Suchergebnisse

This PhD thesis deals with the conditions of illegal border crossing of the African migrants in the south of Spain and with their logics of insertion in the Andalusian province of Almeria and beyond, in the European space. By questioning the power struggle between migrants and State, this thesis insists on the migrants' capacity to move and it highlights the ambivalence of governmental institutions, partly linked with the economical function of undocumented migrants. The analysis of connections between the strategies of undocumented migrants and the logics of institutions and local actors are based on the description of the interactions, transactions and existing conflicts between the migrants recently arrived, those who are already installed, the NGOs, the managers, the police forces, etc. The ethnographic study of the migrants' experience before and after crossing the border reveals the importance of social networks to reach Europe and to look for housing, employment and papers. At the same time, it points out the function of Spanish associations for the most vulnerable migrants. On one hand, the governmental institutions fluctuate between control and tolerance; one the other hand, the migrants glide between constraints and strategies, regularity and irregularity. Their migration, built on several stages, constitutes then a real "snakes and ladders". Almeria represents a stage where it is possible to look for papers. This province, specialized in agriculture, has an informal "uncovered" economy: everybody knows it including the authorities. Almeria centralizes the African migrants who are in a precarious situation, whatever the time of their arrival in Europe. This thesis proposes to qualify the mobility of those undocumented migrants as "a mastered roving", mastering that is essentially done through social relations and the constitution of social networks. The attention turned to the construction's terms of the migratory project after the border crossing also allows generating the notion of "zero square". This means a special space-time, intermediate between the border crossing and the insertion in the European space; a time more or less lengthy, characterized by the repetition of basic survival situations that authorize the maximal exploitation of the migrant, who, therefore is looking for the means to avoid this repetition or to get out of it. ; Cette thèse porte sur les conditions de passage clandestin des migrants africains à la frontière sud espagnole ainsi que sur leurs logiques d'insertion dans la province andalouse d'Almeria et au-delà, dans l'espace européen. Interrogeant le rapport de force entre migrants et État, cette thèse insiste sur les capacités des migrants à la mobilité et met en lumière l'ambivalence des institutions gouvernementales, en partie liée à la fonction économique des migrants clandestins. Les articulations entre les stratégies des migrants clandestins et les logiques des institutions et des acteurs locaux y sont analysées à partir de la description des interactions, des transactions et des conflits, entre les migrants nouveaux venus, ceux anciennement installés, les ONG, les patrons, les forces de police, etc. L'approche compréhensive de l'expérience des migrants avant et après le passage de la frontière a révélé l'importance des réseaux sociaux dans l'entrée en Europe et dans la recherche d'un logement, d'un emploi et de papiers ; tout en soulignant la fonction du milieu associatif espagnol pour les migrants les plus vulnérables. D'un côté, les institutions gouvernementales oscillent entre contrôle et tolérance ; de l'autre, les migrants évoluent entre contraintes et stratégies, régularités et irrégularités. Leur migration, construite par étape, constitue alors un véritable « jeu de l'oie ». Almeria représente ainsi une étape où chercher des papiers. Cette province spécialisée dans l'agriculture possède une économie souterraine « à découvert » : elle est connue de tous et bénéficie de la complicité des autorités. Almeria centralise ainsi les migrants africains en situation précaire récemment arrivés ou déjà présents en Europe. Cette thèse propose donc de qualifier les mobilités de ces migrants clandestins « d'errance maîtrisée », maîtrise qui se fait essentiellement à travers les relations sociales et la constitution de réseaux sociaux. L'attention portée aux modalités de construction du projet migratoire après le passage de la frontière a également permis de faire émerger la notion d' « instance zéro ». Il s'agit d'un espace-temps « autre », d'une instance intermédiaire entre le passage de la frontière et l'insertion dans l'espace européen ; un temps plus ou moins long caractérisé par la répétition de situations élémentaires de survie qui autorisent l'exploitation maximale du migrant, lequel cherche alors les moyens d'éviter cette répétition ou d'en sortir.

This PhD thesis deals with the conditions of illegal border crossing of the African migrants in the south of Spain and with their logics of insertion in the Andalusian province of Almeria and beyond, in the European space. By questioning the power struggle between migrants and State, this thesis insists on the migrants' capacity to move and it highlights the ambivalence of governmental institutions, partly linked with the economical function of undocumented migrants. The analysis of connections between the strategies of undocumented migrants and the logics of institutions and local actors are based on the description of the interactions, transactions and existing conflicts between the migrants recently arrived, those who are already installed, the NGOs, the managers, the police forces, etc. The ethnographic study of the migrants' experience before and after crossing the border reveals the importance of social networks to reach Europe and to look for housing, employment and papers. At the same time, it points out the function of Spanish associations for the most vulnerable migrants. On one hand, the governmental institutions fluctuate between control and tolerance; one the other hand, the migrants glide between constraints and strategies, regularity and irregularity. Their migration, built on several stages, constitutes then a real "snakes and ladders". Almeria represents a stage where it is possible to look for papers. This province, specialized in agriculture, has an informal "uncovered" economy: everybody knows it including the authorities. Almeria centralizes the African migrants who are in a precarious situation, whatever the time of their arrival in Europe. This thesis proposes to qualify the mobility of those undocumented migrants as "a mastered roving", mastering that is essentially done through social relations and the constitution of social networks. The attention turned to the construction's terms of the migratory project after the border crossing also allows generating the notion of "zero square". ...

International audience ; This article is about border practices circumventing the law – "clandestine" migration, smuggling, psychotropics – and questions the function of border spaces. Indeed, when borders imply economic, legislative, and social disparities, they create their own economic opportunities outside of the legal frame. From the Hispanic-African border, I try to show how different populations seize on these disparities, how borders are diverted in favour of some people and to the detriment of others – most of them clandestine migrants – and, finally, how these crossings are in the heart of vast underground markets that are intermingled with official economic sectors. Thus, a question is posed about the socioeconomic specificity of border spaces.

International audience ; This article is about border practices circumventing the law – "clandestine" migration, smuggling, psychotropics – and questions the function of border spaces. Indeed, when borders imply economic, legislative, and social disparities, they create their own economic opportunities outside of the legal frame. From the Hispanic-African border, I try to show how different populations seize on these disparities, how borders are diverted in favour of some people and to the detriment of others – most of them clandestine migrants – and, finally, how these crossings are in the heart of vast underground markets that are intermingled with official economic sectors. Thus, a question is posed about the socioeconomic specificity of border spaces.

Résumé Les travaux de recherche en cours sous la direction d'Alain Tarrius examinent de nombreux parcours migratoires à la lumière du concept de transmigration. Les parcours des Africains vers l'Europe ne visent plus l'embauche dans une grande entreprise, mais l'institution d'une pérégrination à base commerciale ou religieuse, qui implique le retour fréquent au pays. Le départ d'Afrique se fait lui-même par étapes plus ou moins longues pour trouver les bonnes opportunités de passage. Les femmes migrantes aussi constituent des réseaux d'alliés pour pouvoir se forger des espaces d'autonomie le long de leur route. L'analyse des transmigrations gitanes montre l'importance des réseaux familiaux dans ce parcours de l'espace.