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Oficina
encargada del Informe de Desarrollo Humano
Processes of Migration in Latin America and the
Caribbean (1950-2008)1
Jorge Durand
The main characteristic
of the Latin American migration on the 20th century
was the change of flow. Until the 1950s, Latin
America received migrants from Europe and the
Middle East. As a result of economic change, political
instability, and economic crisis, Latin America
started exporting migrant workers. Now, Latin
American migrants mainly go to the U.S., and in
less extend to Europe (i.e. Spain, Italy, and
Portugal), and in some cases to Japan as it is
the case of Peru and Brazil. Several migrant patterns
follow this process, which is characteristic to
the massive emigration at the dawn of the 21st
century.
Introduction
History shows
that migration processes are reversible. Countries
receiving immigrants can turn into countries of
emigration, and countries that people were emigrating
from may become countries attracting immigrants.
This is what has happened to some countries in
Europe and the opposite is now occurring in Latin
America. In the last fifty years, the region of
Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) has stopped
being an attractive destination for immigrants
from Europe, the Far East and the Middle East,
and is now emerging on the international scene
as a source of emigration.
The process has
been slow to develop, but now involves all the
countries of the region. Although there is a general
dynamic, the behaviour of each country may be
very different. Some migration processes definitely
head towards a single direction, while others
have several possible destinations and others
again have many points of arrival. In a microcsom
as small as the Hispanic Caribbean Islands three
types of migration process to the United States
may be distinguished in terms of the migrants’
legal status: Cubans tend to emigrate as refugees,
Puerto Ricans with an American passport and Dominicans
either legally or without papers. Its hetereogeneity
is a special characteristic of Latin American
and Caribbean emigration, but it is still possible
to mark stages, define processes and study in
depth particular patterns that are common throughout
the region.
The aim of this
article is to approach the subject from a historical
and sociological perspective. The general picture
is given precedence over the specifics of each
country. Obviously, much will have to be left
out, and many particularities left to one side.
The migration adventure is a personal adventure
undertaken by people with names and surnames,
which for reasons of space and focus we have had
to ignore so as to be able to concentrate on the
most relevant processes. Processes that gain relevance
because they are important numerically. The quantitative
dimension is a basic characteristic of the phenomenon
of migration, more especially when it is realized
that migration is not only an academic subject
but also a matter of public policy.
The paper is divided
into four parts. The background section gives
an account of the initial phase, when Latin America
and the Caribbean was a land receiving migrants,
a place of immigration. The second part explains
how the processes, patterns and general tendencies
of emigration from the region have developed.
The third section addresses the impact of migration
on human development, with particular emphasis
on remittances. The fourth section develops the
subject of migration policies and the capacities
that Latin Americans have for migrating and learning
to live in different places around the world.
Finally the article concludes with a brief summing-up.
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1.- Este documento es parte de
la serie “Human Development Research Paper
Series” de la Oficina encargada del Informe
de Desarrollo Humano http://hdr.undp.org/es/centrodeprensa/anuncios/title,18536,es.html
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