ABSTRACT
This chapter aims to map the various ways in which contemporary shifts in the nature of territorial and temporal borders, the relations between states, state functions, the role of non-state actors and the political and economic contexts that shape these shifts have impacted on state responses to irregular migration. It argues that irregular migration and state responses can be better understood by combining the insights of criminology and international relations. It is not possible in light of the growing overlap between internal and external security to fully comprehend or respond to the issue of irregular migration without drawing on the frameworks and concepts of both disciplines, a process which is already occurring on a number of levels. The chapter considers an important policy area, the women, peace and security agenda, which states are implementing through global and national action plans, and the notable failure to include displacement from conflict, irregular migration and asylum seekers in these plans.
