8/8/2019 EAP-Plus 6

1/5

Globalization

Nowadays, human migration is happening globally on an unprecedented

scale, both legal and illegally. Some claim that this is an unavoidable outcome of the

globalization between the poor developing countries and the rich developed

countries, which its proponents believe that it will result in an equal allocation of

wealth. No matter whether it is legal or illegal, there are some facts, which can proof

that this kind of migration had shown that it gives benefits for both sending and

receiving countries. One of the major benefits for sending countries is remittances, or

the money sent back to families by whom who work outside their home country,

while one of the major benefits for receiving countries is brain gain, which means

that the workers who are employed in the receiving countries are highly skilled and

well-educated. However, the facts show that the benefits for receiving countries

outweigh the benefits for sending countries. Because, receiving countries can also

benefits from cheap labor.

Since the end of WWII, the number of increase in legal migration has not

been as significant as illegal migration. The number of world migration soared.However, the quality of the labor declined. The decline in immigrants quality were

caused by the changes in the substances of the source country and it showed four

big movements in world migration forms over the last five hundred years after World

War II (Williamson, 2006: 10). Millions of people migrate to more prosperous

countries legal and illegally (Perry, 2008: 81). In China, numbers of people started

saving again so they can migrate abroad in order to search for opportunities to

improve their lives elsewhere in the world, out from their home country (Kwong,

2007: 27). On the other hand, while governments around the world tried hard to

press the number of illegal migrations, it still keeps exceeding. Although many illegal

immigrants encounter some problems on their way to reach the destination, such as

refusal and the risk of death before they reached their destination. For example, a

report in April 2008 showed that there are 54 Burmese found death in a freight

container en route to Phuket after being crammed in with the other 77 immigrants

(Wehrfritz, Kinetz & Kent, 2008: 63). The arrival of people in China with a large scale

8/8/2019 EAP-Plus 6

2/5

has never happened before. As a result, the citizens who are afraid to lose their jobs

refuse to accept these mass migrants (Kwong, 2007: 28).

Furthermore, the number of migrants from South to North keeps increasing

each year due to the motivation to improve their lives, their economies and the

inability of their government to provide enough jobs for them. The recent trend of

immigrants who tried to migrate illegally to Europe proofs that poverty and lack of

education was their most important push factor. Sub-Saharan Africa represented

10% of the worlds population, however, there are about 320 million people living on

US$1 or less, according to the International Labor Organization. Still, a large number

of unskilled and uneducated young people who have limited prospect to get better

jobs in the future will increase if the educations in Sub-Saharan Africa do not get anyimprovement (Dibba, 2008: 57-58). The replacement of the characteristic of illegal

immigrants can also differ from millions of people during and after WWII (Lintner,

2003: 16). Workers shortages caused by 2 millions Romanians immigrated to Spain

and Italy after communism fell, could be covered by Chinese immigrants despite the

low wages earned (Kwong, 2007: 28). In contrast, the pull factor from the destination

countries are the higher payment and also more job opportunities provided by the

government (UNCTD, 2007: 72).

One of the reasons for someone who wants to work outside their country is

remittances. Remittances (money sent back home by someone who works outside

their country) have a huge importance to people who received them (their families); it

can help them to afford their daily needs and increase their welfare. Remittances can

also help the poor escape from poverty. More than half of the global remittances go

to developing countries and the amount has exceeded the amount of official aid and

has 90% equivalency to FDI received. Furthermore, the fact also shows that

worldwide remittances widened the gap between the poor and the rich, according to

one study in 2005. Remittances are also non-mutual financial flows, which sent

directly to someone who has full control to use it without the chances for the sender

to recover the funds. However, the risk for receiving countries to become a

remittances depending community increases as the immigrants constantly send

money back to their families (Biller, 2007: 44-47). For instance, in 2004, about 67%

of Somalias Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was from remittances, which were more

8/8/2019 EAP-Plus 6

3/5

than ten times the value of exports. As a result, the countrys dependency on

remittances is much higher than any other countries in the world. However, it is also

important to understand the possibility of negative effects caused by the difficult

regulations in remittances, which can help poor families (Ahmed, 2006: 49-50).

On the other hand, this mass migration has caused some condition to either

their home country or their destination country. Brain drain is a condition when the

educated and skilled people go to developed countries to get better jobs and

improve their lives, while brain gain is the condition of the receiving countries. Many

highly educated people are attracted to migrate to developed countries because they

believe they can get better jobs with better payments than their own country could

give them. Whereas, industrialized countries continuously recruit skilled workersfrom developing countries in the same time, in order to fill the spaces in their labor

market (UNCTD, 2007: 73). After the migrants make some money, they send it to

their families. However, the remitters did not realize that with remittances, they had

also caused their country to be in state where they lack of people who can help them

make businesses more productive and valuable because people who received

remittances believe they can make more money if they go to other more prosperous

countries (Sanders, 2007: 76). For example, there are facts that show some doctorsand lawyers from Central America found working as waiters and car washer in

Miami. Moreover, as there are only a few American professionals who move out to

settle at other places in other countries, the gap between the haves and the have not

continues to widen (Iyer, 2005: 69).

Globalization is also one of the factors that caused mass migration. It was

believed to inevitably cause people to migrate either legal or illegally. Globalization

supposed to benefit all people. However, it has been accompanied by an increase in

xenophobia and millions of people in South Africa are not benefited (Perry, 2008:

83). It has also removed national borders between the countries but not the people

(Kwong, 2007: 28). While free trade and free markets have made the global

averages incomes increased, which resulted in the decrease of the percentages

people living on less than $2 a day, World Commission on the Social Dimension

found that there are only 5% of countries, which their disparity is declining. In

8/8/2019 EAP-Plus 6

4/5

addition, economist Joseph Stiglitz claimed that Globalization might be creating rich

country with poor people (Perry, 2008: 82).

In brief, receiving countries benefit more than sending countries. Receiving

countries benefits from some aspects, such as cheap labor (exploitation on unskilled

and uneducated workers), brain gain (the coming of highly skilled workers and the

professionals to the receiving countries) and their ability to fill the spaces in their

labor market.

8/8/2019 EAP-Plus 6

5/5