Malta – Migration policy from the
perspectives of different actors
04.07.2014
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
Table of contents
1. Introduction
2. Research Question
3. State of the art
4. Data
5. Research Results
6. Conclusion
7. References
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
Basic information




Population: 421.364
Area: 316 km²
Unemployment rate: 6,7%
2013: 2200 applications
4,5 per 1000 inhabitants

Countries of origin: Somalia,
Eritrea, Syria, Libya, Nigeria

Government (MLP)
President: Marie Louise Coleiro
Preca, since 2014
Prime minister: Joseph Muscat,
since 2013
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
Basic information

Centralized asylum procedure:
Detention Centers, Open Centers

Protection: Refugee status,
Subsidiary protection, Temporary
Humanitarian Protection
( THP new)

History:
 Independence in 1964
 Geneva Convention in 1971
 Refugee Act in 2000,
 Office of the Refugee
Commissioner opened in 2001
 Malta joined EU in 2004
 Part of Schengen Area
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
Research question
In how far does the way Maltese local actors
deal with the problem of refugees confirm
the validity of the multilevel institutionalist
collective actors approach?
•
Multilevel institutionalist collective actors approach:
Different collective actors’ aims and strategies at European, national
and local level; many different “talks and actions”, in many fields and at
all levels tensions between “talk and action”, but in the long run
decoupling of “talk” and “action” impossible
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
State of the art
• Debono, Daniela, 2013. ‘Less than human’: the detention of
irregular immigrants in Malta.
• Bernadie-Tahir, Nathalie / Schmoll, Camille, 2014. Opening
up the island: a 'counter-islandness' approach to migration
in Malta.
• We did not find literature/ studies which answer our
research question
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
Data analysis
Characte
ristics
Actor
types
Organization
Norms/values
(religious, political, human
rights etc.)
Dominant issue (only
on A&R or multiple)
Field of
legitimation
(regional, local,
national, EU,
global)
Officialexecutiv
e actors
-Former Refugee
Commissioner
-Refugee Commissioner
-Assistant Refugee
Commissioner
-Primary Health Care
Protection of the Maltese
state
A&R
national
national
national
national
A&R
A&R
multiple
(EU)
A&Rrelated
NGOs
Researc
her
-Aditus
-Jesuit Refugee Service
-People for Change
-KOPIN
-Emigrant’s Commission
University of Malta (Derek
Lutterbeck)
Human rights
Religious, Human Rights
Human Rights
Human rights
Religious
All political
Scientific
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
A&R
A&R
A&R
A&R
(Multiple)
A&R
national
national
national
national
national
(EU)
National, EU,
global
Research Results
• How do different collective actors see themselves
and other relevant actors?
• How do these different actors describe the current
migration policy of Malta and where do they see its
basic problems?
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
• Different actors  different actions
• Different emphasis on interests and actions
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
Role of researchers
• Only talked to one researcher (is not currently
researching in the area)
• Interested in doing research
• Delivering important results for NGO‘s and
governmental organizations
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
Governmental actors
about the basic problem
• “Maltese people were worried. Malta was not prepared for such a
phenomenon in such a short time.“
• “The main problem is: You’ll never know how many are going to
come.”
• “There are 300 people arriving. 299 of them are really good people,
but there is one criminal among them. You don‘t know.“
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
NGOs on Their Role & The Basic
Problem
• “trying to be the bridge between them [the refugees] and
the state agencies“
• “NGOs try to help and bridge the gap to official
insitutions.”
• “We are working in a system we are against. […] We are
constantly fighting the system.“
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
NGO‘s and Governmental institutions on
Malta‘s migration policy
A migration policy based on crisis management?
• Governmental organization:
“We are always in a crisis management situation.“
• NGO:
“They treating them as if they were gone by tomorrow.
We need strong, sustainable long term structures.”
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
NGO‘s criticism
• “Every year, summer comes, it‘s a crisis, lots of people,
we don‘t know what to do. Then winter comes, things
get a bit quiet and then we start all over again. We have
yearly amnesia.“
• “Out of sight, out of mind attitude“
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
Governments justification &
NGO‘s reaction
Malta‘s size as a justification?
•
Governmental organization:
“ When you think of the size of Malta, it is the smallest state in the
EU. It is the first stop, it is the place where the needs are highest.”
•
NGO:
“The Maltese government keeps asking for more support from the
other EU countries. We don’t agree with the Maltese government in
the way of presenting the situation. They choose not to handle the
situation in a good way.”
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
Demand of NGO‘s:
“Stop crying, start acting.“
• “We have a big plot to play. The Maltese government
has to get attached together and stop crying, and act.
[…] Before we expect other people to do anything, we
have to do our part as well.“
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
Is there a political will?
• Former Refugee Commissioner:
“I think there is a will. But there are not always
the resources. You have to build these resources up.“
• NGO:
“I don‘t think there is the political will. Migrants don‘t have
a vote, Maltese people do. So we please the Maltese people
who want to see the migrants locked up in detention.“
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
Conclusion
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
Conclusion
•
Since 2002: many immigrant boat arrivals, Malta not being prepared for this
phenomenon
•
Different local actors:
Researcher are important concerning delivering important information
State agencies are concerned with asylum procedures and in how far it
affects Maltese politics
 Local NGOs see their role in bridging the gap between the refugees and the
official institutions
•
Most NGOs are severely criticising the migration policy performed by the
Maltese government
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
Conclusion
•
Immigration policy from 2005 is still used today, although it is very
outdated  Lacking of an integration policy document confirms this
unwillingness to change the system
•
Government demands help from the European level, often use Malta‘s
size as a justification to get support  NGO‘s disagree
•
Government: Rationalist-realist approach?
•
Multilevel institutionalist collective actors approach:
Problem of different actors and different interests/actions
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
References
•
Bernadie-Tahir, Nathalie/ Schmoll, Camille, 2014: Opening up the island: a 'counter-islandness'
approach to migration in Malta. In: Island Studies Journal, Volume 9, Number 1 pp.43-56.
•
Coppens, Jasmine, 2013: The Essential Role of Malta in Drafting the New Regional Agreement on
Migrants at Sea in the Mediterranean Basin. In: Journal of Maritime Law & Commerce, Volume 44,
Number 1, pp. 89-113.
•
DeBono, Daniela, 2013: ‘Less than human’: the detention of irregular immigrants in Malta. In: Race &
Class, Volume 55, Number 2, pp. 60-81.
•
Klepp, Silja, 2010: A Contested Asylum System: The European Union between Refugee Protection
and Border Control in the Mediterranean Sea. In: European Journal of Migration & Law Volume 12,
Number 1, pp. 1-21.
•
Thomson, Mark, 2006: Migrants on the Edge of Europe: Perspectives from Malta, Cyprus and
Slovenia. In: Sussex Center for Migration Volume 35.
•
Interviews conducted in Malta (March, 2014)
•
UNHCR: Malta
•
Eurostat: Malta
•
People for Change Foundation; “Researching Migration and Asylum in Malta: A Guide“, 2013
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann
Thank you for your attention!
Mona Rosenberg & Dorina Hackmann
MAREM – Workshop | 04.07.2014 | Mona Rosenberg, Dorina Hackmann