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| During the military dictatorship (1967-74), labour immigrants were recruited, mostly from Egypt, and in the 1980s Filipina nurses were also directly recruited. These were followed in the late 1980s by political refugees from various Eastern European countries and Kurds from Turkey. It was not until the collapse of the Communist regimes in Eastern Europe that Greece experienced mass immigration -- mostly of a clandestine or illegal nature -- from Albania and subsequently (in smaller numbers) from other Balkan states.<ref>''Statistical Data on Immigrants in Greece, Mediterranean Migration Observatory and IMEPO, 2004'', </ref> Albanian migrants constitute some 70% or more of the immigrant population, although a large proportion of them hold "Special Homogeneis Permits" as ethnic Greeks. More recent immigrant groups consist of Asian nationalities -- especially Pakistani and Bangladeshi -- who undertake low-skilled jobs that mostly Greeks refuse to do, with more recent political asylum and/or illegal migration flows through Turkey of Afghans, Iranians, Iraqis, Somali and others. Most recently, increases in such flows have led to the emergence of immigration as a major political issue. | Greece is a largely homogenous country, by virtue of its historical population cleansing and forced assimilation of minorities in the twentieth century -- particularly in northern Greece. Greeks arrived as refugees from the region, whilst Muslims were deported to Turkey in the 1923 Exchange of Populations. Other minorities were intimidated and either assimilated as Greeks or forced to leave Greece. During the military dictatorship (1967-74), labour immigrants were recruited, mostly from Egypt, and in the 1980s Filipina nurses were also directly recruited. These were followed in the late 1980s by political refugees from various Eastern European countries and Kurds from Turkey. It was not until the collapse of the Communist regimes in Eastern Europe that Greece experienced mass immigration -- mostly of a clandestine or illegal nature -- from Albania and subsequently (in smaller numbers) from other Balkan states.<ref>''Statistical Data on Immigrants in Greece, Mediterranean Migration Observatory and IMEPO, 2004'', </ref> Albanian migrants constitute some 70% or more of the immigrant population, although a large proportion of them hold "Special Homogeneis Permits" as ethnic Greeks. More recent immigrant groups consist of Asian nationalities -- especially Pakistani and Bangladeshi -- who undertake low-skilled jobs that mostly Greeks refuse to do, with more recent political asylum and/or illegal migration flows through Turkey of Afghans, Iranians, Iraqis, Somali and others. Most recently, increases in such flows have led to the emergence of immigration as a major political issue, and especially focused on pogroms against immigrants and refugees residing without papers. | ||
Revision as of 21:46, 30 August 2009
Greece is a largely homogenous country, by virtue of its historical population cleansing and forced assimilation of minorities in the twentieth century -- particularly in northern Greece. Greeks arrived as refugees from the region, whilst Muslims were deported to Turkey in the 1923 Exchange of Populations. Other minorities were intimidated and either assimilated as Greeks or forced to leave Greece. During the military dictatorship (1967-74), labour immigrants were recruited, mostly from Egypt, and in the 1980s Filipina nurses were also directly recruited. These were followed in the late 1980s by political refugees from various Eastern European countries and Kurds from Turkey. It was not until the collapse of the Communist regimes in Eastern Europe that Greece experienced mass immigration -- mostly of a clandestine or illegal nature -- from Albania and subsequently (in smaller numbers) from other Balkan states. Albanian migrants constitute some 70% or more of the immigrant population, although a large proportion of them hold "Special Homogeneis Permits" as ethnic Greeks. More recent immigrant groups consist of Asian nationalities -- especially Pakistani and Bangladeshi -- who undertake low-skilled jobs that mostly Greeks refuse to do, with more recent political asylum and/or illegal migration flows through Turkey of Afghans, Iranians, Iraqis, Somali and others. Most recently, increases in such flows have led to the emergence of immigration as a major political issue, and especially focused on pogroms against immigrants and refugees residing without papers.
Reasons for large scale immigration in the 1990s
The reasons for this widespread immigration throughout the 1990s are widespread: the fall of the Soviet Union, compounded with other Balkan problems such as the Yugoslav Wars led to widespread political unrest and political uncertainty not only in the Balkans, but throughout other former Eastern Bloc countries as well. The demography of the region is also of particular interest, both Greece and Italy, which have aging populations, attracted immigration from countries with a younger workforce, the push factor being the latter's inability to find jobs in their home country combined with Greece's need for cheap labour (especially in small scale family businesses, which are still prevalent). Another primary factor in this large scale rise in immigration is also the narrowing of the gap in terms of living standards between Northern Europe and Southern Europe, Greece has become, according to some, an attractive destination to economic migrants because of steady growth rates and EU member status - the presence of an informal economy that pays well has also added to this 'pull' factor in immigration trends. For example, an Albanian worker in Albania is paid on average $3 per hour, whereas he or she can earn anywhere from $6-$10 on average for working an informal sector job within Greece. Greece's large coastline and multiple islands mean that policing the entry of migrants has also become increasingly difficult, as Greece's reliance on Tourism has meant that borders have never been harshly policed (though this has begun to change as with the rest of the continent).
See also
References
- Statistical Data on Immigrants in Greece, Mediterranean Migration Observatory and IMEPO, 2004, Mediterranean Migration Observatory
- Migration News 1997, Droukas, E.
- Recent Immigration to Southern Europe, Iosifides, T. and King, R.
| Immigration to Europe | |
|---|---|
| By target country | |
| Politics and legislation | |
| From Africa | |