Shackled Dreams

“Ending illegal immigration

means wages would have

to rise to a level where legal

Americans would take up

jobs given to illegal aliens.”

― Thomas Sowell

Last week, we saw images that shamed and inflamed us. We saw a US military cargo aircraft used for emergencies in disaster areas and war zones shunting illegal Indian immigrants back home. Those on board had already been strip-searched in another land—of their clothes, illicit hopes, far-fetched dreams and impossible fantasies. Clothed again, the 104 ‘inmates’ were shackled and manacled like hardened criminals. It was a sorrowful, pitiable sight. It was also a damning indictment of a bigger problem—the desperation and lust for a rich life that saw them leave their homes, illegally, in pursuit of a dream… one that had a nightmarish end.

Many ‘learned’ viewers asked questions—why did these people sell their land, take on huge debt and risk their lives? The answer is neither simple nor comforting. It is a tale of human resilience, greed and deception, born and bred in a system that exploited yesterday’s hope and created today’s helplessness. It also bespoke the failure of their last-ditch clawback for a better life.

Many ‘illegals’ on this C17 aircraft, especially those from Punjab and Gujarat, had opted for the ‘danki’ route—an underground network of smugglers, agents and corrupt officials who offer the carrot of an illicit backdoor into the US, the so-called land of dreams. The danki caper had passed through South and Central America, with treacherous and life-threatening crossings in jungles, rivers and deserts, before they eventually reached the US-Mexico border. Once there, many relied on human traffickers (known as ‘coyotes’) to usher them across.

The perils in the danki journey are immense—many are robbed, assaulted, raped or abandoned in unknown and deadly terrain, and some don’t make it at all. Even those who succeed find life in the ‘glorious land’ a struggle, an agonizing crawl through poverty and fear, with a need to maintain a constant vigil against deportation.

Repeated for centuries

The Indian exodus is not unique. Migration, legal and illegal, has been a recurring chapter in human history books. In the 19th century, indentured labourers from India were carted to sugar plantations in the Caribbean, Mauritius and Fiji under deceitful contracts bordering on slavery. Even today, the plight of illegal immigrants is pathetic. Syrians and Afghans cross into Europe in overcrowded dinghies, often perishing in the Mediterranean. Central Americans risk their lives through cartel-infested lands to reach the US. Rohingyas flee persecution in Myanmar only to be stranded in Bangladeshi refugee camps. The desperation is universal, the risks are pitiably similar.

There are stillborn standards in migration too—what signifies ‘dreams’ for the rich can end up in shackles for the poor; that’s the incongruity in how society perceives migration. When the wealthy go international, they are celebrated as global citizens, pioneers or visionary entrepreneurs. Their pursuit of a better life is admired, even envied. When the poor attempt the same, they are seen as iniquitous lawbreakers and an economic burden. What is forgotten is while their actions were illegal, their dreams are not.

A billionaire or a multi-millionaire (if you are speaking in dollars) can buy property and citizenship in another country with remarkable ease, even with a red carpet and some elephants thrown in for welcoming comfort. The stark opposite is faced by the farm-boy who sells his grandfather’s land to fund his migration (predominantly illegal), only to soon find new billets in a detention centre. The hypocrisy is sobering, yet rarely acknowledged, and never really understood.

Those who get caught

If illegal immigrants get caught, their fate is grim. Most are sent to detention centres which are overfilled, understaffed and unsanitary. Human rights are shamelessly ignored. Detainees live in cramped spaces, have poor or no food and insufficient medical care. What they do have is the fear of rape and abuse. Detainees can be made to wait for months, even years, for their case to be heard. Not all make it back alive. Reports of suicide, illnesses and breakdowns are common.

For its actions last week, the US deserves condemnation and lampooning. But it is neither the first nor the only nation to deport illegal immigrants in humiliating conditions. Europe routinely rounds up undocumented migrants and locks them up like cattle. Australia’s policy of offshore detention in places like Nauru and Manus Island has been criticized for its ‘inhuman’ approach. India doesn’t have a clean chit either—the Supreme Court has expressed its derision over how Rohingyas have often been treated and deported.

Some nations have shown better conduct. Canada and Germany have pathways for regularization of illegal immigrants who ‘contribute to the economy’. Portugal granted legal status to thousands of undocumented migrants post-COVID, applauding their role in the labour force. There are other examples, and they hold out hope that while countries have the right to deport illegal immigrants, human rights and dignity will be honoured.

Problems don’t end when deportees return, for they are eyed with suspicion and stigma. Many come back to nothing—no land, no money, only the crushing weight of debt incurred for their doomed global ambition. Families that mortgaged their future on the dream-turned-fiasco often face financial ruin. The psychological trauma can run deep too. Returning as a failure—shackled like a criminal or a dangerous animal—can be too much to bear. Some go into hiding, ashamed to face the community. Some bravehearts do try again, convinced that the gamble is worth it.

Some very dark truths

There are also things that no one talks of till things hit the fan. Sociologist Anirudh Bansal from Global Migration Institute reveals: “Illegal immigration is not merely a choice, it is sometimes a compulsion. People don’t always leave their homes out of greed but due to necessity too, forced by the lack of job opportunities and even political instability.”

Economist Lisa Carter from the International Labour Organization adds: “Agents and middlemen promising easy entry into the US or Europe are part of a billion-dollar industry specializing in deception. Victims often don’t realize the magnitude of the risks until it is too late.”

Amnesty International’s Maria Sanchez warns: “Deportation is necessary for law enforcement, but the way it is done also counts. Shackling people like prisoners of war is an appalling violation of human dignity.”

What is needed is sensitivity. Illegal immigration is a conundrum no nation can ignore. However, the solution lies not in brutal crackdowns but in systemic changes, say activists. They advocate ‘Creating Opportunities at Home’, ‘Stronger Curbs on Human Trafficking’, ‘Better Immigration Policies’ and ‘Humane Deportation Practices’.

They all agree on one thing—the need to “be firm yet fair, not a degenerate”.

That takes us back to the Indians on the aircraft. Their being shackled is more than just distressing. It is an indictment of a system that has failed them—both in the nation they sought to sneak into and the one they fled. The world has long debated how to tackle illegal immigration, but the need is to find the secret to making it unnecessary. Till that magic wand is found, the cycle of hope, desperation and tragedy will continue, with human lives and dignity paying the price each time.

The writer is a veteran journalist and communications specialist. He can be reached on [email protected]. Views expressed are personal