A
Sephis Workshop in Xiamen (P.R. of China) 10-12 December
2002
Migration of labour is a prominent feature of the
latest round of global restructuring, reflecting ongoing
changes in the international division of work. The
sharp increase in mobility has given rise to increased
control by state agencies. Currently at least 150
million people live outside their countries of origin
and more than half the global flow of migrants is
now between developing countries.
The large-scale movement of workers over short and
long distances is anything but a new phenomenon. This
Sephis workshop will focus on the social history of
labour migration taking place from the 1850s to the
end of the 20th century. The basic idea in concentrating
on these temporal boundaries is that the work-related
migration that took place during the colonial period
signalled fundamental shifts in the global economy,
transforming the relationship between capital and
labour outside the metropolitan zone and in a way
than was till then beyond the reach of market and
state. Today, there is an urgent need for a better
comparative understanding of the historical links
between this colonial migration and the postcolonial
trajectories of culturally pluriform societies and
states.
The workshop concentrates on the nature of the migratory
process. We invite paper proposals that treat the
following themes historically:
- the identities of migrant workers and their different
professions and trades;
- the modalities of recruitment and passage, and
the maintenance of 'home' links.
Identities
Most migrants who were transformed into industrial
wage labourers are thought to have originated from
a land-poor or landless milieu, to have been engaged
in coolie labour in mines and plantations, and to
have been young and predominantly male. We would like
the papers to examine these assumptions. Papers may
also consider to what extent such migrant identities
and gendered cultural constructs of migrants impinged
on cultural diversities in postcolonial societies.
We especially invite papers dealing with migrants
who remained self-employed as artisans, shopkeepers
and petty traders or who qualified for clerical positions
in the government apparatus. Their migration was in
many cases not regulated or registered but came about
by relying on social networks and support from migrant
'bridgeheads' already established in the
country of arrival. What were their motives for migration?
Recruitment and passage. In today's international
migration, recruitment agencies play a crucial role.
These can be legal or illegal, and recruitment can
be based on various forms and institutions of compulsion
and force ('human trafficking'). But how
were recruitment and transport arranged in the earlier
period? What (colonial) state policies informed recruitment
drives, and how did these interact with the activities
of commercial recruitment agencies? States intervened
by appointing 'protectors' to deal with
malpractices in recruitment and transport but they
also intervened as active parties in disciplining
migrant labour. How did migrants make use of recruitment
agencies and state migration policies? Under which
circumstances did they mobilise to resist and protest?
What links did they maintain with their 'home'
societies? TC \l1 "
The workshop is especially well placed to explore
comparatively how our findings for the colonial period
relate to current debates about labour migration,
human trafficking, and diasporic communities in the
early 21st century. The present global movement of
labour builds in significant ways on the patterns
and relationships established during that earlier
phase of global restructuring.
Authors are invited to submit a one page paper proposal
indicating the scope, nature and approach of their
intended papers and Academic CV (maximum of 3 pages).
Such proposals in English must reach the SEPHIS Secretariat
by 15th June 2002. Final drafts of satisfactory papers
are due by 1st November 2002 to ensure that airline
tickets and other participation expenses can be disbursed
in good time.
Conference papers in languages other than English
must be submitted by 1st October 2002 to allow enough
time for English translations as the language of the
conference is English.
A more detailed position paper for the workshop and
information about the Sephis programme can be obtained
via the Sephis website:http://www.sephis.org
Applications and requests for
more information should be sent to:
Sephis programme
International Institute of Social History
Cruquiusweg 31
1019 AT Amsterdam
The Netherlands
email: sephis@iisg.nl
Telephone: ++31-20-4636395
Fax: ++31-20-4636385
March 18, 2002.
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