Similarities, Differences, Surprises and Questions of Different Countries About Migration

Countries around the globe have varying different laws and practices when it comes to migration. With each variation comes a different perception which sociologists can study with eager minds. In class each student came prepared ready to share different statistics and facts for many different countries around the globe. I am now lucky to have gained a deeper education into the migration practices of Greece, Germany, Italy, Japan Portugal and India. With such a diverse group of countries I found similarities, differences, surprises and questions which I will discuss throughout this paper.

Avoiding any generalities, it can be safe to say that my own research and new found knowledge led me to find many similarities within European countries. Within Greece , Germany and Italy there has been a dramatic increase in immigration in recent years (Migration and migrant population statistics, 2018). Germany saw a huge jump in migration as of 2017 with 5.8% of population being foreign born, which is equivalent to 10.6 million people (Deutsche Wellek, 2018). Similarly , Italy has 5 million citizens being foreign born migrants, translating to 8.3% of the total population (A., 2018). These are huge numbers, with these amounts being somewhat inconceivable to me. Throughout the activity and in discussion with one of my peers I was taught of Japan. Japan lies in stark contrast with Germany and Italy in that its numbers of accepted migrants, specifically asylum seekers, are shockingly low. I was surprised to learn that of the 19,600 applied asylum seekers to Japan, the country only accepted 20. In comparison to the millions that reside in the discussed European nations, migration policies can not even be compared. Japan has a strict migration practice as researched by my peer and I was in awe of such low numbers. Following Japan, another one of my peer’s taught me of the positive settlement experiences that was researched in Portugal. The Portuguese government has set up a body to aid in integration of new migrants in an effort to promote tolerance and coexistence of all peoples. This is a beautiful governmental system which paints the Portuguese migration experience in a positive light. I found this to be similar to a program that was set up in the small town of Altena, Germany. This town “took in in 400 refugees, and set up a program to match them with volunteer mentors that would help navigate German culture “ (Shubert, S. B., & Schmidt, N. , 2017).

This activity surprised me in ways I did not expect. In learning of each country I was heartbroken to hear of the atrocities faced by many migrants coming to find new homes. In Germany a young Syrian family who recently migrated had their home firebombed by a German man unhappy with such newcomers in the country which he too resides (Shubert, S. B., & Schmidt, N., 2017). Lebos, Greece was the site of a violent two day attack between migrants and Greeks , where people were heard chanting “burn them alive” as tensions grew between the two groups (Kitsantonis, N., 2018). I was naive to what life is truly like for migrants, the violence is real and I was surprised to learn of how cruel some can be.

I look to the future and wonder. What will life be like for future immigrants? What can be done to rid the world of xenophobia and create an air of acceptance? Migration in a globalized world happens and will continue to happen. The numbers tell a story of rising migration rates, yet the settlement experiences paint a picture of racism and intolerance. Countries as a whole accept migrants, although rates differ, but what will be done in the future to identify the greater issues of not just access into the country rather the necessity of providing newcomers with a safe and acceptable new home?