Borders, Independence and Post-Colonial Ties: the Role of the State in Caribbean Migration
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Borders, independence and post-colonial ties: the role of the state in Caribbean migration © 2015 Simona Vezzoli Published by Boekenplan, Maastricht ISBN 978 90 8666 385 9 Cover picture: Crossing the Maroni river from French Guiana to Suriname on a quick pirogue ride. © 2015 Simona Vezzoli All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission in writing, from the author. Borders, independence and post-colonial ties: the role of the state in Caribbean migration To obtain the degree of Doctor at Maastricht University, on the authority of the Rector Magnificus Prof. Dr. L.L.G. Soete in accordance with the decision of the Board of Deans to be defended in public on 20 November, 2015, at 10:00 hours. by Simona Vezzoli Promoters: Prof. Dr. Hein de Haas Dr. Melissa Siegel Assessment Committee: Prof. Dr. Ronald Skeldon Dr. Khalid Koser Dr. Hebe Verrest Dr. Stéphanie Condon To Giambattista, my dad, who accompanied me in spirit along this journey Acknowledgements Completing this PhD felt like an extended rollercoaster ride full of excitement and amazing new perspectives on the world, invariably followed by screams and paralysing fears as the ground went missing from under my feet. Fortunately, there was always a companion enjoying the awe-inspiring moments and holding hands as the ride made me lose my orientation, leaving me unable to determine the way forward. My gratitude goes to a large number of people, from those who have felt the joys and pain of this ride with me, to those who provided the occasional smile, a ‘Good morning!’ or a few words of wisdom which helped get through difficult periods. I will not be able to thank everybody here, including the numerous interviewees who shared their personal stories with me, but know that your support has not been forgotten: you have not only provided essential information, but also the much needed human connection that helped me reach the finish line of this extraordinary ride. I would like to thank Hein de Haas for providing the opportunity to carry out this research and giving me the conceptual freedom to pursue my interests, while also guiding me to stay ‘on track’. I extend my gratitude to Melissa Siegel, who waited patiently for my work to bear fruits. Many thanks to the DEMIG team: Mathias Czaika and Edo Mahendra for always asking sharp questions; María Villares- Varela for being an incredible colleague and friend; Katharina Natter for providing vital support; and Marie-Laurence Flahaux, for being my academic cheerleader. My colleagues at IMI deserve special recognition, particularly Evelyn Ersanilli, who lent a sympathetic ear in innumerable venting sessions; Dominique Jolivet for support and reminding me that there was life beyond the PhD; Sally Kingsborough for her sound ‘reality checks’; and Oliver Bakewell for the extra boost, particularly at the end of this study. To Yasser Moullan, thanks for the remarkable réunionaise cuisine and Jenny Peebles for panic control and support in the very last stretches. And thanks to Anaïs Rességuier for stimulating chats and a super PhD retreat. A number of academics have supported this endeavour in various ways, whom I thank profusely. For the work on Guyana: Dr Elizabeth Thomas-Hope for her ongoing support; Prof Clive Thomas and Dr Thomas Singh for hosting me at the Institute of Development Studies (IDS), University of Guyana; Dr Rishee Thakur for priceless insights and warm hospitality; Ms Audreyanna Thomas for her vision vi and for allowing me to present initial insights at one of her public events; Major General (Rtd) Joseph Singh and Ellie Price for their valuable feedback on an early version of the chapter; and the administrative team at IDS, particularly Mrs Niebert Paul and Mrs Sharmin Sookdeo for sharing their own migration stories and for their transcription efforts. For the work on Suriname: Rosemarijn Hoefte at the Koninklijk Instituut voor Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde (KITLV), University of Leiden, to whom I am greatly indebted; Maurits Hassankhan for his time and key contacts; Prof Martin Schalkwijk, Jack Menke and Ruben Gowricharns for taking the time to discuss my research; and Prof Ad de Bruijne, University of Amsterdam, for his ongoing interest in this research. For the work on French Guiana: Frédéric Piantoni at the Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD) in Cayenne, for taking time to share a wealth of information on Guyane, its society, environment and migration history; Régine Calmont and André Calmont, for their historical perspective; and the staff at the Departmental Archives of Guyane (Archives départementales de la Guyane) in Cayenne. In addition, a special thank you to Peggy Levitt for providing