Migration and Diaspora: Craze, Significance and Challenges (I1)

By

Patrick Iroegbu

Alberta, Canada

In part one of this article, the origin, meaning and uses of the term diaspora were outlined. I will, in this second and concluding part, deal with the notion of diaspora as a process of discovery, helping in recreating identities and sensibility for development at home.  I will argue, and show, that challenges which people in diaspora face are not only foreign but also increasingly in terms of obstacles mounted against those who attempt to bring resources and facilities through NGOs for development at home. The question as to what can the present government do to ease the bottlenecks, therefore eliminate complexity, by credibly and smoothly matching her policy words with action in line with engaging and promoting involvement of the people in the diaspora will be raised.       

Diaspora as Process of Discovery and Challenges

A recall of the argument about colonialism reveals the many turning points of African face in world history of the diasporas. Diaspora, I should say, is unlikely to thrive devoid of overt prejudice and discrimination. As slave trade incursions point out, Africans in the diaspora have been quite profiled and made to be unsure of themselves. Their aftershocks constantly necessitate in them a search for roots - cultural resources to enhance their identity against common origins and malignant forces of oppression. Even though slave trade dragged African labour force into the international capitalist system, practicing capitalism with intercultural skills are faced ambivalently with the home nations.

The trendy ideologies and practices of capitalism and the like have, for example, shot Nigeria of Africa into the perception of what Ali Mazrui in 1996 calls “war of cultures” due to her non-reversible widening cultural dispersal of the Nigerian cream of human capital. The implication is, to what concrete skill usage Nigeria should hope to discover, develop and utilize people in the diaspora for? This points to the neglect to tap into qualified and experienced Nigerians most of who are underemployed and underutilized in diaspora. It raises the critical question: is life in diaspora killing or building up Nigerian total development process? How can the Nigerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in collaboration with her Foreign Embassies and High Commissions tap the global competencies, sensibilities and intercultural skills of the people in diaspora – therefore bring these back-home? This amounts to stating that life in diaspora is both a social process of self-discovery, identity formation, and attachment to the mainstream society and also to one’s homeland.

The two sides should be linked to enable a match to civilization, professionalism, stability and growth. Of course, there are ethical concerns faced in gaining global competency as to what one should adopt or loose out in the discovery and transformation of diasporists. In weighing options for a development path, varying development faces and theories of how people link with their home and outside are concerns no one should play with. “Brain drain” from Africa and “brain gain” to the West is a big concern. The repercussions require conscious rethinking. As a whole, the concept of “brain drain” depicts an aggressive way in which the less stable economies tilt and empty, or trade-off uncontrollably, their opportunities to develop. That way, the vulnerable economies stay dependent on the strong economies of the west. This systematic way of irresponsibly turning over the best minds and skills to other places defies capacity for development.

The worry now is - would people in diaspora come forward with the urge of development partnership with their homelands through participatory intercultural skill volunteer initiative? Would social policy embrace a volunteer sector initiative with a focus on people in diaspora? What are the general and specific benefits of bringing intercultural skills and sensibilities home? Diasporism makes sense because it may forge stronger ties between the homeland and outside individuals. Diaspora communities show that diaspora issues are an important category to initiate and seek out ideas and accommodation of ways and forms in which intercultural and international relations between homeland and settled ethnic nationalities can strengthen one another. As a fact, it can help in sustaining new democratic nation states with the flow of ideas and social obligations in agreement with the home-inward and the home-outward. The meaning of diaspora therefore resonates with, but not limited to, the connection and feeling of asking those in diaspora how and when they would go back home and be relevant?

Going Home? Forget It

Final going back to Africa or Asia is literally far fetched to occur in a changing global opportunity with regard to diasporists. As such, the African who is constantly asked in Europe when he is to go home can rather be seen as just rhetoric. To where in this global stage would someone ask an African to return? – Just forget it. That notwithstanding, a settled African or Asian in the western world still thinks of when and how to return home at the moment it is realized that east or west, home is the best. While trapped in this thinking, the local and international circumstances do not seem to go well therefore the urge to stay on is ever present; and to return home hardly occurs. Nothing is truer than how this burden is faced with a changing velocity in the mindset.

