In the last decades, it has emerged in literature what has been called the “transnational social question”, regarding the ways by which international migrants try to meet their social needs. As migrations develop globally, the same happens to migrants’ social needs along their whole life course. An increasing quantity of study and researches, carried out in the Transnational Social Protection (TSP) perspective, has found that international migrants rely for their welfare neither only on the institutions of their origin Country, nor only on those of their Country of destination, but also on “the policies, programmes, people, organizations, and institutions which provide for and protect individuals (…) in a transnational manner” (Levitt et al. 2017, p. 5). At the core of this essay there is a description of the forms assumed by TSP, in their theoretical definition as well as in the presentation of some emblematic case studies. First, however, it has been necessary to define who are the transnational migrants and what kind of relationships they establish with their Countries of origin, which, in many cases have the features of Transnational Nation-States (TNS). Some final remarks deal with two questions regarding the rise and development of TSP in its formal dimension. The first issue is about what factors determine or have an influence on the adoption of measures of transnational welfare by migrants’ States of origin and shows evidence of close links between these and political and electoral motivations. The second is about the basis upon which States of destination provide transnational social right to immigrants who are not their citizens. Findings suggest that, despite international norms, States have not extended such rights to them because of personhood and non-discrimination, but because they are workers participating in their labour market.
Negli ultimi decenni, è andata emergendo in letteratura quella che è stata definita come la “questione sociale transnazionale”, relativa alle modalità mediante le quali i migranti internazionali cercano di far fronte alle loro esigenze di benessere sociale. Nel momento in cui le migrazioni si sviluppano globalmente, lo stesso accade per le esigenze di protezione sociale dei migranti lungo il loro intero corso di vita (Scheibelhofer 2022). Una mole crescente di studi e ricerche, condotti nella prospettiva della Transnational Social Protection (TSP), ha messo a fuoco come i migranti non dipendono per il loro benessere solo dai servizi delle istituzioni nazionali, regionali e locali dei Paesi che li ospitano, né solo da quelli dei loro Paesi di origine, ma anche da tutte le politiche, i programmi, le persone, le organizzazioni e le istituzioni che possono offrire loro provvidenze e protezione in modo transnazionale (Levitt et al. 2017). Al centro di questo saggio c’è una descrizione delle forme che assume la TSP, nella sua ricostruzione teorica e in alcuni casi concreti ritenuti emblematici. Prima di affrontare questo tema centrale, tuttavia, è necessario definire chi sono i migranti transnazionali e quali modalità possono assumere i loro rapporti con gli Stati di origine, che spesso hanno le caratteristiche di Stati-Nazione transnazionali (Transnational Nation-States, TNS). Alcune riflessioni conclusive affronteranno due questioni cruciali rispetto alla genesi e allo sviluppo della TSP nella sua dimensione formale. La prima si chiede quali fattori determinano o influenzano l’adozione di misure di welfare transnazionale da parte degli Stati di origine ed evidenzia lo stretto legame tra queste e le dinamiche politiche ed elettorali. La seconda si chiede invece su quali basi gli Stati di destinazione garantiscono prestazioni sociali in termini transnazionali a immigrati che non sono propri cittadini e se questi soggetti diventano titolari di diritti in quanto persone oppure in quanto lavoratori.
Stati-Nazione, migranti e welfare state: verso forme di protezione sociale transnazionale
Agostino Massa
2023-01-01
Abstract
In the last decades, it has emerged in literature what has been called the “transnational social question”, regarding the ways by which international migrants try to meet their social needs. As migrations develop globally, the same happens to migrants’ social needs along their whole life course. An increasing quantity of study and researches, carried out in the Transnational Social Protection (TSP) perspective, has found that international migrants rely for their welfare neither only on the institutions of their origin Country, nor only on those of their Country of destination, but also on “the policies, programmes, people, organizations, and institutions which provide for and protect individuals (…) in a transnational manner” (Levitt et al. 2017, p. 5). At the core of this essay there is a description of the forms assumed by TSP, in their theoretical definition as well as in the presentation of some emblematic case studies. First, however, it has been necessary to define who are the transnational migrants and what kind of relationships they establish with their Countries of origin, which, in many cases have the features of Transnational Nation-States (TNS). Some final remarks deal with two questions regarding the rise and development of TSP in its formal dimension. The first issue is about what factors determine or have an influence on the adoption of measures of transnational welfare by migrants’ States of origin and shows evidence of close links between these and political and electoral motivations. The second is about the basis upon which States of destination provide transnational social right to immigrants who are not their citizens. Findings suggest that, despite international norms, States have not extended such rights to them because of personhood and non-discrimination, but because they are workers participating in their labour market.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.