Abstract
In his first monograph, Alan Gamlen aims at explaining the remarkable rise of diaspora institutions in the late-twentieth and early-twenty-first centuries. As he notes, “diaspora institutions are theoretically surprising because they project domestic policies beyond state borders in ways that seem inconsistent with the territorial definitions of citizenship and sovereignty that underpin the modern international system” (4). While half a century ago, diaspora institutions existed in only 10 states, by 2015, 118 states had at least one, with many retaining several institutions. Through reaching out to their expatriate populations, however, sending states “potentially interfere with the freedom of exit of migrants, with the sovereignty of other states, and with democratic processes of homelands” (245). The implications of these human geopolitics can hardly be underestimated, Gamlen argues, because this rapid diffusion of diaspora institutions is subtly but effectively changing the rules of world politics.
Gamlen’s research approach combines an institutional theoretical perspective with the employment of a particular vocabulary (human geopolitics, policy mobilities) that builds conceptually on political geography. Empirically, he opts for a mixed-method approach including original interview data collected in a wide array of countries and a large quantitative dataset. These elements make the book a welcome contribution to the young field of diaspora and emigration policy studies, which has been dominated by descriptive studies and single-case research and where conceptual linkages with mainstream political and social theory are underdeveloped.
The book’s structure follows one of the author’s central arguments that the rise of diaspora institutions can be best understood by making a distinction between three successive phases in the late-twentieth and early-twenty-first centuries — phases that are defined by shifting macropolitical conditions (from a “world of nations” to a “world of regions” to a “governed globe”) and, as a result, by varying rationalities for the creation of these institutions. Across chapters, Gamlen discusses a wide variety of cases which include “usual suspects” like Israel, Mexico, Eritrea, and India, as well as lesser-known cases. The book’s coherence benefits from Gamlen’s skillful description of the particular local contexts in which diaspora institutions have been created while also demonstrating how their genesis is related to major global and regional political tendencies and events. The outcome is a work that reads as a retelling of recent world history through a diaspora institution lens. The creation of diaspora institutions is linked with, among other themes, postcolonialism, the defeat of fascism, the birth of the state of Israel, the disintegration of the Soviet-Russian empire, democratization processes worldwide, regional integration in Europe and elsewhere, and the development of a global migration regime. The book’s most important theoretical contributions are situated in the final chapters, which discuss the role of international organizations and policy mobility in the rise of diaspora institutions worldwide. A major conclusion is that the key driver of the global rise of diaspora policies is the United Nation’s ambition to create a global governance regime for migration.
A particular strength of the book is that the author develops a balanced viewpoint on the merits and demerits of diaspora policies by not only highlighting some of the opportunities they create (in line with the “migration optimists” who tend to emphasize the developmental advantages) but also pointing at their risks. Human geopolitics, for example, may resuscitate ethnonationalism and become a stepping stone to territorial competition, as illustrated by the Russian–Ukrainian conflict over the Crimea.
While the overall argument is well founded, some elements in the book could have been explored more. For instance, how to explain that despite the current favorable global migration regime, many states still do not have diaspora institutions? In addition, diaspora policies in some countries (such as Italy, Poland, and France) were initiated well before World War II (see Smith 2003). While these earlier policies might be exceptional, the author could have situated them in relation to his central framework. Finally, Gamlen’s analysis sometimes could have engaged more deeply with relevant scholarly discussions in the field, such as the ideas raised in Bauböck and Faist’s 2010 edited book or by Ragazzi (2014).
However, Gamlen’s Human Geopolitics remains an important and highly recommendable read for anyone looking for a fresh, thought-provoking perspective on international governance and migration policies. Especially for migration scholars focusing on immigration policies and for policymakers interested in international migration, this book is a must, because it reveals alternative viewpoints on international migration — that is, the origin states' perspectives.