ABSTRACT
Chapter 8 discusses the European migration crisis. In the wake of the said crisis, the question appeared: Was it exceptional because of the numbers and the violence associated with immigration, or was the year one in a chain of postcolonial moments of our time? Amnesia in the continent over past waves of immigration similarly dubbed as “crises” reigned as states began building fences in frenzy. The chapter explains the postcolonial footprints over Europe’s migration crisis. It shows how the relation between a national and a continental management of population mobility has become uneven and tumultuous and has made the management of migrant population an increasingly complex exercise. The overall consequence is a crisis of governance. It reflects in a crisis of humanitarianism also, on which governance of mobility flows builds. European experiences of managing population flows bring out the neo-liberal truth that humanitarian management has to be efficient and must produce efficient result. This explains Europe’s increasing reliance on the technological evolution of the continent’s border regime and protection strategy, which aims to make the humanitarian also the efficient. These governing strategies draw overwhelmingly on the colonial repository of population management and border strategies including management of maritime boundaries.
