Keywords: temporary migration, Activism, Transnational, networks, organisations, transinstitutional temporary migration, rights activism, organisations, networking, transnational, trans-institutional

Temporary contract migration schemes have experienced a revival in Europe. Such schemes mean that a significant number of migrant workers have limited access to rights and entitlements, let alone full citizenship. The temporary nature of their migration poses obstacles to traditional ways of organising workers. This changing landscape of migration dynamics, thus, requires a changing landscape of migrant rights activism also.

The focus in this paper is on collective activism by social justice organisations and their engagement with, and handling of, the subject matter of migrant workers' rights. Based on insights from scholars working on social movements and transnational advocacy networks, I argue that a trans-national and trans-institutional perspective is required in addressing temporary migrants' socio-economic and legal insecurities, and it is the concept of the 'network' which captures best these interactions between multiple actors at multiple sites.

Introduction

Temporary contract migration poses a particular challenge for political activism on behalf of and by migrant workers. Policies of temporary or seasonal admission schemes which involve rising numbers of migrants have experienced a recent revival in Europe and North America, new birth in Australia and persistent continuity in Asia 1 . Although temporary migrants are comprised of highly skilled and lower skilled 2 workers, the latter constitute the numerical majority. This means that there are a substantial number of foreign workers with increasingly limited access to traditional rights and entitlements, let alone full citizenship (Wickramasekara 2008). This is likely to have implications for rights activism by civil society organisations involved in campaigning for greater social and economic justice in general and of migrants in specific (Grugel and Piper 2007;Piper 2008a). In fact, based on the insecure and temporary nature of migration, the type of rights prioritised by migrants and the organisations representing them tend to revolve around specific human rights, that is labour rights, rather than conventional citizenship rights.

As indicated in the phrase 'rights activism', instead of providing a legalistic or normative discussion of 'rights', I shift the focus to the role of collective organisations in promoting a rights agenda and their way of operating in the attempt to influence policy making. In the realm of work, the labour movement through trade unions and relevant non-governmental organisations (NGOs) constitutes an important vehicle for the representation of workers' interests. The main problem for foreign workers, however, has been their status as non-citizens. Given trade unions' historical antiimmigration stance based on their focus on the national or indigenous workforce (see e.g. Briggs 2001), migrants have often been excluded from membership and collective political struggle until they firmly settle into the 'new' society and/or dominate certain sectors of the labour market. The feminisation of migration and women's position in mainly informal sector jobs is another area that trade unions have historically neglected or struggled with (Piper 2008b). Moreover, in the light of changing migration reality, with the revival or expansion of temporary contract schemes, conventional trade union practices do not work for many economic migrants. As a [START_REF] Ford | Migrant Labor NGOs and Trade Unions: A Partnership in Progress?[END_REF]Piper and Ford 2006). More recently, trade unions have also begun to turn around and now actively support the inclusion and rights of all migrants.

The focus in this paper is on collective activism via organisations and their engagement with, and handling of, the subject matter of migrant workers' rights in the context of temporary migration schemes. The changing landscape of migration patterns, characterised by greater fluidity and complexity, requires a changing landscape of migrant rights activism also. I therefore argue that a trans-national and trans-institutional perspective is required in addressing migrants' socio-economic and legal insecurities -theoretically as well as on the operational, that is to mean here: organisational, level. My discussion will be based on an analytical framework which bridges sociological literature on social movements and networks with works from within migration studies on political mobilisation of migrants and transnationalism at the meso level of organisations that defend migrant rights. I argue that a focus on networks captures best the transnational as well as trans-institutional activities that are beginning to emerge and are necessary to defend the rights of temporary migrants. The examples given draw mainly on the European context with some reference made to the situation in Asia also. In this regard, the (re-)emergence of temporary and seasonal migration can arguably be described as a converging policy of almost global outreach.

