Human beings, including Europeans, have migrated throughout history and continue doing so. Migration is, therefore, not a problem; it is part of humanity. What is a problem is failing to understand why people migrate and using recent refugee flows from war-torn countries such as Syria, Iraq and Libya to politicise and militarise the whole issue.

Instead of being locked in crowded camps surrounded by barbed wire, the 1.2 million refugees in Uganda are given large plots of land in sprawling settlements to build homes or, if they like, small farms. If agrarian life isn’t for them, they can move freely around the country, traveling to towns or to the bustling capital of Kampala, which 95,000 refugees call their home.

Why do African governments seem unable to create jobs for their teeming throngs of young people, who are then forced to make dangerous journeys abroad in search of a better life? Wrong economic models. In addition, nations waste resources through corruption and investing in huge militaries and police forces often deployed against dissidents. Crooked leaders collude with the West to steal Africa’s resources to develop Europe. So, what would stop young people from following African stolen resources to the West?

Many people from African countries, especially the youth, leave their homes in hope for a better life. The Global North contributes to these migration movements in various direct and indirect ways, from destroying the livelihoods of farmers and fisher (wo)men to the changing climate. Under these conditions migration is often the only way for young people to survive.

After having overcome various obstacles on their dangerous routes, migrants and refugees are confronted with bad living conditions in isolated housing facilities in Europe. Refugee women are especially affected by this, as they are double victims to both systematic racism and sexism.

The European project of closing down the borders ensures that ever more people migrate to the North due to a lack of alternatives. The theatre director Riadh Ben Ammar is committed to the idea of freedom of movement and has created a theatre play to promote the topic. In this interview, he argues that people would not permanently stay in Europe if everyone would be able to move legally between Southern and Northern countries.

The majority of refugees comes from war and conflict zones, illegitimate states, areas of natural disasters and economically weak countries. In many cases, companies from the West destroy people’s livelihoods by acting ruthlessly. In Nigeria, the oil extraction and production has devastating consequences for the people living in the Niger Delta. But the Geneva Convention on Refugees is not effective in this case.

The current racist agitations against refugees and their homes cannot be separated from the laws which for decades have put migrants into camps and collective housing. The historical perspective on German immigration politics shows how discourses of distinctive national identities and legislative change mutually reinforce one another.

Migration is as old as Africa itself. People have always moved in search of a better life. The economic crisis in Africa fueled by development policies imposed on the continent by the World Bank, IMF and other donors is one of the factors forcing some Africans to undertake dangerous journeys to Europe in an attempt to improve their lot.

A passport seems like something natural and like an obvious necessity in the 21st century. A brief review of history, however, shows that this powerful piece of paper is a result of a rather recent development, that is closely related to colonialism and the emergence of nation states.