Migration: Treating the symptoms or addressing the root causes?

Amid heated debates over immigration in Britain and across the West, media headlines are dominated by plans to curb migrant flows, tighten asylum laws and deport those seeking protection. Yet this intense focus on the “branches” of the issue overlooks its deeper roots — namely, the enduring impact of Western policies, both colonial and contemporary, in destabilising large parts of the Global South.

If even a fraction of the vast resources currently invested in border fortifications, surveillance and anti-immigration public relations campaigns were redirected towards addressing the structural causes of forced migration — ranging from military interventions and support for coups to suffocating economic sanctions — we might witness outcomes that are far more sustainable and humane.

Let us begin by considering recent history. Over the past few decades, Britain, the United States and their allies have played key roles in toppling elected governments – as in Egypt in 2013 – supporting authoritarian regimes, as was common in Latin America during the Cold War, or launching direct military interventions, such as the 2003 invasion of Iraq, which, according to the UNHCR, resulted in more than one million refugees.

Economic sanctions, often justified as tools for punishing “regimes”, have overwhelmingly harmed ordinary people. Studies have shown that sanctions imposed on Syria, Iran and Afghanistan, for instance, have decimated health and education systems, triggered runaway inflation and forced families to seek survival abroad by any means available.

Colonial legacies cannot be overlooked either. Many of today’s migrants originate from countries that were once colonies. In Britain’s case, tens of thousands of workers from India, Pakistan and the Caribbean were brought over — sometimes under duress — to work in ports and factories, especially in the post-World War II period. These movements were not always the result of free choice but part of an imperial economic order designed to serve the centre at the expense of the periphery.

Now, the descendants of those very migrants are bearing the brunt of rising racism, as political parties compete to offer ever “tougher” policies on immigration — even from regions wrecked by wars and conflicts in which the West has played a central role. Legal avenues for asylum are increasingly shut, pushing many into perilous sea crossings and fuelling smuggling networks and exploitation.

According to the Refugee Council, those granted asylum in the UK represent just one per cent of the global refugee population. Yet public discourse often frames the situation as though the country is being overwhelmed.

The real solution lies in acknowledging that migration is not a crime, but rather a consequence of complex global dynamics — many of which stem from our own foreign and economic policies. It is time for politicians and decision-makers in Britain and the West to adopt a more just and pragmatic approach: supporting sustainable development, ending destabilising interventions, lifting sanctions that suffocate populations, and opening safe, legal pathways for migration.

Otherwise, the strategy of targeting migrants while ignoring the root causes will only deepen humanitarian crises and fuel the rise of populism and racism — undermining the very democratic values the West claims to uphold.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.