Convivencia and Securitization: Ordering and Managing Migration in Ceuta (Spain)
David Moffette
Abstract
Ceuta is a Spanish city in Northern Morocco. It is thus situated at a European Union border on the African continent. In this context, I contend that migration is generally considered a potential threat to the pacified local order of things by the Christian majority. In order to protect this order of things referred to as convivencia, Christian Ceutíes tend to prefer de-politicizing strategies to manage igration. Nonetheless, migration sometimes becomes highly politicized and is framed as a security issue.
This essay thus suggests that the concept of securitization is relevant to grasp the problematization of migration in times of crisis in Ceuta and analyzes three occurrences of local processes of securitization.
Journal of Legal Anthropology Volume 1 No. 2, 2010:189-211 (available here)
