GLOBAL IMMIGRATION AND RELIGIOUS EXTREMISM

There are more people moving around today and in a greater variety of ways than ever before. However, there are more people alive today than ever before and it is the greater variety of ways that seems important – essentially there are more temporary types of movers than ever before. New destinations and new origins of migration have emerged and are emerging – predicated essentially on our changing

demography and changing patterns of global development. Migration is a complex process that involves significant return, onward, repeat and circular movements. While we have “permanent” and “non-permanent” channels of entry, the real differences in terms of migrant behavior between these categories are blurring as temporary movements become more important. Significant shifts in the origins and destinations of migration have occurred in the past. Europe was once a major origin of migration but is now a major destination, and we can expect similar significant shifts in the future.  Migration essentially responds to economic and political development: it can and does reinforce change, but it rarely causes it.

This work sees global Migration as “a process of moving, either across an interna­tional border, or within a State. Encompassing any kind of movement of people, whatever its length, composition and causes; it includes refugees, displaced persons, uprooted people, and economic migrants.” Migration is certainly not a recent phenomenon; on the contrary, it has been part of the human history since its very beginning. People have migrated from one continent to the other from country to country or internally, inside the same country.

It is evident that migration has played a pivotal role throughout the years in shaping the world as we know it today. The phenomenon of migration has been indispensable to human histories, cultures, and civilizations. For example, the connection between religion and migration is a cross-cutting issue throughout the history of major religions such as Christianity (e.g. the spread of Catholicism by Portuguese and Spanish during the 11th and 12th centuries), Islam (e.g. the first and second migration during Prophet Mohamed’s time), and Judaism (e.g. the migration of Jewish from Eastern to Western Europe and overseas, and to the United States of America during the 19th). Religion has been playing a fundamental role in both triggering massive population movements but also in influencing the lives and conditions of migrants in their displacement. Today, the intersection between religion and migration or what is called ‘transnational religion’ is at the heart of contemporary migration debates.

Migration Periods

During the age of discovery (15th- 17th century) many Europeans, with the Portuguese and Spanish leading the way, undertook maritime travels and explored the Americas, Africa, Asia and Oceania. This transoceanic migration led to their discovery of new lands, the expansion of trade relations and the development of the economies of both the countries of origin and destina­tion. Commercial and strategic factors influenced migration in that period as many European countries were competing to colonize strategic regions and territories. At the same time, in order to tackle labor shortages, the slave trade was introduced at various times throughout history, and subsequently abolished in the mid 19th century. A second wave of labor came from Europe, especially England, Spain and Portugal, to what was then called “the new world” (i.e. USA, Canada, Australia, and southern Africa). A great wave of migration subsequently took place in central Europe after World War I when populations resettled after the creation of many new states, especially following the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Another migration period of note was from about 1935 until after World War II when population movements occurred inside Europe. Migration at that time began with the expansion of Hitler’s Germany and later through forced or inevitable evacuations with people attempting to escape from the war and the relocations which followed in its wake. Space does not allow for a full history of migration on our planet, but it is impor­tant to recognize that the phenomenon has been observed everywhere in the world, throughout time. Often for the same reasons as those mentioned.

The linkages between migration and development are now recognized as being strong and diverse. However, there is an inherent vulnerability in being a migrant, which can be more problematic in some situations than others. Migrants, by definition, are outside their places of habitual residence and often countries of origin (many times also away from their families), in a place where they might not understand the language and/or culture. They usually lack their familiar or community support mechanisms and can be exposed to racism, xenophobia and discrimination (IOM, Glossary on Migration, 2004).

Religion

Religion is a human activity that can be easily accepted only within the framework of reality that it creates for itself. If one accepts the existence of whatever myth, god, spirit, or supernatural force that a religion proposes, then one can see the logic of all that follows. However, most of the entities, gods or whatever, that are the basis of religious thought and action cannot have their existence validated by direct observation. How do non-believers understand religion? Simply saying that the believers are crazy or living in a different world will not suffice. The believers are also normal human beings. They are no crazier than anyone else.

There is another way to look at religion, through science. Science has provided human culture with an excellent understanding of the natural world and human behavior. However, for the scientist, the logic of religious behavior is not simple. The scientist must understand religion as the complex workings of a human brain that is not responding directly to observable reality. The cause of religious behavior for the scientist does not lie in myth but in an understanding of why human beings do and think what they do. Among other explanations, science has found that they do what they do because they have been made that way by evolution. Evolution is one key to understanding of religion from a scientific point of view.