Temporary Migration and Challenges to Political Activism

Both the volume and patterns of economic migration have undergone important changes during the last decade. In Europe and elsewhere, demographic, economic and labour-market related trends have resulted in the increased demand for skilled foreigners (e.g. in the health and care sector) and the revival or intensification of temporary ('guest worker') migration schemes (Ruhs 2006;Castles 2006;Piper 2008c). According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), Europe constitutes the region with the largest volume of migrant workers (27.5 million or 34%), followed by Asia with 22.1 million or 27% foreign labour (ILO 2004:7). Asia contrasts with Europe and traditional immigration countries in that governments of destination countries in Asia practice temporary migration schemes only (with few exceptions) and, thus, at least officially prevent migrants (especially those classified as lower skilled) from settling and reuniting with their families in the host country 2 .

Since the 1990s Europe, and the UK in particular, has begun to re-open channels for economic migration in 'new' sectors that attract, or are in need of, migrant workers. This is now taking place as part of the policy discourse of 'managed migration' which puts the emphasis on control issues rather than rights protection (Grugel and Piper The trend towards greater diversification of migration categories and flows has also become part of the traditional 'settler' countries' experience where migration has become less permanent. There are more temporary migrants today than before, and in addition, there is also more out-migration of 'native' citizens from these 'settler' countries, as work on the Australian expatriates, for instance, has shown (Hugo et al. 2003). Diversification also plays out geographically: recent studies on newly arrived migrants in the UK have shown that the preponderance to concentrate in the South/Southeast of England is less noticeable today than in the 1990s (TUC 2007) and more migrants now reside and work in smaller towns and rural counties all over the UK, including Wales (e.g. [START_REF] Drinkwater | MICHELE 2004 'Organizing the unorganizable: Unions, NGOs and Indonesian migrant labour[END_REF]. The landscape of migration has become more diverse in Europe as the result of EU enlargement also. In the latter case, it is to date unclear whether newly arrived migrants from Eastern Europe constitute part of a trend or a short-term phenomenon (TUC 2007). At the lower skilled end, many of these migrants end up working in a narrow range of sectors, especially in agriculture, construction and food packaging/processing as well documented in the case of the UK (Markova and Black 2007;TLWG 2007;TUC 2007). Domestic work has proven to be an increasingly important 'sector' in Europe, Asia, and North America and, thus, constitutes a vital employment opportunity for newly arrived women. Migrant workers' location within specific sectors of the (formal or informal) labour market and the temporary nature of their migration status usually entail certain legal and economic constraints. This is likely to have implications for migrant rights' advocacy work by civil society organisations and political mobilisation of migrants.

Temporary Migrants and concomitant rights issues

Lower skilled temporary migrant workers, who form the numerical majority of economic migrants in Europe and Asia, are more vulnerable to rights violations as opposed to the skilled, largely based on the specific position they occupy within labour markets. They are highly represented in the informal sectors which are not unionised, or in sectors where labour standards are often not applied (or do not even exist, as in much of Asia). This affects local workers also and is often the reason why they shun these jobs.

The key issues and concerns for temporary foreign workers which centre upon workplace grievances can be broadly classified under two headings: 1) employment related, and 2) welfare, occupational health and safety issues. Employment-related issues are mainly about non-payment or under-payment of wages and unauthorised APRO 2003;TLWG 2007;TUC 2007). The latter includes work-related injuries and accidents as well as physical/sexual abuse (as encountered by foreign domestic workers, or FDWs). Official statistics on numbers and types of the various workplace grievances are rare and mostly non-existent, and so are systematic studies or recording activities by NGOs. The higher skilled migrants are often subject to deskilling or downgrading faced with barriers to promotion (e.g. Bauder 2005).

According to a multi-country study on Asia (Verité 2005) which covers Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines Thailand, Taiwan, Jordan and Malaysia, the list of common abuses against foreign contract labourers were excessive overtime, improper wage payments and withholding of wages. Despite the widespread existence of legislation limiting fees for service, placement or recruitment, fees charged were nevertheless excessive in practice in two regards: they exceed legal limits and often accounted for a large portion of a worker's earnings. This discrepancy between law and actual practice has to do with the absence of formal legal mechanisms for governing the payment of placement fees (with the exception of Vietnam). The report, therefore, concludes that the level of indebtedness of foreign contract workers pertains to 'debtbondage' consistent with the United Nations (UN) definition of human trafficking.

