May 20, 2015

Government officials from three Southeast Asian countries—Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand—met today in Malaysia’s capital, Kuala Lumpur, and agreed to stop turning away migrant ships from their coasts. At least 3,500 migrants from Bangladesh and Myanmar have come ashore in one of the three nations over the last few weeks, but some 7,000 more migrants are thought to be still adrift at sea. The migrants are in distress from their long journeys and many of them are dehydrated and malnourished.

Migrants wait to be rescued by fishermen off the coast of Aceh, Indonesia, May 20, 2015. Hundreds of migrants stranded at sea for months were rescued and taken to Indonesia, officials reported, the latest in a stream of Rohingya and Bangladeshi migrants to reach shore in a growing crisis confronting Southeast Asia. Credit: AP Photo

Refugees from Bangladesh are mostly economic migrants seeking jobs. The migrants from Myanmar, however, are Rohingya Muslims, a group that has long been persecuted in Myanmar. Rohingya, even those from families who have lived in Myanmar for generations, are denied citizenship in the predominantly Buddhist nation and have few rights there.

The current migrant boat crisis in Southeast Asia began a few weeks ago. Previously, migrants from Bangladesh and Myanmar had traveled by sea to Thailand and then overland. Thailand recently cracked down on this overland traffic, and now smugglers are sending migrants exclusively on sea routes. Often these human traffickers abandon the migrants if a ship founders. Navies from Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand have been turning away the boat people at their shores and have sometimes towed stricken boats to the shores of other nations.

The agreement to permit migrants to enter the host nations by sea solves a humanitarian crisis in the short run. Eventually, however, the solution lies in helping Bangladesh to become more economically sound and pressuring Myanmar to recognize and stop persecuting the Rohingya population living in its borders.

Other World Book articles:

• Immigration

• Myanmar (2014-a Back in time article)

June 28, 2013

The United States Senate yesterday passed a major overhaul of the nation’s immigration laws with broad bipartisan support. The vote was 68-to-32, with 14 Republicans joining the entire Democratic caucus voting in favor.

The legislation provides a 13-year path to citizenship for the nation’s estimated 11 million unauthorized immigrants. It also includes tough border security provisions that must be realized before the immigrants can gain legal status. These provisions require the addition of 20,000 more border agents; 700 miles (1,125 kilometers) of fence along the boundary with Mexico; and the deployment of $3.2 billion in technology upgrades along the border.

United States Border Patrol members ride all-terrain vehicles near El Paso, Texas, along the border with Mexico, looking for signs of illegal immigration and other crimes. Juarez, Mexico, rises in the background. (© Jim Young, Reuters/Landov)

Political experts suggest that the legislation will meet with major opposition in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. House Speaker John Boehner has stated that whatever immigration measure his chamber takes up would have to be supported by a majority of his Republican conference. The so-called Tea Party members of the House have voiced their opposition to any road to citizenship for unauthorized immigrants.

Additional World Book articles:

• Immigration and Customs Service, United States
• Immigration and Naturalization Service
• Immigration: The Latest Wave (a special report)
• Immigration Politics (a special report)
• Tempest in a Tea Party (a special report)