“Liberal tide” and migratory patterns in Latin America

Abstract

South-South migration constitutes 40% of international migration flows, with Southern countries receiving three-quarters of the world’s total refugees. Despite this, research efforts have mainly focused on South-North migration, partly filling the gap only recently. We found that the migration patterns in Latin America, at the turn of the century, doubled, growing from 7 million immigrants in 1990 to nearly 15 million in 2020. Of particular interest is the Latin American approach to migration, which has embraced, since 2000, strong narrative based on human rights principles that prevails in discourses, policies, and laws. Key aspects of this approach include recognizing migration as a human right, refraining from criminalizing irregular migration, and ensuring equal protection of social rights. This approach has been defined as the “liberal tide.” The paper illustrates the link between the “liberal tide” and the “pink tide” (left-wing governments). However, the choice of human rights-based liberal migratory policies may also be embedded in the specific migratory patterns of the region. In the late 20th century, the status of Latin America has transformed from a destination for immigrants originating from Europe, Asia, and the Middle East to a region of significant source of migrants engaging in both interregional migration and transoceanic migration (including Europe and Japan). This two-sided migration experience has likely exerted a notable influence on the formulation of liberal policies.