The sociologists Stark and Fink (2000) argue that religious behavior is actually rational in an economic sense in spite of the fact that the believers work with unobservable actors and magical processes. The rationality is economic and can be seen in the social and material rewards that flow from participation in religious groups. When there is a market place for different faiths, individuals usually choose, consciously or unconsciously, the faith that brings them the most rewards. The rationality in this case is apparent when one measures the rewards that flow from different religious activities. So, despite its apparent irrationally, religious activity can have a latent economic rationality.

Religion has some particularly human characteristics and some pre-human ones as well. It depends on the unique human ability to communicate with language. Religion, as we know it, needs language, but that does not mean that it has freed itself from pre-human behavior found among primates, mammals, and even reptiles. Religion has rituals and non-human animals have rituals. Birds have rituals, reptiles have rituals, and they communicate symbolically with other members of their species. They just do not use the same linguistic structures that humans use.

Religion has obvious psychological functions. It takes care of: the need for a comforting parent figure, the need to explain difficult things, the need to fight depression, the need to deny mortality, etc. However, psychology does not explain how humans got to be religious. Although psychological explanations tell us why people do religious things, they do not tell us how religion got started and why it continues. They do not tell us about religion's evolutionary past or future. They tell us how religion works in the mind, but they do not tell us how the mind got that way. The mind is a product of evolution, not its cause.

Nineteenth century ideas about the origins of religion left biology behind and began to speculate about the socio-cultural evolution of religion, a process that, at that time, was clearly connected to concepts of social “progress.” One of the first definitions of religion within this school of thought was proposed by Durkheim (1963). He defined religion as a collective representation that made things sacred. Religion was a world view that created the sacred. The power to do this resided in the collective itself, society. So society had to create religion. Durkheim felt that religion was the foundation of society. Religion is a collection of behavior that is only unified in our Western conception of it. There is no reason to assume, and good reason not to assume, that this behavior evolved together at the same time in response to a single shift in the environment. For example, Atran (2002) and Boyer (2001) see religion as a great potpourri of ideas and behavior with many independent evolutionary origins outside of religion itself.

Religious extremism can be seen as rigid interpretations of religion that are forced upon others using social or economic coercion, laws, intolerance, or violence. It is accompanied by non-fluid definitions of culture, religion, nationalism, ethnicity or sect which move citizens into exclusionary, patriarchal and intolerant communities. Terrorism is characterized by the desire to attain its goals by frightening those it believe stands on its way. However, there are little consensus as to the root causes of terrorism, whether they bear political, economic or social. Young and Dobbs (2001) emphasized that the threats of terrorist attacks are not necessarily from indigenous extreme-left movements but from self determination struggles and struggles against injustices which sometimes coincides with or are given moral justification through the use of religion.

Terrorism

The act of terrorism transcend national boundaries in terms of the means of which they are accomplished, the persons they appear intended to coerce or intimidate, or the locale in which the perpetuation operate or seek asylum. Terrorism is threatening the viability of a nation-state, bringing about economic crisis, instability, a threat to tourism, energy-sector, civil-aviation, maritime, transportation and civil transportation. The problem of terrorism has refused to go away instead; it has kept people in perpetual fear, robbing people of freedom and security. Thus the world as a whole is voicing concerns over the menace of terrorism, extremism and radicalism. No country goes unaffected by international terrorism, for these reasons the global community can no longer turn a blind eye on terrorism (Nimma, 2007).

The world now lives in fear. We are afraid of everything. We are afraid of flying, afraid of certain countries, afraid of bearded Asian men, afraid of shoes airline passengers wear; of letter and parcels, of white powder. The countries allegedly harboring terrorists, their people, innocent or otherwise, are afraid too. They are afraid of war, of being killed and maimed by bombs being dropped on them, by missiles from hundreds of miles away by unseen forces. They are afraid because they have become collaterals to be killed because they get in the way of the destruction of their countries (Mohammad, 2003).

CONCEPT OF EXTREMISM

It is easier to explain the words terrorism, imperialism, racism, anti-semitism, fascism, communism, and more because they have a semantic core which at least in part explains the use of a concept, extremism has no such clear explanation which could offer guidance as to its meaning. Coleman and Bartoli (2014) describe extremism as activities (beliefs, attitudes, feelings, actions, strategies) of a character far removed from the ordinary. Extremism is a relational concept (Vermeulen and Bovenkert, 2012) and can be applied differently depending on the context and situation of its occurrence. Religious extremism is defined as rigid interpretations of religion that are forced upon others using social or economic coercion, laws, intolerance, or violence. It is accompanied by non-fluid definitions of culture, religion, nationalism, ethnicity or sect which move citizens into exclusionary, patriarchal and intolerant communities (International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN), 2014).