A recent study in the UK has pointed to fairly similar problems categorised into two groups: 1. critical non-compliances and 2. major non-compliances. Under the first, failure to pay the minimum wage appears as fairly widespread and so is the overcharging of weekly payments for accommodation as well as the lack of 9 accommodation, and work permits tied to a specific employer or sector (including live-in arrangements for domestic workers). All of this renders migrants vulnerable and insecure, hence reluctant to voice complaints. An additional problem is the violation of freedom of association which is widespread in Asia for local as well as foreign workers (Piper 2006). In Europe, the problem tends to be of informal, rather than formal, barriers that hamper greater unionisation of migrant workers.

Political mobilisation of temporary migrants

The situation of temporary contract workers today poses a marked difference to what the existing literature on political mobilisation of migrants has highlighted, including trade unions' responses 6 . One of the elements which distinguish contemporary flows from earlier waves of (post-war) migration to the North is the institutional and structural context of weaker unions and deregulated labour markets in which current temporary migration occurs. Few studies have explored the specifics surrounding the organisational support structure for this particular group of migrants, and those which do are mostly on intra-Asian migration (Ford 2004, Piper 2006, Wee and Sim 2005) or the US context (Chun 2008).

With regard to these contemporary developments, unions increasingly have to own up to the reality that temporary migrant workers play an increasingly important role in regional and national labour markets beyond the mere filling of jobs -migrants also work to discipline domestic labour in a number of ways (Sharma 2006). In this context, trans-institutional and transnational networking is a vital form of organising, as I argue here. whether at the local, national, regional or global levels. When they participate in the labour market, they can be found at the very bottom of the hierarchy, performing work nobody else wants to do in sectors such as agriculture, domestic work, in factories which are at the bottom of global production chains, and sex tourism. They are often 'undocumented'. Their issues and concerns are often hidden from mainstream society and the attention of the wider public. There is still little public awareness of their day-to-day roles in society and the economy. As a result, they suffer high levels of social exclusion and are targets of low, if any, social spending. "(T)heir transnationality (being simultaneous 'constituents' of both origin and destination countries) means that state responsibilities are difficult to attribute and easy to evade" (Grugel and Piper, 2007:152). The result is that migrants are among those groups of marginalised people who face immense difficulties in winning, for themselves, a discursive recognition of their rights.

The concept of social movement -with its emphasis firmly placed upon bottom-up citizen protest -is useful to highlight the importance of advocacy as an act to galvanise support for marginalised groups in society. But the concept itself has its limitations, as argued by Sikkink who sees its main failure in not portraying accurately the full range of actors involved in social justice and human rights issues beyond specific types of civil society organisations (1993). She refers to this broader set of organisations as an "international issue network", an idea further developed by her and Keck in their seminal work on "transnational advocacy networks" (Keck and Sikkink 1998). Similarly, I have elsewhere established the argument for a focus on What these approaches have in common is reference to NGOs and other civil society organisations, including trade unions, as important actors in advocacy and political activism. Where they convert is in treating them mainly as domestic actors (such as [START_REF] Avci | Chipping Away at the Fortress: Unions, Immigration and the Transnational Labour Market[END_REF], on trade unions) or explicitly as transnational actors (see Herod, 2007, on unions as transnational players). In the case of temporary migration in particular, taking a transnational perspective is paramount.

Transnationalism in migration scholarship

Transnational perspectives have also been developed by migration scholars in a variety of ways, a full summary of which goes beyond the scope of this paper. The transnationalisation of labour markets together with the rise in temporary migration schemes requires us to adopt a transnational approach also to the issue of political representation and activism of migrants as workers.

By highlighting the increasingly transnational workforce and transnational overlapping of societies, Johnston (2001) makes direct reference to immigrant labour, documented and undocumented, in his work on labour as part of a broader citizenship movement in the US. This, according to him, requires a re-conceptualisation of conventional perspectives on citizenship. New approaches and strategies are needed Recent transnational perspectives that introduce an understanding of migration as involving social processes that bridge countries of origin and destination also include the realm of politics (Sørensen et al., 2002). Ǿstergaard-Nielsen (2002), for instance, discusses how politics in the country of origin filter into political activism in the country of destination but this tends to be mostly about so-called 'homeland' politics.

