Governing Migration Flows and the Social Inclusion of Migrants in a Distressed Europe: a Comprehensive and Democratically Deepening Approach to a Complex and Critical Issue

In terms of both irregular entry and integration, migration is one of the greatest challenges to the sustainability of social peace and welfare achieved by European societies in the second half of the 20th century. The rise of electoral support for extreme right-wing parties in Europe is, for example, a phenomenon clearly associated with the problems posed by the inadequate management of migrant flows and integration carried out by European governments and mainstream parties for decades. Increasingly restrictive European public policies, such as the New Pact on Migration and Asylum, however, are unlikely to succeed either in containing the inflow of irregular migrants or in promoting the integration of migrants that would make a peaceful and prosperous Europe possible. In contrast to such policies (which are deeply dependent on the correlation of forces in political and electoral situations), this proposal calls for a comprehensive approach to migration processes, both within and outside Europe, both with regard to the flows and the integration of migrants. To be implemented, this approach requires, on the one hand, that policy-makers become genuinely aware of the profound complexity and seriousness of migration management for the common future of Europeans, assuming it as a critical emergency that must rise above sectoral interests. On the other hand, this approach requires assuming, and contributing to, a profound renewal of democratic processes.