BY PETER WILLIAMS | APRIL 29, 2010

6-MONTH DETENTION
Country: Italy

Immigrant population: 3.9 million

What the law does: Like much of southern
Europe, Italy faces the daunting challenge of
trying to regulate and manage massive migration
inflows from North Africa and the Mediterranean.
In response, the Italian government has instituted various measures aimed at
curbing immigration. One of the harshest, passed by parliament in 2009, penalizes
illegal immigrants with a fine of €5,000-10,000 and allows immigration officials
to detain them for up to 6 months.

Reactions: Suffice it to say that Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's tough new
legislation has done little to allay the rising tension in Italy over immigration and
its role in Italian society. This tension came to a head this January when race
riots erupted in Rosarno, a small town in the southern region of Calabria that is
home to some 20,000 migrant workers, many of whom are African. The riots,
which lasted for two days, left cars destroyed, shops looted, more than 50
immigrants and police officers wounded, and many rioters handcuffed and
detained.

THE "BLACK SHEEP" LAW

Country: Switzerland

Immigrant population: 1.7 million

What the law does: Switzerland's uneasy relationship with its Muslim
immigrant population became very public in recent years thanks to the rise of the
far-right Swiss People's Party (SVP) and the referendum that resulted in a ban on
mosque minarets in 2009. One subject that hasn't been getting as much publicity,
however, is a tough new immigration law proposed by the SVP that is currently
awaiting referendum. The law would allow the Swiss government to immediately
deport all convicted criminals from other countries and -- depending on which
specific provisions of the bill pass -- potentially their family members.
Reactions: After the SVP distributed a now-infamous poster in 2007 depicting
three white sheep kicking out one black sheep above the caption "For More
Security," the U.N. instructed its special rapporteur on racism to request an
official explanation from the government regarding the poster (at the time, the SVP
held a plurality of seats in the Swiss coalition government). Swiss society has
become polarized over the immigration law debate. In 2007, opponents of the bill
formed the short-lived "Black Sheep Committee" to support immigrants rights
-- but enthusiasm for the SVP and its policies continues to grow.

MANDATORY DETENTION
Country: Australia

Immigrant Population: 5.5 million

What the law does: Despite its anything-goes image, Australia has a surprisingly
draconian immigration policy. And none of the country's various immigration laws
is more controversial than the Migration Reform Act of 1992 and its
subsequent amendments, which collectively require the authorities to detain all
non-citizens who are discovered in Australia without a valid visa. Between 1999
and 2003, the law was used to detain more than 2,000 child refugees from
Southeast Asia and the Middle East who were seeking asylum in Australia.
Reactions: The law has seriously irked human rights NGOs. In 2001, Human
Rights Watch sent Prime Minister John Howard a forceful letter arguing that the
legislation "seriously contravenes Australia's obligations to non-citizens, refugees
and asylum seekers under international human rights and refugee law." Three
years later, the Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission
released a report condemning the government for the abuses and human rights
violations child refugees suffered while being detained. Although Kevin Rudd's
government has softened certain provisions of the law, it is still being employed
to intercept and detain illegal immigrants.
THE "NIKKEI" LAW
Country: Japan

Immigrant Population: 1.7 million

What the law does: Japan has long struggled with its demographics and
immigration problems. Although the country's aging population necessitates the
importing of cheap labor, recently the Japanese government has sought to curtail
immigration in an effort to shore up its unprecedentedly high unemployment
figures. The most infamous of Tokyo's new anti-immigration policies is the
"Nikkei" Law. Passed in spring 2009, the law allows the Japanese government to
pay $3,000 to each unemployed Latin American immigrant of Japanese descent
(known as Nikkei in Japanese) and $2,000 to each of that unemployed worker's
family members to return to their country of origin. The catch? These workers and
their family members would be prohibited from ever returning to work in Japan.
An estimated 366,000 Brazilians and Peruvians lived in Japan at the time.

Reactions: Although the law is voluntary, it's nevertheless stirred up a deal of

controversy within Japan. Some support the measure as being economically
prudent, while others, such as Angelo Ishi of Musashi University in Tokyo, describe
the law as "an insult" to Japan's immigrant communities. Much of the Western
press has taken a relatively neutral stance on the issue, aside from Time, which ran
a story with the headline "Japan to Immigrants: Thanks, But You Can Go Home
Now."

DUBAI-STYLE HOSPITALITY
Country: United Arab Emirates

Immigrant population: 3.75 million (83.5 percent of total population)

What the law does: An abundant supply of cheap immigrant labor from
Southeast Asia and India has helped make the UAE a major destination for foreign
direct investment. Yet despite a surge of immigration into the Emirates over the
past decade, the government has yet to reform its many draconian immigration
policies and labor laws. One of the toughest provisions in Emirati immigration law
is the prohibition of foreigners from engaging in any sort of labor union-like
activity. As a result, living conditions are often harsh, including 80-hour work
weeks, back-breaking manual labor, and below-minimum-wage pay. It's not
atypical for immigrants to live in "tiny pre-fabricated huts, 12 men to a room,
forced to wash themselves in filthy brown water and cook in kitchens next to
overflowing toilets."
Reactions: Whereas in the past criticism of UAE immigration and labor law
seemed to come only from human rights NGOs and international organizations like
the U.N., more recently the immigrants themselves have begun to denounce such
laws. Immigrant workers in Dubai have been particularly vocal. In 2006, a group of
blue-collar workers in Dubai held a union meeting and protested the unfair
working and living conditions that their employers subject them to. More recently,
in September 2009, construction workers went on strike and protested in the
streets, demanding higher wages and overtime pay.

Assignment:
Organize the above read information using the following headers for guidance.

Country with the immigration law

Targeted Population

Size of current immigrant population vs. size of country population vs. percent
immigrant

Action Taken or Law created

Reaction to laws