She argues that transnational political networks engage in democratic processes in Turkey and Germany by using 'democracy' as a variable that allows for the differential effectiveness of political networks in each country. Thus, transnationalism emerges in her analysis also as an obstacle in policy making and implementation.

What remains, however, largely is missing in studies on political transnationalism is a consideration for the role of the labour movement and the role of traditional worker organisations, i.e. trade unions, in responding transnationally to the situation of increasing numbers of temporary migrant workers. This 'missing link' to trade unions has partly to do with the little engagement that trade unions have so far made with this specific group of migrants. The short-term nature of such migratory flows has implications for traditional approaches to 'membership' in trade unions in the destination countries. Another reason is that migrants tend to work in sectors that are regarded as impossible to organise or in jobs that are not recognised as 'proper' work, have begun to embark upon reform processes as evident from slogans such as "unions without borders" [START_REF] Bacon | Unions Without Borders[END_REF]Kloosterboer, 2007;Piper and Ford 2006). I return to this below.

Networks

Within migration studies, network theory has mostly been approached from sociocultural and/or spatial perspectives, whereby the political sphere at the meso level of organisations has not yet received sufficient attention (Piper, 2008b;Pries 2007).

Social movement scholars and political scientists working on advocacy networks, on the other hand, have investigated the transnational sphere of such network activities and the transnational nature of the issues advocated for, as well as the transnational form of such activism 8 , but hardly beyond the context of NGOs, neglecting trade unionism and, thus, an important element of collective political action. Migrant worker organising has, therefore, not sufficiently been looked at from a transnational nor trans-institutional perspective. In migration studies, network theory has mainly been applied at the individual level to analyse migrants' decision making, flows of As mentioned above, there is a great deal of academic writing on the subject of trade union reforms but a detailed summary goes beyond the scope of this article 9 .

Conceptually the most interesting and relevant contributions as far as this paper is concerned is the work by Waterman ( 2003) on social movement unionism and Johnston (2001) on 'labour as citizenship movement'. These concepts, amongst other, allude to the issue that having a 'voice' at the workplace does not necessarily translate into having voice over other relevant public policy areas which relates to the point made above about the need to cooperate with other advocacy organisations. Waterman (2003Waterman ( , 2005))'s notion of 'social movement unionism' is based on the broad argument that the crisis of trade unionism is rooted in the fact that the labour movement is still understood in organisational/institutional terms when it needs to be understood in networking/communicational ones (as new social movements have done). Both he and Johnston argue that, although labour is not the only source for social change, it constitutes an important ally and would achieve its full potential if aligned with other democratic social movements. With traditional workers and unions no longer being the norm of political struggle for social justice, labour movements have to rethink their way of operating. Justice' or fair wage campaigns where coalitions between trade unions, grass root or community organisations and university staff/students were formed [START_REF] Aguiar | Janitors and sweatshop citizenship in Canada[END_REF]Savage 2006). Trade unions themselves have also published documents acknowledging the need for a social movement unionism approach and "comprehensive campaigning" that is to focus not only on workers' direct material interests but to include broader issues such as human rights and social justice by forming coalitions with an array of community organisations. For example, the Dutch FNV has identified the organising the low wage service economy with it is high share of ethnic minority or migrant workers as an important element of their political activities (Kloosterboer, 2007, p. 22).

Recent studies on migrant worker NGOs in the Southeast Asian context have argued on a similar line: that regular collaboration with trade unions would enhance NGOs' advocacy efforts and vice versa (Piper and Ford 2006). The specific situation of many migrant workers highlights the importance of organisational representation and the formation of alliances as well as networks across space, institutions and issuespecificism (human rights, women's rights, workers' rights) to address the complexity of migrants' rights. In the Philippines, the notion of social movement unionism is well integrated, yet open web of organisational networks, with the potential to address an array of issues that pertain to migrants as workers, as members of families and communities (Piper 2008a). The networking form, premised on the existence of relevant organisations or the capacity to establish new ones, is, thus, also a futureoriented concept -and in this sense normative and prescriptive.

