EXECUTIVE SUMMARY-Unauthorized1

High levels of irregular or unauthorized migration have accompanied the rise of intraregional migration in Southeast Asia. During the period of economic expansion, irregular migrants moved to the more prosperous economies to take up jobs vacated by the local population and were generally tolerated. The recession in the mid-1980s brought out concerns about the negative impacts of irregular migration. The concerns were rekindled during the economic crisis of 1997, which prompted Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore to tighten their policies against irregular migration. This meant tighter border controls, more punitive sanctions against immigration violators, and in the case of Malaysia and Thailand, undertaking massive repatriation of irregular migrants. The 1997 crisis, however, underscored that the repatriation of irregular migrants did not solve domestic unemployment. Malaysia and Thailand were confronted with a situation of high unemployment simultaneous with labor shortage in the sectors where migrants worked. Meanwhile, in the countries, particularly in the Philippines, policies and measures were also put in place to prevent irregular migration, specifically the illegal recruitment of migrant workers. By themselves, preventive approaches taken by countries of origin, and border control and sanctions undertaken by countries of destination proved to be limited in curbing irregular migration. The rise in trafficking in persons, especially women and children, has also added to the resolve of forging a regional approach to migration. Although there had been many studies on migration in Asia, and in Southeast Asia in particular, very few focused specifically on irregular migration. In examining the issue, we have to recognize that historically, present-day migration is preceded by centuries of population exchange within the region. In more contemporary times, globalization has generated processes that encourage migration, but the control exercised by nation-states over their borders has led to various outcomes, including irregular migration. In framing the study, we considered both countries of origin and destination, and we examined irregular migration alongside legal migration. To advance our understanding of irregular migration beyond the descriptive stage, this study pursued the following objectives: