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Historical research on the long distance migration reveals that for most migrants, migration was a final relocation of residence. Even many of the indentured laborers chose to stay back in distant lands and climes. However, one of the features of international migration in the contemporary world has been the predominance of temporary or short-term (or fixed-term) migration as workers go overseas on temporary employment. The organized recruitment of temporary migrant workers began in the various parts of the World mainly after the end of Second World War1 (Castles and Miller, 1998; Skeldon, 1997). In the last several decades, rapid changes in the flow and ebb of labor migration have followed the spectacular growth and slow down of East and Southeast Asian economies. The phenomenal rise of migration from and within Asia has been aided by changes in the immigration policies of the major settler societies and political involvement of external powers in Asian affairs. All these changes have produced different types of international migration in Asia. For example, Roland Skeldon (1992) has identified five types of migration systems within and from East and Southeast Asian region: the settler migration system, the student migration system, the contract labor migration system, the skilled labor migration system; and refugee movements2. However, in the case of the international movements within the Asian region, it is primarily a labor system of migration that is developing (Skeldon, 1992:6).
Since the mid-1980s, demand for temporary migrants has grown remarkably in East and Southeast Asian countries (Abella, 2000; Debrah, 2002, Skeldon, 2001; Castles and Miller, 1998; Hugo, 1998; Battistella and Asis, 2003). Some commentators have already named this region the ?newest international migration system? or the ?newest migratory pole? (Salt, 1992). Recently, Philip L. Martin (2001) identified four factors that are likely to increase labor migration in East and Southeast Asia in years to come. One of the most important factors is the widening wage differentials within the region that contributes greatly to migration pressures. Another factor is the region?s shift in emphasis from a manufacturing economy to a service-driven economy. A third factor is cultural. Better-educated youth are increasingly shunning the so-called 4D jobs ? jobs that are dirty, dangerous, difficult, and demeaning. As a result, migrants make a place for themselves in the host economy. A fourth and final factor is the growth of the migration industry3. It is, hence, certain that the number of temporary labor migrants in the region is going to increase in years to come.
Bangladesh is a major manpower contributing country in Asia. The history of Bangladeshi migration can be divided into two time periods ? pre-independence and post-independence ? that are characterized by two different types of migration: permanent and temporary. Generally, preindependence migration (before 1971) was for permanent settlement and, during this period, a large number of Bengalis, mainly Hindus, migrated to India. In addition to this, many of the inhabitants of this region from the early twentieth century migrated to Western Europe, North America and Oceania in the quest of permanent settlement, and contributed to the evolution of the Bengali community overseas (for details, see World Bank, 1981; Gardner, 1995; Knights, 1996).
During the post-independence period, a large number of Bangladeshis of higher and middle class background continued to migrate to developed countries for permanent settlement. However, postindependence migration (after 1971) is dominated by the temporary migration of labor.
The main reasons for contemporary migration from Bangladesh are: demographic (Bangladesh has a population of 140 million in a state the size of Wisconsin which makes it one of the most densely populated countries of the world); economic (with an economic growth rate of about 5% the economy cannot absorb teeming millions who join the labor force each year; a decline in birth rate and a demand for both skilled and unskilled labor in economically dynamic regions of Asia (East and Southeast Asia); and a growing aspiration for venturing out as a consequence of globalization. Temporary labor migration from Bangladesh has its root in the mass migration to the oil-rich Middle Eastern countries beginning from the mid-1970s. In the late 1980s, the charm of Middle East migration for the unskilled migrants declined dramatically (Arnold and Nasra, 1986). In addition, the Gulf crisis of 1990-91 caused serious disruption and hardship for many foreign migrant workers in this region. Many migrants, including those from Bangladesh, lost their jobs. This led to a diversification in the destination of migrant workers to areas in East and Southeast Asia. In addition, the rapid growth of East and Southeast Asian economies served as a magnet for the unskilled and semiskilled Bangladeshi migrants.
While Bangladeshi labor migration to Middle East has remained significant, the Gulf Crisis in 1990 resulted in a considerable number of them migrating to East and Southeast Asia for temporary employment. Mahmood (1998:178) has recently argued that the credit of the discovery of new destinations goes to the enterprising qualities of the young and educated male emigrants.Presently, there are about 400,000 Bangladeshi migrant workers in this region4. Among the major laborreceiving countries in this region, Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, Brunei and Japan are hosts of a large number of documented and undocumented Bangladeshi migrants. A small number of them are also seen in Hong Kong and Thailand. Despite more than one decade of migration experience, we know very little about the trends and patterns of Bangladeshi labor migration to these comparatively new destinations of East and Southeast Asia. This paper surveys the international migration trends from Bangladesh to major countries of East and Southeast Asia. As many host countries are increasingly becoming concerned over the problem of undocumented migration and human trafficking is becoming a growing menace in Bangladesh, this paper also attempts to shed light on these issues. The diverse landscape of migration in Bangladesh is presented as contradictions in the processes of globalization. |