Examples of such complex networks

Networks to support and advocate for migrant workers are being instigated by unions or other civil society organisations, depending on the specific type of migrant or the type of work these migrants are involved in. As far as trade unions are concerned, national union centres in the western world seem at the forefront of new initiatives on incorporating migrant workers into the labour movement, based to a large extent on the decrease in membership of traditional constituents. This has also to do with the fact that they are still blessed with larger pools of resources that many unions in the non-western world cannot draw on. Also, in Europe, the regional trade union structure clearly is also a reflection of, or a response to, the institutional set-up of the European Union 10 .

In Europe, trade unions have also begun to engage in concrete forms of transnational networking to support and protect migrant workers. One such example is the concerned with domestic worker related concerns, but also health and other migration issues. As a follow up to a regional summit on domestic workers in 2002, CARAM Asia adopted the 'Colombo Declaration' listing rights of domestic workers. This summit was attended not only by NGOs from within Asia but also trade unions. The Europe-wide network RESPECT (which stands for Rights, Equality, Solidarity, Power, Europe, Co-operation, Today) was set up in 1998 to campaign on very similar issues -to boost the respect and recognition of domestic workers' rights. This network also involves trade unions.

The coalition building activities across various nationality groups and different types of organisations to campaign on behalf of foreign domestic workers have been particularly well documented in the context of Hong Kong (Law 2002;Wee and Sim 2005). Asia is also interesting with regard to an ever expanding regional network of migrant worker associations which form the Migrant Forum in Asia (MFA), headquartered in Manila. Trade unions have begun to be part of this network too which is also part of an international network, Migrant Rights International (MRI) based in Geneva.

The probably oldest and most extensive European network of social and economic justice NGOs that has included migrant worker organisations is SOLIDAR which was founded in 1948 (then under a different name) and comprises of 42 members in 20 countries in Europe and beyond. This networks works in alliance with trade unions, the labour movement and various civil society organisations including think tanks and foundations such as the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (which is also active on migrant International Migration Review,vol. 40,no. 4,pp. 741 and Pacific Migration Journal, vol. 14, no. 9, pp. 359-380 PIPER, NICOLA 2005a 'Transnational ADDRESS: Department of Geography, Wallace Building, Swansea University, Singleton Park, Swansea SA2 8PP, UK. Email: n.piper@swansea.ac.uk 1 For a fairly detailed account of the various policy schemes in those regions, see Ruhs (2006). 2 However, some European countries also prohibit migrant domestic workers from reuniting with their families at their destinations. Notable exceptions are Italy and Spain. And Asian governments tacitly allow the presence of migrant workers over longer periods of term (often whole families in an undocumented manner) without officially recognition of settlement and official integration policies (Piper 2008b).

3 According to a more recent report by the Migration Advisory Committee (2008), however, it appears as if migrants (at least as far as those from the A8 countries are concerned) are more evenly distributed throughout the UK economy than suggested by the TUC report. 4 This is often the case for local domestic workers as much as for foreign domestic workers, hence not

  and other civil society organisations have been filling the gap as service providers and advocates

  has become a significant phenomenon in many parts of this world, having experienced a revival in Europe after the official 'zero migration' policies following the early 1970s, a new birth in traditional settler countries such as North America and Australia, and continuation in Asia (including the Gulf countries).

  The more or less systematic recruitment along skilled-lower skilled categories entails an increasing bifurcation between these two categories in the ease of migration between countries and accessing labour markets as well as other resources. A recent report by the Trade Union Congress (TUC) in the UK has found that migrant workers tend to be at either end of the spectrum: in professional work or what they refer to as 'routine jobs' and, thus, to a lesser extent in intermediate jobs(TUC 2007) 3 . The increasing bifurcation between skilled and less skilled migration is part of the promotion of 'knowledge economies', a concept that has been transposed into migration policies by differentiating between bearers of distinct forms of human capital (Kofman 2007).

