Introduction to Symposium on Framing Global Migration Law

Abstract

In our modern world, migrants are both highly visible and deeply invisible, from those undertaking dangerous voyages in overcrowded boats who dominate contemporary headlines, to those who toil unseen in farms, restaurants, and construction sites.What is the role of international law in governing their movement? The answer is that international law has surprisingly little to say about the transborder movement of people. The principle of non-refoulement offers the most robust governance site, but its scope is quite limited with respect to who falls within its parameters and the access and process to which they are entitled. Other areas of international law that appear relevant, such as international trade law, international labor law, and the law of the sea similarly present little by way of migration governance. As a result, there are massive flows of human beings whose travel is barely regulated, let alone coordinated, by international law. These essays are the first part of a three-part symposium responding to this gap in the law, starting from the premise that international migration law needs to be radically redesigned. To that end, the essays engage with the idea of a new scholarly field of inquiry: global migration law.