In pre-colonial history, the African thrived well with a satisfied economic lifestyle at home and was never troubled to look for elsewhere to sojourn. That changed with forced migration and slave trade. Africans came to the New World as slaves after the massacre of 100,000 of original inhabitants of Haiti in 1495 by Christopher Columbus and his team. It was claimed that the victims refused to work the Spaniard’s mines and plantations under slave conditions. Pitying the misfortune of the Indians, a priest of the colonial stature hit on the idea of importing Africans to do the work instead with the permission of King Charles V, who granted to import Africans as slaves to replace the Native Indians. But that was then. After the incursions on the African values by the colonial craving, guilt feeling was created - but not without revolts.

Policies such as “Back to Africa Movement” in Sierra Leone of 1807 – 1834 were pursued in some cases to victimize. But the idea of “Back to Africa Movement” invented in Canada and USA at the time complicated the diaspora linkages between homeland and foreign land. The exercise ignored the powerful impact of culture change. Thus, where mass deportation was involved in handling the problems of freed slaves, it exacerbated rather than softened the tensions and conflicts around diaspora issues.

In our time, while USA is at constant coastal battles with the Cubans, Mexicans and others trying to cross into America, many European countries, on the other hand, challenge African diasporas with individual and mass deportation such as Italy, Germany, Ireland, and Belgium according to various media reports. For example, over 35 Nigerians were repatriated from Ireland last Wednesday, March 16, 2005 (Vanguard Online). Large numbers of deportations trailed the immigration events of 2004. An informant in Ireland said the episode has become a common place within what he described as a considerable inevitable country profiling! Perceived immigrant minority communities face challenges that prevent them from doing well and are blamed at the same time for their own inability to rise up to their challenges.  How can they?

B. Malwal in the No-Nonsense Guide to International Migration (Peter Stalker 2001), states that migration takes place in the more affluent industrialized western democracies and a great deal of focus is placed on the social and economic problems that migrants are said to cause. Yet migrants offer more than they receive in return, and there is a serious impact on their health. A balanced argument would be that migration is a benefit and difficulty shared by both receiving and migrant communities. The grave implications of diaspora are still alive in Europe and North America. The identity of people in diaspora pari passu with their country should be understood as a ‘will and drive for change and development.’ And sharing the pride in it is crucial to people’s solidarity and heritage.

Working From Diaspora Domain

In every continent, migrations produce fresh and clear interests. This includes development benefits and protection. While a large number of diasporists send resources home to assist those left behind; some others go beyond that. For example, the Daily Independence Online of Dec. 22, 2004 gave news that a Nigerian–Canadian HIV/AIDS mobile clinic will be taking off soon to face the problem of HIV epidemic in Africa and Asia. This resulted from a co-operation between a Nigerian diasporist, Dr. Owens Wiwa of the Centre for International Health and Prof. Pierre Belanger of the Faculty of Architecture both of the University of Toronto to combat HIV/AIDS pandemic starting with Nigeria in January 2005. Equally, it is known that Nigerian academic institutions are ubiquitously faced with the dearth of books and related basic learning materials of varying scales. Prof. Godwin Onu of the Azikiwe University (UNIZIK) confirmed this to members of the Igbo Community in Edmonton and Calgary. Recently also, Prof. P. Okeke of the University of Alberta in collaboration with the Avenue Rotary Club of Edmonton Alberta and the Igbo-Nigerian community have been making contacts to respond to this crucial need presented by a University in South-eastern Nigeria. These demonstrate that diasporists constitute a vital link between home and outside world. Diasporism opens doors to new ways of seeing things. But again, their efforts here and similar ones elsewhere in the world should be truly helped to yield results at home. It is the responsibility of the Government to see efforts by people in the diaspora to succeed. Such successes will relief funds for other purposes on the part of the governments in whose areas the aids will be mostly touched. 

Two great Nigerians - late Chief Obafemi Awolowo and Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe of the past memory were also illustrative. Each made fame in Nigerian political development. What may strike a reader about these greats is the fact that the former received British critical conservative ideas of doing things, the latter obtained American critical sense of drive and reaching out, move and discover and bring home. The fact is becoming a diasporist is good if one takes it positively and extends the success home through knowledge sharing and development initiatives. Paying school fees or providing basic learning materials to the pupils in one ’s village school begins one’s journey back home with development. One does not need to start with sinking boreholes and cistern tanks or building factories, hospitals and cathedrals. Overall, the home nation would benefit by relating with the members in diaspora through systematic planning of how to swap and reap their intercultural skills and sensibilities. One way to do this had earlier on been suggested to the Nigerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It should be able to empower policy formulation and enable “Intercultural Skill Volunteer Sector Agency Initiative” to develop. For the exercise to be considerable there is need for assurances to people in diaspora of their safety at home. Safety is a very huge issue in engaging people in diaspora. How is that with home security – the menace of armed robbers and the law enforcement double standards?