  to do with welfare, occupational health and safety are concerns pertaining to accommodation, long working hours and workplace hazards (ICFTU-

  and not overcrowded housing. The second category includes, amongst other, deductions from salary without written consent and the non-issuing (or incomplete issuing) of contracts(TLWG 2007).With domestic work being a highly significant source of legal employment for foreign women and the continuing demand for such services, it deserves special mention.Legal status (work permit) does not automatically mean coverage by labour standards laws. In fact, domestic work is widely excluded from national labour legislation around the globe 4 . Foreign domestic workers or carers (typically women) do commonly not fall under national employment acts whereas foreign workers in industries such as construction and manufacturing are usually covered by industrial relations legislation(Piper 2005b).With regard to employment or labour rights of temporary workers, of grave concerns for rights activists are breach of contract and the non-or under-payment of wages.The notion of 'portable justice' captures the problem when contracted or undocumented migrants are sent back 'home' or deported without being paid their wages, and the difficulties involved in claiming grievance in labour courts or labour standards offices when physically absent (Caron 2005) 5 . Often, when temporary contract migrants lose their job (even in cases of unfair dismissal) they are made to return home and, as a result, have no channels available for recourse.To sum up, the almost universal problems related to work faced by migrant workers, especially those with temporary or seasonal status, are non-or underpayment of wages (not migrant specific), work contracts tied to (often inadequate and overprized)

  downscaling of trade unions' relevance, a rise in the numbers of migrant associations and NGOs can be witnessed globally advocating more specifically for migrants' labour rights regardless of their legal status and the jobs they perform. Thus, NGOs have addressed the precarious position of many migrant workers in informal (and often feminised) 'sector' jobs typically not tackled by trade unions[START_REF] Ford | Southern sites of female agency: informal regimes and female migrant labour resistance in East and Southeast Asia[END_REF] Piper 2008d).In order to incorporate migrant workers into the overall political struggle to uphold workers' rights in general and to address temporary or undocumented migrants' specific grievances, recent studies have argued for a need to enhance collaboration between trade unions and migrant organisations to build upon, or complement, their respective strengths and weaknesses(Piper and Ford 2006). Cross-organisational collaboration has also been identified as important in the context of 'portable justice' 7 (Grugel and Piper 2007). Migrant worker organisations can benefit from trade union structures as unions tend to have the financial leverage and political clout to force "governments to govern" and to institute their own legislation to support migrants' rights. In turn, it has been suggested that organising foreign workers can lead to a reinvigoration of the overall labour movement(Piper 2005a; Campbell 2006). In this sense, trade unions and NGOs are indispensable allies of not only migrant workers but all workers. How can this work in practice and what kind of emerging trends are we witnessing? These are questions I return to below.Bridging perspectives on migrant activism: social movements and transnational activismMigrants, especially temporary contract workers, are without doubt among the most marginalised and invisible, especially in policy terms(Grugel and Piper 2007). There

  to their organisation into effective social movements,

  as it allows the inclusion of many different types of actors and thus, leads to an open or expansive perspective on advocacy networks (Piper and Uhlin 2004).

  problems faced by migrant workers in their role as foreigners as well as labourers in certain sectors that are associated with the "three Ds" (dangerous, difficult, dirty), epitomised by the construction sector, agriculture, sweatshop and domestic work. There is growing realisation that 'coalitions of organisations' can exert far more influence than single organisations by themselves.

  case of domestic work which is often explicitly excluded from national labour laws. To operate transnationally, however, is vital in two regards: (1) to assist migrants in claiming their labour rights and address widespread malpractices on the part of employers; (1) to direct political activism not only toward destination governments' policies, but also origin governments' policies. Yet, to date, trade unions have by and large tended to be more nationally oriented. The political void left by trade unions has to some extent been filled by NGOs. But more recently, unions

  geographic direction of migratory movements. There is very little work that maps out the 'politics of migration' in terms of the involvement of multiple organisations (NGOs, migrant associations, and trade unions) from a national as well as transnational network perspective.

  of social movement unionism has in fact been developed in the case of a number of non-western countries, most notably South Korea and South Africa, it has also been employed by western scholars to argue for the much needed revitalisation and reform of conventional trade unionism in the west (Moody 1998). A few scholars based in the US and Canada have made reference to similar notions in the specific context of immigrants under the heading of 'community unionism' (e.g. Cranford and Ladd 2003), or by discussing specific campaigns such as 'Janitors for