THE CONCEPT OF RELIGION

Definitions of religion and spirituality are porous, historically variable, marked by varieties of evident and implicit theological understandings, and always remain open to the charge that they are either too general or too specific. Religion is the set of beliefs, feelings, dogmas and practices that define the relations between human being and sacred or divinity. A given religion is defined by specific elements of a community of believers: dogmas, sacred books, rites, worship, sacrament, moral prescription, interdicts, and organization. According to Lateju et al (2012), religion is the belief in God, the belief in spiritual being, the life of God in the soul of man as well as a mystery, at once awesome and attractive. Ross (1901) saw religion as something that would exert a certain social control, but he defined it as belief about the Unseen, with such attendant feelings as fear, wonder, reverence, gratitude, and love, and such institutions as prayer, worship, and sacrifice. For Luckmann (1967), religion would be the transcending of human biological nature and the formation of a self—an inevitable occurrence that all societies effect in individuals. For Yinger (1970), religion is social but relativizes evils and desires for individuals; he defines religion as a system of beliefs and practices with which a group struggles with ultimate problems of human life. For Geertz (1966), religion is a system of symbols that establishes powerful, pervasive, and long-lasting moods and motivations by formulating conceptions of a general order of existence and by clothing those conceptions with an aura of factuality.

THE CONCEPT OF GLOBALIZATION                 

Globalization has been defined by numerous scholars, but they look from different contexts. For economists, globalization is an advanced step towards a fully integrated world market. Political scientists consider globalization as a new world order with supranational and global governing bodies (Falk, 1997). According to Jun and Wright (1996), globalization is a process and a means to achieve the goals of globalism which stands for a constellation of international and trans-governmental forces that have altered the cultural, demographic, economic, social and political character of countries and communities.

TO WHAT EXTENT DOES GLOBAL MIGRATION PROMOTE RELIGIOUS EXTREMISM?

The perpetrators of violent religious extremism are Islamic radicals in Western Europe who fall roughly into three categories: foreign residents, second-generation immigrants (most often native-born), and converts. The first category is that of young Middle Easterners who come to Europe as students, mostly in modern disciplines, who speak Arabic, and who are from middle-class backgrounds. The second category is made up of second-generation European Muslims, some educated but many more school dropouts, who usually come from rather destitute neighborhoods. They speak European languages as their first language and often are European citizens. The third category, the smallest in number but not necessarily in significance, is made up of converts, many of whom became Muslim while spending time in jail. Members of all three categories follow the same general trajectory of radicalization, the key to which is that they break ties with their milieu of origin. They almost invariably become born-again Muslims (or converts) by joining a mosque known to host radical imams, and soon after that (in the span of less than a year), they turn politically radical and go (or try to go) to fight a jihad abroad.

Pluralism and globalization has been major causes of migration across the globe. Migration has existed in all times, though it has increased recent years, broadly in the context of exchange of ideas and goods, of good transportation possibilities, of rapid information dissemination etc. Globally, the problems that affect people have taken several dimensions and thus widened. Hence, they include conflicts such as religious extremism, difficult economic situations in many parts of the globe, causing financial crisis in which the majority populations in different part of the world. However, most people live with minority groups of which most often, they are not aware and do not accept them. World demographics have changed radically, therefore influencing people’s perception about religions, cultures and ethnicities with which interact repeatedly. Thus, the phrase “the clash of civilizations” captures that which has become reality of the present day.

Immigrants living with them differ not only in the language and the wish for a better life, but also their cultures, beliefs, which are different from the beliefs of the host population. Under these conditions, only listening to the neighbour and the dialogue with him can testify the true faith of people in a pluralistic world. “Whether we like it or not, foreigners constitute a mirror in which societies and churches can see their own reflections. Our behaviour towards them, individually and collectively, shows clearly how we measure up to principles of equality, justice and respect for the human person in practice and not simply in theory. Their presence constitutes a call to solidarity, justice and respect for human rights within a profoundly unjust world. They are the challenges to both civilization and culture (Jacques, Farris, 2002: 769).

HOW CAN RELIGIOUS EXTREMISM BE CURBED THROUGH IMMIGRATION REGULATIONS?

