ExpErtS urgE Study on SoCIal rEmIttanCES’ ImpaCt on global mIgratIon

LAHORe Shahab omeR

tHeCentre on Migration, Remittances and Diaspora (CIMRAD), Lahore School of economics organized first of its kind international conference on ‘Social Remittances and Social Change: Links between Home and Host Countries” on February 21 and 22, 2023 at the Lahore School’s Burki Campus.

Doctor Peggy Levitt, renowned sociologist and pioneer of the term ‘social remittances’ was the keynote speaker at the event whereas Dr. Ishrat Hussain, former Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan and Adviser to the Prime Minister on Institutional Reforms and Austerity shared his comments as the Chief Guest at the opening of the conference. Dr. Shahid Amjad Chahudhry, Rector, Lahore School of economics gave the welcome address.

The two-day event was organized into two sessions per day, where international participants presented their papers, followed by an in-depth discussion and feedback from renowned migration researchers and experts.

The conference proceedings offered an insight into and stimulated thoughts about how the global society is transforming, as nation-state geographical borders continue to blur overtime. It brought into discussion implications for home country politics, improvements in demographic variables and women empowerment. It also raised a key question for future considerations of social remittances in terms of climate induced migration. As a future line of research, it was proposed during a brainstorming session to conduct country comparative case studies in different migration contexts to better understand the complex issue of social remittances.

Dr. Peggy Levitt, Chair of Sociology Department, Wellesley College, US, in her keynote address talked about cultural globalization and the role of technological advancements. Having studied migrant communities in Boston from Brazil, Ireland, Pakistan, and India, she reflected that for migrants over time, there is a growing disjuncture between how they perceive their home country and how it may have actually evolved. She termed it the “ossification effect”, where the home country is “frozen in time” in the migrants’ minds, while actually it has changed rapidly.

Dr. Ishrat Hussain in his comments emphasized that as a developing country, Pakistan based research in any field must link with the implications for poverty alleviation and human development. Weighing in on the recently re-emerged brain drain debate from Pakistan, he asserted it was an opportunity for Pakistani migrants to acquire new skills from host markets. Besides technical skills, social remit-

Instead of curbing smuggling, customs

tances in form of efficiency enhancing practices, principles and values can also contribute to increasing productivity of our local market and can even be exported to other migration destinations.

Dr. Philippe Fargues, Founding Director of the Migration Policy Centre at the european University Institute, Italy, argued that international migration and reduction in fertility are inseparable parts of social change and human development. Where country-level socio-economic indicators fail to establish this relationship, the non-tangible remittances in forms of ideas with family and friends in the home country can explain the phenomenon better. Pakistan’s population is growing at a worrisome rate of 2.4% annually and it has a current total fertility rate of 3.6, putting a strain on our limited economic resources. Implications of social remittances to bring down fertility rate are worth exploring from a policy point of view.

Dr. Anne White, Professor at University College London School, UK, discussed how social remittances impact the migration process itself. When migrants interact with other migrants in the host country, the exchange ideas have the potential to transform the ways migration takes places, such as an inclination towards personal networking instead of through employment agencies.

individual actions: SC ISLAMABAD

Staff RepoRt

The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Wednesday questioned the legal authority of customs officials’ operation within the country and emphasized on the need for a clear understanding of customs officers’ powers and jurisdiction to prevent illegal trade of goods, including dollars, wheat, and fertilizers trafficking to Afghanistan. The three-member SC bench, headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, and comprising Justice Ayesha Malik, and Justice Athar Minallah, heard a case against customs authority, prompting inquiries into the lawfulness of officials’ actions in city operations, market raids, and checkpoint setups. The bench observed that focus of customs officials is on seizing personal belongings of citizens instead of preventing smuggling at border crossings. During the hearing, Justice Ayesha noted that instead of stopping smuggling, the customs officials paid more attention to individual actions. She added that the attention of the customs officials was diverted towards apprehending the citizens’ vehicles and other belongings, rather than where these items were smuggled from. She asked what law authorised the customs officials to conduct raids at markets and set up checkpoints. She continued that the main question was about the powers and jurisdiction of the customs officers. Justice Athar asked from the customs officials whether the smuggling law applicable to an item caught in the city. He added that the Customs officials were not responding to the court’s queries properly and they needed to be more prepared. Justice Ayesha observed that the Customs officials operated in the cities every day, far from the borders.