  trade unionists, even if in practical terms it has not been realized based on a number of obstacles[START_REF] Alcid | NGO-labor union cooperation in the promotion of the rights and interests of landbased overseas Filipino workers[END_REF]).To recap, I have argued for an analytical framework which builds upon and expands social movement scholarship by emphasizing the importance of trans-institutional networking in order for migrant rights activism to gain more strength and, thus, greater influence on policy making and implementation. This is analytically well captured by the notion of 'social movement unionism'. The two crucial sets of organisations which constitute the major elements of social movement unionism are trade unions and social justice NGOs. By extending this to the transnational sphere, this type of political activism reflects the nature of migration, especially temporary migration. The manner of operationalising is in form of networks and alliances, built within and across borders.A number of scholars have, in fact, emphasised the importance of NGO-trade union alliance in order to revive, or enhance, the effectiveness of collective organising and demonstrated by way of concrete examples or case studies an emerging trend in this direction (see Gallin on 'necessary partnership[START_REF] Avci | Chipping Away at the Fortress: Unions, Immigration and the Transnational Labour Market[END_REF] Development in Practice, special issue 2004 on 'trade union and NGO relations'; Piper and Ford, 2006, on 'partnership in progress' in the context of migrant workers). What emerges in these works as a common thread, as well as those concepts discussed above on civil society's influence on public policy, in a more or less explicit manner is the significance of networks -transnationally as well as across organisations.

  notion of social movement unionism to the concept of networks, civil society organisations involved in migrant rights advocacy are situated within an

  migrant worker branch by the TGUW in Southampton which caters for newly arrived Polish workers. In addition to organising Polish migrants who have come to the UK as part of the latest wave of A8 nationals -facilitated by the hiring of a Polish speaking trade unionist -this union is said to attempt to link up with unions in Poland also(Campbell 2006). Another such example is the newly established European Migrant Workers Union that was founded by the IG Bau (Germany's Trade Union for Building, Forestry, Agriculture and the Environment) in 2004 as the first such organisation to be formed within the European trade union movement. This new union addresses posted and seasonal workers in all industries, with specific focus on migrant workers in agriculture and construction in its initial phase. The aim is to provide those workers with legal assistance and advice, support them in the event of sickness or accident and help them to receive correct payment for work done and promote the provision of better accommodation. This new organisations concentrates its activities also on migrant workers from Poland and the aim is to set up offices in all the countries of origin of migrant workers, with the first being in Poland. These initiatives, thus, clearly involve a transnational dimension in their organisational networking.With regard to trans-institutional alliances and networks, the domestic worker NGO Kalayaan in London successfully campaigned for regularisation and independent migration status for foreign domestic workers who had become overstayers in the UK, and one contributing factor to this success was the close and consistent working relationship with the Transport and General Workers Union (RESPECT 1998).Domestic worker supporting networks have also been formed across regions of which CARAM Asia and RESPECT are two examples. The former which stands for Research on AIDS and Mobility is not only exclusively

  Asia, see[START_REF] Barriga | Engaging with Migration Issues: The Work of FES in the Philippines and Southeast Asia[END_REF]). SOLIDAR's activities are concentrated in the field of social policy, employment and development with specific campaigns revolving around "Decent Work for a Decent Life" and "Take Part!", a migration specific project undertaken between June 2006 and December 2007 with the broad aim of starting a dialogue between NGOs involved in providing services to migrants and migrant organisations. Among its findings are that the involvement of migrant organisations in the selected EU countries is still insufficient and unstructured, with the result of duplication of efforts and even competition for funding.What remains unclear from these examples are the specific dynamics involved in networking transnationally and trans-institutionally, leaving questions such as the extent to which these alliances and coalitions are built in view of long-term relationships that go beyond individual campaigns unanswered.ConclusionInternational migration poses a new challenge in the subject area of migrants' rights activism and the way forward seems to lie in transnational and trans-institutional networking and coalition building among migrant associations and trade unions which have key leadership roles to play in generating strategies, common approaches and in mobilising societies to ensure the fair and equal treatment of migrant workers. Given the increasingly restrictive migration policies by destination countries globally, the position of temporary contract workers and the undocumented have the potential to reinvigorate labour activism if organisations were to overcome institutional and other barriers. The way forward for the various organisations involved in labour activism seems "to go transnational" and engage in networking across institutions. This links up to the argument made for a broader social movement unionism based on inter-organisational networking between trade unions and other social justice organisations as well as intra-organisational networking across national borders ('unions without borders') in order to revive the labour movement more generally.Yet, despite emerging studies in the area of transnational migrant politics and organisational networks by or on behalf of migrants, many questions are still unaddressed and deserve further exploration. For example, how exactly the transnational nature of migration is reflected in the transnational and transinstitutional operating of social justice organisations -and the obstacles involved -is an issue that deserves more attention. Sector-specific studies in particular would enhance our understanding of the opportunities and obstacles to specific partnership models. The significance of other civil society groups (e.g. lawyer associations, faith-based organisations, professional associations) as actors in promoting migrants' rights and their positioning within existing nodes and networks remain an unexplored issue also.Last but not least, the precise nature, feasibility, and sustainability of social movement unionism in the transnational context of temporary contract migration requires further research (as also argued by Vandenberg 2006).

