4th International E-Conference titled “Migration, Governance, and COVID-19: Perspectives, Policies, Opportunities, and Challenges” was jointly organised by Centre for Research on North America(CISAN), Migrant Forum in Asia(MFA) and Global Research Forum on Diaspora and Transnationalism(GRFDT) from 3-4 November 2022.
The opening session of this conference was moderated by Ms. Paddy Siyanga Knudsen, Vice President, GRFDT, on November 3, 2022. Ms. Paddy opened the conference by welcoming everyone. She mentioned how we are living in an unpredictable time, dealing with the aftereffects of the COVID-19 pandemic, a phenomenon which has shaped many aspects of our daily living, including migration.
Prof. Binod Khadria, President, GRFDT, delivered the Welcome Address. He signified the importance of this international conference, highlighting how the diversity of the age profile of those present also made it an intergenerational one, which made this a great step toward bridging the generation gap, an objective all conferences should have. On behalf of all three organisers- CISAN, MFA and GRFDT, he welcomed everyone, including listeners, paper-presenters, chairpersons, rapporteurs, and migrants who are sharing their lived experiences, thereby covering all spaces.
Prof. Khadria stated that migration has been one of the serious casualties due to the pandemic, and hence he raised significant questions worth pondering, like: can we really label this phase as PostCOVID-19? What kind of governance changes have to take place? What kind of opportunities and challenges do we need to understand? Will online communication supersede in-person communication? He believes that the outcome of these questions will result in understanding evolving dimensions of mobility or immobility.
Prof. Khadria outlined the uniqueness of this conference, which includes 70 presentations, ranging from academic exercises, conceptual aspects and theoretical models to applied experience and lived reality, all of which are complementary to each other. He recommended the presenters to exchange their ideas and learn from each other. Prof. Khadria encouraged everyone to interact, hoping that the dialectics of debate would assist in creating wisdom and wished everyone an enjoyable and fruitful interaction.
Mr. William Gois, Regional Coordinator, MFA, gave reflections on the previous 3rd International Conference organised in 2020. He mentioned that it is upon all of us to realise the significance of what was achieved in 2020, when a conference was organised during the pandemic which required a massive effort. In the migration world, when everything basically came to a standstill, organisers decided to rise above the situation to find ways to renew our mission and continue to bring innovation and change. In 2020, more than 600 scholars submitted their abstracts showing a thirst for knowledge around migration. However, it was narrowed down to 300 for the conference. Mr. Gois paid tribute to the late Mr. William Lacy Swing for his undying spirit for the welfare of migrants. For him, no idea was too small, no initiative was too small, and no individual research work was too significant. For him, anything worth experimenting with or beneficial for migrants was important. Therefore, the conference was dedicated to Mr. William L. Swing for his motivational legacy.
Mr. Gois apprised that 70 paper presentations have been finalised for this conference. He mentioned that it would be interesting to analyse how research on migration has grown quantifiably and qualitatively. It has been observed that the amount of research work on migration has led to the point where, as Mr. Gois puts it “Maybe we are on the cusp of a new way of understanding human community and human mobility”. He informed the paper presenters that their research work could help in shaping the world and thanked them for being part of the transformational journey.
We should just not merely focus on the generation of knowledge but also need to leverage knowledge so that a paradigm shift can be seen where knowledge becomes wisdom and wisdom becomes practice: Mr. William Gois
Mr Gois argued that it is a contradiction that we are at a time where so much knowledge is being generated and yet so little political will is accompanying that. He has observed that mainstream media is delivering little in terms of political thinking, political innovation and political commitment toward migration and understanding the emerging world. Therefore, he emphasised the crucial role of researchers in filling this vacuum. He asked researchers to explore the spaces for migration discourses like Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM), and Global Forum on Migration and Development (GFMD), among others.
Prof. Camelia Tigau, CISAN, UNAM, welcomed all the presenters of the conference. She conveyed that the theme for the conference is timely and highly significant as it covers crucial dimensions of migration. She reported the success of the previous conference and announced the coming publication of a book based on the selected quality research papers submitted then. On similar lines, she encouraged the presenters of the present conference to submit their papers timely after receiving comments from the respective chairs of their sessions. She informed presenters that submitted papers will go through double-blind peer review process for publication in the GRFDT Research Monograph series or Migration and Diasporas: An Interdisciplinary Journal.
Ms. Mona Hossaini identified herself as the representative of the new diaspora generation in Sweden, hailing from Afghanistan. She told her story about how Taliban take-over of Afghanistan in 2021 compelled her to migrate to Sweden. She accepted that her journey was comparatively easy from others in terms of refugee status as she was working as a research and policy expert on the area of migration and decision-making in close collaboration with the Sweden government. She conveyed that she is entitled under the refugee policy under the special category but other refugees had to apply through a strict asylum process.
She expressed that because of the civil war during her childhood days, she had to leave Afghanistan to reach Iran. She has been working on knowing how families are making decisions for migration and what dimensions are forcing the families to take decisions relating to migration. However, it was shocking to witness the same in one’s own life when she had to face the forced migration from Afghanistan.
Ms. Hossaini described that after the takeover by the Taliban, there was massive uncertainty in the life of local people, especially women activists, leading to forced migration and brain drain from Afghanistan. According to her, she has adjusted herself in Sweden because of the experience she already had. She described the difference between the old and new diaspora. Her observations show that the new diaspora is showing resistance to integration in society. As an example, she mentioned her own case that she wants to be integrated in Swedish society, but in her mindset, it is difficult for her to integrate fully. Her prior learnings and formal education, along with other experiences, restrict her in many ways to completely integrate with society.
She observed that for the old diaspora, everything is an excitement as they never had that opportunity to be in the host society. Now, they are getting education, and women are getting freedom and enjoying some opportunities in the host society. For them, it’s kind of exciting. She argues that it is the same for other diaspora from different countries.
Researchers need to focus on policy perspectives to understand how refugees see themselves in the host country and how they perceive themselves as valuable in the host country: Ms. Mona Hossaini
She described that those people who are in asylum have a high level of uncertainty in their lives as sometimes their sense of belonging in host states is questionable due to the different culture, language and new lifestyles. It is a matter of challenge for all refugees and asylum seekers to integrate themselves into the host society.
There was not so much focus on forced migration earlier and hence she suggested the researchers that new research should focus on aspects relating to forced migration, specifically not only for Afghans but for others also who have been forced to migrate. She recommended focusing on policy perspectives to understand how refugees see themselves in the host country and how they perceive themselves as valuable in the host country. She sees the emerging hope as now people have the opportunity to do research and evolve some policy based on the new diaspora.
Ms. Paddy Siyanga Knudsen thanked all speakers, paper presenters, chairpersons, rapporteurs and participants for joining the conference. She mentioned that the journey of migrants and refugees is never static and is often posed with new adventures and often comes with new challenges. She recommends the researchers to do actionable research and provide leverage and space to civil society. Ms. Paddy argued that deeper discussions should cover dimensions relating to uncertainty, coping mechanisms, vulnerability, new environment, and what role diaspora can play in navigating certain spaces. She hoped that this conference may offer various opportunities to contribute to policy and advocacy space.
Abhishek Yadav is a PhD Candidate at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.
Rodrigo Said Bahena Bernal studies translation at the National Autonomous University of Mexico.