true inspiration. Thank you also to my reading committee – Ronald Skeldon, Khalid Koser, Hebe Verrest, Stéphanie Condon – for your attentive reading and valued comments. I am also indebted to many people who provided help, extended their friendship and opened their homes and hearts to me in the three Guianas. Meeting such wonderful people opened my eyes to a new way of seeing and valuing life – a lesson that I carry with me as my permanent gift from the Guianas. For that I am infinitely grateful. In Guyana, I thank Sonia for her friendship, her mom for feeding me delicious food and Floyd for providing plenty of coconut water. In Suriname, I owe many thanks to Joan Codrington for giving me a ‘home’, Carlho Wijdt for sharing amazing personal stories and June Eijken for being a friend, supporter and inspiration. In French Guiana, an immense thank you to Richard Cajozzo for helping me to discover Guyane and Dominique and Joel for their genuine hospitality and tasty meals - extra-special thanks to Dominique for the last rush of contacts, without whom this work would not have been as complete. Last, but not least, my love and appreciation to my family – mamma, Elena, Stefania, Rossano, Davide, Giorgio and Manola - for always being there, welcoming me home and ‘recharging my batteries’ whenever I found a moment to visit. To Lee Knight Jr, thank you for providing moral support and gentle encouragement. My wonderful friends all over the world – thank you for allowing me to come into your lives whenever I had a moment and offering me a place to rest my mind and body: Rachel, Moe, Jake and Rory for taking me in when migration policies hit home; Michela, Manuel and Emma for the occasional but heart-warming moments; Teresa, Arne, Tiago and Bruno for friendship and love; Elise for the rare but special encounters; Stefania for being there in the last stretch. vii Finally, to Colin and Terriann Benjamin, thank you for offering a new source of energy, infinite patience and understanding, and for escorting me to the finish line. Simona Vezzoli, Amsterdam, November 2015 viii Table of Contents Acknowledgements vi List of figures xv List of tables xviii Terminology for national and ethnic groups xix Chapter 1 – The role of border regimes, independence and post-colonial ties in migration 1 1. Introduction and research objectives 1 2. Geographical focus: the Caribbean region and the three Guianas 7 3. Methodology and methods: a pragmatist approach 10 3.1 Descriptive statistical analyses of regional trends 12 3.2 Theorization and the development of conceptual scenarios 14 3.3. In-depth qualitative analysis of migration processes and migration motives 15 4. Limitations of methodology 21 5. Contribution of study and overview of dissertation 24 Chapter 2 – The role of the state in international migration: Exploring the transition from colony to independence 26 1. Introduction 26 2. An expanded view of the state’s role in migration 28 2.1 The state in migration theories 28 2.2 The state and its border regime 30 2.3 The state beyond migration policies 31 3. Changes in political status and migration 35 3.1 Colonialism, independence, non-sovereignty and migration 35 3.2 Post-colonial ties as a migration determinant 40 ix 3.3 The agency of migrants in a structured post-colonial environment 42 4. Conceptualising the migration effects of political status changes, border regimes and post-colonial ties 43 4.1 Synchronous independence and border regime establishment 44 4.2 Asynchronous independence and border regime establishment 46 4.3 Non-sovereignty and open border regimes 51 4.4 Comparative migration effects 53 5. Conclusions 55 Chapter 3 – Examining the role of border closure and post-colonial ties in Caribbean emigration 58 1. Introduction 58 2. Characteristics of Caribbean migration trends 60 2.1 Migrations before the Second World War 60 2.2 The development of extra-regional migrations 61 2.3 Evolution of political status and border regimes 63 3. Scope, data and methodology 74 4. Results 75 4.1 Total migrations from Caribbean countries 75 4.2 Extra-regional migrations and the relevance of the former colonial state 77 4.3 Intra-regional migrations and the relevance of the colonial sphere within the region 79 5. Conclusions 82 Chapter 4 – Closing borders to citizens: the role of states and policies in the evolution of Guyanese emigration 85 1. Introduction 85 2. British Guiana’s historical migrations and ethnic diversity 87 3. The long road to independence and the closure of the British border (1953-1966) 88 x 3.1 Political transitions and the rush to beat the 1962 British Immigration Act 89 3.2 Independence and the rapid weakening of Britain’s influence 91 3.3 The opening of North American migration policies and the diversification of migration destinations 93 3.4 Rapid diversification of migrants and their migration motives 94 4.