De-impeding Development Initiatives and Services

As development is a crucial thing at home, many people in the diaspora are willing to come forward to the aid of individuals, institutions and communities at home. This may look as simple. But believe me, it is a far reaching hard thing to achieve in Nigeria. As such, a novice in the business of thinking of bringing development aids and skills home will soon discover, as he or she ruminates, the contrasting realities to have the label “ living in diaspora.” So, it is much harder to achieve common things in the context of development strategies and administration in Nigeria. Several instances illustrate how many people in the diaspora have encountered insurmountable obstacles. Yet, the question of appeal to those in diaspora to help institutions at home grapple with development difficulties with materials and ideas is not reducing. The question then is, how come efforts made by people in diaspora to bring goods and services to named institutions – both NGOs and None NGOs, in particular educational and health institutions and communities whose felt needs had been properly assessed and validated for support meet frustrations in the Nigerian Ports? Many container loads of goods and technical expertise that will follow are always having problems in Nigeria.

Can someone help the people in diaspora understand this Government’s Policy initiative on shipping none for profit goods meant to alleviate poverty and boost development at home? Why do goods and services duly requested by established institutions in Nigeria, such as Universities and other Higher Institutions and Communities end up in untold hardships in Nigerian Ports? Neighbouring ports in Africa are unlike Nigerian ports regarding development practices sought through people in the diaspora. I cannot give a list of attempted efforts, which is huge, including even awaiting efforts to bring goods and technical assistance to Nigerian institutions and communities that people in diaspora have been, and are still involved with. Less than 10% of such genuine attempts go through in Nigeria. And for those that went through, their stories are not good enough to share to encourage others to join in helping their homeland schools, health institutions and the industrial sector.

I have had the privilege to listen to several people and organizations in this respect. One gentleman, a Director of an NGO for Africa development initiatives, here recently narrated his ordeal in Nigeria during his African NGO tour to boost development through assisted aid. While every thing connected with arrangements went well in Six African Countries as negotiated, only in Nigeria did he suffer un-imaginable road blocks to respond to requests from five Nigerian tertiary institutions hoping to receive tonnes of donated relevant books, science and medical equipment, computers and other related learning and enhancement supplies. Obstacles mounted against development through NGOs directed by associated Nigerians in Nigerian ports are such a grave concern.

Can the present Government do something in this direction while preaching development through people in the diaspora? Statements for initiatives must be backed with actions for alleviating poverty and boosting development in all of its ramifications. Development to shun poverty is possible through many faces development can be initiated, empowered and sustained. Removing unnecessary bottlenecks in Nigerian Ports preventing academic institutions and community umbrella unions from attaining their initiated development goals in Nigeria will surely encourage people in the diaspora to signify in concrete terms with their homeland needs and efforts.

Conclusion

I close by suggesting that the strength of people in diaspora lies in their sense of facing challenge to survive in the first place - to obtain what their homeland could not adequately offer them. Being in diaspora is therefore defined by a sense of looking for a change for the better. If one ’s home country is doing well, it will present people in diaspora with a deep positive psychological momentum to feel good and to associate with her. As such, the essence of a cultural community, to say the least, is what people in diaspora can achieve and give to themselves in the alternative. With their intercultural skills, diasporists can help find solutions to problems at home through connection. Nigerian and African problems must be able to face the rigour of change. People in distant lands who see more than those at home should at the same time say more through concrete mobilization and involvement.

Being in diaspora is a case for development and identity, and that is, indeed, a credible ‘culture of affect’ to be shared. In all purposes, the loss of intellectual power at home and, corresponding gains to other lands, in a world of growing globalization, is to be of significance and challenge too as it was most characteristic element of the 19th century Jewish life in the industrial revolution, and overseas development at the detriment of homeland. To balance this trend is a call to be made a goal for the development of many sided structure of the consciousness and struggles of being in diaspora.