What are human rights in the context of human migration?

International migration – the movement of persons across international borders – is an increasing global phenomenon. In many cases, migration is forced as a result of civil unrest and war, but in other cases, it is voluntary as millions of people cross borders to seek work, education and other opportunities. The rights of migrants, and particularly undocumented migrants are often undefined in the national context in which they find themselves or, if defined, are often not known. In South Africa, the constitution guarantees all fundamental human rights to all persons equally, irrespective of their migration status. However, the rights of migrants are continually violated or ignored by officialdom and citizens alike, often referred to as xenophobia.

Xenophobia is defined as a deep fear and dislike of the unknown. In the South African context it refers primarily to the negative attitudes and hostile treatment that particularly black foreigners often encounter. The causes of xenophobia are varied and complex but fundamentally, to overcome xenophobia there is a need to change attitudes and to work towards the creation of an environment in which xenophobic attitudes are not acceptable.

As the SADC region is moving closer towards free trade — the free movement of capital and goods — and ultimately economic integration, the issue of migration becomes more prominent, but continues to be balanced against the political and economic interests of individual member states. The movement of persons across borders is a reality that will continue and cannot be wished away. No matter how much time, effort and resources governments put into stopping or drastically controlling such movements, it is unlikely that any government will succeed in stopping the movement of persons, thought they might create the illusion of doing so. By far, the best governments can hope to do, is to engage in collaborative and complementary efforts to manage and regulate the movement of persons.

Migrants can no longer be regarded as mere recipients or objects of government policies and programmes. Increasingly migrants themselves are becoming social actors with a significant impact on the social, economic and cultural systems on countries, individually and collectively. If we are to develop migration policies and management systems that are effective, such policies and programmes must be based on a better understanding of migration dynamics and must take into account the role of migrants themselves.