[Nisa]

November 14, 2021 at 11:33 am

With over 50 million people displaced by conflicts and natural disasters around the world, it’s time to question the nature of travel in the twenty-first century. Pandemic Borders is a thoughtful exploration into a new era of international migration, told through a series of personal stories that touch on the inherent complexity of what defines a human being.

The world we live in is a result of international migration, and it will take time and effort to rebuild that. The current COVID-19 pandemic marks the first time in recorded history that nativist sentiment has led to such a considerable curb on migration. This trend may continue as COVID-19 continues to spread.

GCM is therefore a global and non-legally binding vision. Its purpose is to provide guidance and recommendations for action by member states, in an effort to improve the overall governance of international migration, building on countries’ best practices and lessons learned.

Once the COVID is implemented, the GCM becomes redundant – enabling other human rights to be inherent in the constitution rather than having to be subjectively interpreted by states (UNHCHR) or ICJ. The important question then becomes: what will happen to the GCM once this happens? Will it still stand? Or will it be dissolved?

All of this leads to a question: what will immigration look like after the cover id? At first glance, it seems clear that the covid will curtail illegal immigration and that good riddance to bad rubbish. But we can’t forget that there are many reasons to immigrate besides purely economic ones. These include political and religious persecution, the desire for a better educational system for one’s children, and yes, even fleeing poverty. Countries such as Canada and the U.S. were founded by immigrants escaping persecution or pure want.