Moving within Borders

This book highlights the attention that policymakers, activists, and the public should pay to internal migration. Although prominent research has analyzed particular types of internal migration, especially urbanization and internally displaced persons (IDPs), the narrow scope of existing studies cannot capture the overlaps of motivation and circumstances that pose serious policy dilemmas. The book is distinctive in examining the full range of modes and motives of internal migration: state-sponsored or unsponsored, coerced or voluntary, land-seeking or market-seeking, urban or rural, and so on. While approaching internal migration holistically, it also emphasizes how it is distinct from international migrations, especially the central role of the state, whose internal divisions and defensive reactions to challenges often play decisive roles in governing migration. The writing style is geared towards accessibility, making it appropriate for college- and graduate-level students as well as the broader public.

Moving within Borders offers an invaluable contribution.  Even as our attention is drawn to the heart-breaking journey of migrants venturing to cross the Mediterranean Sea or the perilous hundred miles of the Darien Gap, a larger proportion of migrants consists of those who risk everything by migrating within their countries. Although some portion of this takes place peacefully, as when rural dwellers move to cities in search of economic opportunity, much does not. Yet most large-scale internal migrations result from the same set of causes as international ones, civil wars, ethnic strife, and competition for scarce economic resources. A critical difference is that internal migrations tend to lack even the minimal protections afforded by international agencies and rules, the interventions of international NGOs, and global media attention. William Ascher and Shane Barter offer us absorbing, cogent, and authoritative account of internal migrations across the world today. Theyoffer a set of riveting case studies of these migrations as well as a compelling theoretical framework for understanding them. They conclude with a set of policy remedies that can enable governments to deal with their internal migrations in ways that lessen the human costs. This book is must-reading for those interested in the plight of human beings who leave their homes in search of a better life.  

—Michael Lofchie, Professor of Political Science, UCLA.   

If you had no idea that internal migrants outnumber their international counterparts by three to one, then this book is definitely for you. Drawing on an extensive literature and case studies from across the developing world, Ascher and Barter have written the most comprehensive account on internal migration yet. Their policy recommendations that focus on the role states can play complement an unassailably balanced, nuanced analysis that will be the go-to source on the subject for years to come.

—Jamie S. Davidson, National University of Singapore

William Ascher is Donald C. McKenna Professor of Government and Economics at Claremont McKenna College. His research focuses on poverty alleviation and sustainable development in all developing areas.

 

Shane Joshua Barter is Professor of Comparative Politics at Soka University of America. His research interests focus on separatist conflicts in Southeast Asia, civilian responses to war, conflict IDPs, and territorial autonomy.