IMISCOE Research Series Joëlle Moret European Somalis’ Post-Migration Movements Mobility Capital and the Transnationalisation of Resources IMISCOE Research Series This series is the official book series of IMISCOE, the largest network of excellence on migration and diversity in the world. It comprises publications which present empirical and theoretical research on different aspects of international migration. The authors are all specialists, and the publications a rich source of information for researchers and others involved in international migration studies. The series is published under the editorial supervision of the IMISCOE Editorial Committee which includes leading scholars from all over Europe. The series, which contains more than eighty titles already, is internationally peer reviewed which ensures that the book published in this series continue to present excellent academic standards and scholarly quality. Most of the books are available open access. For information on how to submit a book proposal, please visit: http://www. imiscoe.org/publications/how-to-submit-a-book-proposal. More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/13502 Joëlle Moret European Somalis’ Post-Migration Movements Mobility Capital and the Transnationalisation of Resources Joëlle Moret Laboratory for Study of Social Processes University of Neuchâtel Neuchâtel, Switzerland ISSN 2364-4087 ISSN 2364-4095 (electronic) IMISCOE Research Series ISBN 978-3-319-95659-6 ISBN 978-3-319-95660-2 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-95660-2 Library of Congress Control Number: 2018949917 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2018. This book is an open access publication. 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The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland Acknowledgements This book is the result of a long-haul enterprise that would not have been possible without the support of many people. During my fieldwork in both Switzerland and Britain, I met women and men who trusted me enough to share parts of their lives and some of their opinions with me, and who sometimes pointed me towards other potential respondents. I can never thank them enough, and I hope that they will recognise themselves in my analyses. I am very grateful to Janine Dahinden, my dissertation supervisor, for her con- tinual support from the very start. I have enjoyed every academic discussion and glass of wine with her. The members of my Dissertation Committee, Boris Nieswand, Louise Ryan and Camille Schmoll, read earlier versions of this book: I owe a tighter final argument to their critical yet constructive comments. Two anonymous reviewers also contrib- uted to improving this book. I have also been fortunate to write this book in a thoroughly stimulating environ- ment, the Laboratory for the Study of Social Processes, and to spend time with amazing colleagues there. In particular, I want to thank Christine Achermann, Nolwenn Buehler, Giada de Coulon, Kerstin Duemmler, Aylin Eriksen, Carolin Fischer, Anne Lavanchy, Joanna Menet, Yvonne Riaño and Marc Tadorian. I have benefited from their numerous suggestions when struggling with theoretical, meth- odological, strategic and practical problems – but also, and importantly, from their friendship. I would also like to thank Steven Vertovec and the administrative and academic staff at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity for their warm welcome during my time there in 2011 and 2012. I am grateful to the institutions that have contributed financially to this study and its publication: the Swiss National Science Foundation, the Equal Opportunities Office and the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Neuchâtel, as well the nccr – on the move, also at the University of Neuchâtel. I take the opportunity to thank Daniel Moure for his respectful and precise editing work. v vi Acknowledgements Finally, I want to express my deepest gratitude to my family and close friends for their encouragement, support and love, in particular my parents and their partners, my mother-in-law and of course my partner David and the wonderful Olivia and Nine, who have survived the journey. Contents 1 Introduction ............................................................................................. 1 1.1 Theorising Mobility Practices in Unequal Transnational Social Fields ..................................................................................... 4 1.1.1 Categories, Hierarchies and the (Re)production of Social Inequalities ............................................................ 4 1.1.2 A Transnational Perspective ................................................. 6 1.1.3 Bringing “Mobilities” into Migration Studies ..................... 11 1.2 Methodology and Methods .............................................................. 16 1.2.1 Methodological Transnationalism ........................................ 17 1.2.2 Reflexivity: On the Researcher’s Positionality in the Field ........................................................................... 18 1.2.3 Delineating the Field: Conceptual Issues Related to the Population Under Study ............................................. 20 1.2.4 An Ethnographic Approach Based on Interviews ................ 21 1.2.5 Data-Analysis Methods ........................................................ 24 1.3 On Somalia and Somali Migrants: A Contextual Introduction ........ 26 1.3.1 Recent History ..................................................................... 26 1.3.2 Mobility and Migration from Somalia ................................. 28 1.3.3 Political, Legal and Discursive Contexts: Britain and Switzerland ........................................................ 31 Appendix: Interview Methods .................................................................. 38 References ................................................................................................. 41 2 Typologising Cross-Border Movements in Post-Migration Life ......... 51 2.1 An Overview of the Literature ......................................................... 51 2.1.1 Transnational Studies ........................................................... 52 2.1.2 The Literature on Circulation ............................................... 57 2.2 Post-Migration Mobility Practices: A Typology .............................. 59 2.2.1 Star-Shaped Mobility ........................................................... 61 2.2.2 Pendular Mobility ................................................................ 65 vii viii Contents 2.2.3 Secondary Migration ............................................................ 67 2.2.4 Temporary Visits to the Country of Origin .......................... 69 2.2.5 Definitive Return .................................................................. 71 2.2.6 Immobility............................................................................ 72 2.2.7 A Visual Recap and Concluding Remarks ........................... 76 2.3 Activities on the Move ..................................................................... 76 2.3.1 Maintenance and Reinforcement of Personal Social Networks .............................................................................. 77 2.3.2 Business Activities ............................................................... 79 2.3.3 Work-Related Activities ....................................................... 81 2.3.4 Voluntary Involvement in Humanitarian and Development Projects in the Region of Origin ............. 82 2.3.5 “Homeland Politics” ............................................................ 84 2.4 The Places of Mobility ..................................................................... 86 2.4.1 The Main Place of Residence: “Where I Put My Pillow” .... 86 2.4.2 The Place of Origin: “Where I Come From” ....................... 88 2.5 Conclusions .....................................................................................