In‐Between Places: Trans‐Saharan Transit Migrants in Morocco and the Fragmented Journey to Europe

Abstract

Absract:As undocumented migration becomes more difficult, migrants' journeys become longer and more fragmented. This is a response to new spatialities of migration control which are continually reconfigured in an effort to eliminate clandestine movement. In the trans-Saharan region, this pattern of fragmented journeys also arises from a network of transnational social organisations that depend upon newly available technologies. Migrants' social networks provide both the means and the motivation for continued movement, even as destinations become more elusive. This paper investigates the imbalanced conflict between the social organisation of Sahara transit migrants and the developing spatial logic of control. It is based on recent research with undocumented migrants in Morocco.

Gender and the dynamics of mobility: reflections on African migrant mothers and ‘transit migration’ in Morocco

“…On the one hand, this is due to the fact that some data on transit migrants in Morocco has been gathered before the events of 2005 in Ceuta and Melilla in the informal migrant camps around Oujda, Tanger and Ceuta where women with children were not often observed (Collyer, 2007, Wender, 2004. On the other hand, researchers have also admitted that access to women has generally been difficult to negotiate (Barros et al, 2002, Mghari, 2008, Women's Link Worldwide, 2009 women's mobility appears to be "forced", and not of their own volition.…”

“…Morocco have been predominantly based on information from male migrants (Collyer, 2007, Khachani, 2008, Lahlou, 2005, Wender, 2004, Mghari, 2008, Barros et al, 2002. On the one hand, this is due to the fact that some data on transit migrants in Morocco has been gathered before the events of 2005 in Ceuta and Melilla in the informal migrant camps around Oujda, Tanger and Ceuta where women with children were not often observed (Collyer, 2007, Wender, 2004.…”

Editorial: Connecting (Forced) Migration and Media Studies

“…Research has, for instance, pointed out that technologies are crucial to mitigate and circumvent localized insecurities around the -often informal -working life of migrants, to cope with loneliness and contribute to a shared experience of suffering (Collyer, 2007;Harney, 2013). The combination of money transfer technologies and communication devices can also make it easier to transfer remittances (Lindley, 2007), whereas the circulation of global advertisements might reinforce particular expectations of kin abroad (Gordano Peile, 2014).…”

“…Journeys often take years and are most often far from linear or straightforward (Collyer, 2007;Khosravi, 2007;Schapendonk & Van Moppes, 2007;Schapendonk, 2012). The (im)mobility of many migrants is in fact a stretched-out process, zigzag-shaped and slowed down by often exclusionary, bureaucratic border regimes beyond as well as within western countries (Anderson, 2014;Khosravi, 2007;.…”

Governing Migration from the Margins

“…Western states have increasingly externalized asylum processes, exhorting sending and transit states to fortify their borders and to sign readmission agreements: offshore interception and processing means that migrants travelling by boat run the risk of being returned to countries of departure or to other states, where they are detained. This spatial architecture that traps or deflects mobile subjects shrinks spaces of asylum, denying access to refugee protection in the First World, and makes migrant journeys longer and more dangerous (Collyer, 2007;Hyndman and Mountz, 2008;Mainwaring and Brigden, 2016;Mountz and Hiemstra, 2014). …”