 2019–2021. The research group comprised researchers on Pacific Island nations and neighboring regions from various disciplines such as anthropology, international relations, economics, and comparative law, most of whom have extensive field research experience in the region. However, as described above, the spread of COVID-19 had become global by April 2020, and strict immigration restrictions (i.e., de facto prohibition of entry) were implemented for travelers from overseas in Pacific Island nations as well as in Japan. Naturally, it was difficult for us to conduct fieldwork and research on human migration under circumstances in which everyone’s movements were restricted. We tried to overcome this obstacle by, for example, conducting interviews and discussions online, but we eventually managed to compile and publish our research results in the form of this book. By experiencing first-hand the difficulty of trying to cross international borders, we feel that we have gained a deeper insight into the minds of migrants who have worked long and hard to overcome the various barriers to migration both to and within the Pacific Island region.
As detailed in this volume, in the Pacific Island region, the movements of people, companies, and international organizations in and out of the region have had a major impact not only on the island nations in the region but also on the politics, economy, and society of countries outside the region, including Australia and the United States. The research reported herein aimed to grasp the dynamism surrounding the movement of people in the Pacific Island region and the transformation of international cooperation and related systems. This book examines how borders and immigration policies have affected the lives of people who have experienced “movement” in the Pacific Island region, and how these have been both tools and obstacles. It also explores the effects of these policies on the immigrants and the political economy of their home countries. While shedding light on the reality of immigrants facing various vulnerabilities, the book also considers immigrants as resilient beings who are striving for self-actualization while adapting their strategies in response to changes in various regulations and restrictions. Having overcome the COVID-19 pandemic, the people of the Pacific Island region have already started to move again and begun to weave new stories. We hope that this book helps the reader to understand new developments in human migration in the Pacific Island region.
Editor