Total ban on Muslim Migration especially for those with proven track record(s) of Violence or Extremism

The Republican presidential aspirant for the upcoming United States presidential election has called for a total ban and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until the country is able to figure out what is going on. He cited this based on a six months- old survey from the right wing Centre for Security Policy finding that one quarter of U.S Muslim respondents believed that violence against Americans was justified as part of global Jihad and that a slim majority agreed that Muslims in America should have the of being governed according to sharia. Trump has built his campaign judgment on the premise that he is willing to flout all standards of political correctness, drawing the support of Americans fearful of immigrants and favoring a muscular response to Islamic terrorism. In the aftermath of the Islamic  State attack that killed 130 people in Paris, he’s claimed without evidence of truth- that thousands of Muslims were cheering the 9/11 attacks on rooftops in New Jersey, and he’s seemed to suggest that he would a registry of all Muslims in the U.S

Border control and security

Enhancing border control through physical protection and surveillance means are also increasingly becoming significant measures. The classical method of guarding the national territory is coming back to the fore once more as an aid to prevention of terrorism. The application of common visa and integration of migration and asylum policies will support the control of external borders and thus terrorist threats will be reduced. The EU has also been insisting on the candidate countries of especially Central and Eastern Europe to develop “integrated border management systems”.

It is a known fact that terrorism is increasingly becoming more trans-national due its causes, sources, operations and targets and so on and not only limited to a single territory or jurisdiction. It has clearly more trans-national dynamics. In fact, this is the precise reason why migration control instruments are seen as appropriate tools to fight against international terrorism.  Although it is not possible to confirm a natural link between terrorism and international migration, it is nevertheless true to say that checks and controls exercised at the border or prior controls of movement of people across the borders may help to monitor and prevent possible terrorist activities. Following September 11, a number of migration control policies and instruments have been increasingly developed and deployed as part of a strategy to combat terrorism, especially in the West, namely in the USA and the EU countries. Identity Check is very important because when it is combined with data exchange and international cooperation with a view to strengthen migration control systems, the influx of extremists especially with past records of extremist activities will be detected. Many states relying on tourism, foreign investment and trade have to strike a right balance between the flow of persons through the borders and taking into consideration the security needs. This is also an area of activity which might violate individual privacy, as it may have some consequences through storage and exchange of data between the institutions.

The Use of Technology

These measures and techniques may require high or simple technologies depending on the specific proposal. Many countries have plans to use and/or require passports and other identity cards which include electronically readable bar codes. For instance, the USA has required from all non-visa countries to use machine readable passports as of 1 October 2007 (IOM , 2014). Biometric or fingerprint identity checks are among the main systems requiring some kinds of advanced technology.  Biometric identity checks are being used in common areas of migration and security for such purposes as identity determination, pursuit and data comparison. The countries such as the USA, United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Canada are carrying out experimental checks on such methods as iris inspection, face and hand geometry and finger print checks (IOM, 2002).

Sanctions Imposed on Carrier Companies

Through legal regulations imposing liability on passenger companies, it is aimed that the international, air, sea and railway transport companies be held responsible for accepting and carrying as passengers of those immigrants having forged document or no document at all. Carrier companies are being subject to fines for the passengers they carry as undocumented or without document and also under the responsibility to return the passenger so carried to the source country (Cruz, 1995).

Enforcement of laws and policies on immigration through Community Policing

 Community policing have been adopted and used in Western countries to address a broad range of concerns, such as violent extremism. Aside traditional crime issues, community policing has been used to address diverse issues such gang violence, civic engagement etc. “Countering radicalization to violence is frequently best achieved by engaging and empowering individuals and groups at the local level to build resilience against violent extremism (International Association of Chiefs of Police, 2014).” Community policing approaches are that encompasses greater emphasis on proactive and preventive policing. Thus, it helps to build bridges with immigrant communities that maybe wary of law enforcement.

However, the approaches could demonstrate the commitment of the law enforcement agencies to balance the needs of protecting their communities as they also protect individuals from hate crimes, and civil rights and liberties violations. For instance, regarding 9/11 attack, groups that share, or have been perceived to share, the national background or religions of the perpetrators may still be hesitant to share tips and may be cautious about partnering with law enforcement.

Hence, to overcome this hesitation it become necessary to build trusting relationships, being transparent, communicating with community members, regardless of their immigration status. Community policing also extend beyond the residents of a specific community and encompass working in partnership with other government agencies, public and private stakeholders, as well as with community based organizations. This will enhance information exchange between local, state, national and international law enforcement to improve. These are achievable by; (i) fostering and enhancing trust partnership with the community, (ii) engaging all residents to address public safety matters, (iii) leverage public and private stakeholders, (iv) utilization of partnerships to counter religious extremism and (v) training of members of the policing department. The above therefore are the five principles on which community policing can thrive in curbing religious extremism.

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