Fall 1996: To Circulate, To Ban And To Lock Up: Detention Centres For Immigrants And Asylum Seekers At The Borders Of Western Democracies
The Detention of Foreigners at the French Boundaries (PDF, 42 pages, 113 KB) , by François Julien-Laferriere
The author of this article establishes a statement of facts regarding the French judicial repertories of immigration policies. The starting point for this analysis is the distinction established by the French judicial vocabulary between detention as a privation of liberty, and retention as a safety measure. By doing so, the author suggests an overview of the judicial and administrative practices regarding foreigners held at borders waiting for the French authorities to take a decision. The aim is also to clarify the November 2nd 1945 French ordinance ruling the hypothesises, rules and condition of this keeping of foreigners in "waiting zones" at frontiers. Where does the pertinence of the French judicial distinction between privation and liberty restrictive measures end for these foreigners held at borders and waiting to know their fate?
The Detention of Asylum Seekers in the British Fortress (PDF, 21 pages, 63 KB) , by Enoch Opondo & Barbara Harrell-Bond
In this article on the British immigration policies the author examines the asylum seekers' retention conditions while considering the context of a general reinforcement of immigration control, itself influenced by European restrictive immigration policies. The author shows, by redefining the historical context, the retention of asylum seekers within the British tradition of foreigners being detained, how the power of the anti-foreigners rhetoric has been (re) discovered by the British administration and political authorities. While putting into question, at the light of International Law, the legitimacy of these detentions of asylum seekers, the author shows how the United Kingdom joined the European immigration policy by focalising on the most vulnerable foreigners, asylum seekers.
Expulsion: origins and practice of a form of control in Germany (PDF, 33 pages, 91 KB) , by Frank-Paul Weber
Expelling foreigners in Germany follows a disposition, in the sense of Foucault, which genesis and evolution through the different German contemporary political regimes. The author shows how the differentiation processes between nationals/citizens and foreigners are the condition and effect of the relation of power that an expulsion represents. The history of expulsion practices during the 19th century and early 20th century in Germany informs us on the frames in which expulsions occur nowadays in Germany. The expulsion of foreigners as a practice appears as the product of a differentiation process defining and restraining a heterogeneous group of people who may not be allowed to benefit from the principle of non-expulsion of nationals.
Detention and Deportation at the Boundary between the US and Mexico (PDF, 31 pages, 85 KB) , by Samuel Schmidt
Through the example of the Mexican-American border, the author shows how the criminalisation of immigration generates a militarisation of borders as well as it constitutes a barrier to integration by exacerbating animosities and racist feelings against ethnic minorities. This criminalisation generated as perverse effects the birth and reinforcement of criminal activities such as smuggling, and the emergence of militias ready to track down undesirable immigrants. The author details the succession of different government decisions aiming at reducing immigration, by putting the light on the severe inequalities from one side of the border to the other.