  are still significant conceptual and empirical gaps in our knowledge that revolve around the feasibility and practicality of transnational policy making and the role of organisations in migrant rights advocacy and service provisioning.

  2005 'Barriers Blocking the integration of Foreign-Trained Immigrant Professionals', Research Papers, University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada. (http://www.uoguelph.ca/geography.research/ffw/papers/immigrant_credentials.pdf), accessed 11 March 2008 BRIGGS, CHRIS 2001 Immigrants, Unions, and the New U.S. Labor Market, Temple University Press, Philadelphia CAMPBELL, DAVID (2006), 'Poles are bringing solidarity back into fashion in Britain', The Guardian, December 6, 2006, p. 32 CARON, CATHLEEN 2005 Global Workers Require Global Justice: The Portability of Justice Challenge for Migrants in the USA. Discussion Paper, Committee on Migrant Workers, Day of General Discussion on Protecting the Rights of all Migrant Workers as a Tool to Enhance Development, 15 December 2005, Geneva CASTLES, STEPHEN 2006 'Guestworkers in Europe: A Resurrection?',

  Politics and the Organising of MigrantLabour in Southeast Asia -NGO and Trade Union Perspectives',Asia-Pacific Population Journal, vol. 20, no. 3, pp. 87-110 PIPER, NICOLA 2005b 'Rights of Foreign Domestic Workers -Emergence of Transnational and Transregional solidarity?', Asian and Pacific Migration Journal, vol. 14, no. 1-2, pp. 97-120 PIPER, NICOLA and FORD, MICHELE (eds) 2006 'Migrant NGOs and Labor Unions: A Partnership in Progress?', Asian and Pacific Migration Journal, vol. 14, no. 9, 2006 (whole issue) PIPER, NICOLA and UHLIN, ANDERS 2004 'New perspectives on transnational activism', in Nicola Piper and Anders Uhlin (eds), Transnational Activism in Asia -Problems of power and democracy, London: Routledge, pp. 1-25 PRIES, LUDGER 2007 'Transnationalism: Trendy Catchall or Specific Research Programme? A Proposal for Transnational Organisation Studies as a micro-macro link', COMCAD Working Paper no. 34, University of Bielefeld: COMCAD RESPECT 1998 'Migrant Women Domestic Workers Demand RESPECT', newsletter October 1998, Brussels: Solidar 2006 'The potential of temporary migration programmes in future international migration policy', International Labour Review, vol. 145, no. 1-2, pp. 7-36 SAVAGE, LYDIA 2006 'Justice for janitors: Scales of organizing and representing workers', Antipode, vol. 38, no. 3, pp. 645-666 SHARMA, N. 2006 Home Economics: Nationalism and the Making of Migrant Workers in Canada. University of Toronto Press, Toronto SIKKINK, KATHRYN 1993 'Human Rights, Principled Issue-Networks and Sovereignty in Latin America', International Organization, vol. 47, no. 3, pp. 411-441. SǾRENSEN, NINNA NYBERG, VAN HEAR, NICHOLAS N, ENGBERG-PEDERSEN, PEDER 2001. The Migration Development Nexus Evidence and Policy Options -State of the Art Overview. CDR Working Paper 02.6. Centre for Development Research, Copenhagen. TLWG (Temporary Labour Working Group) (2007) The journey to licensing, London: TLWG. (http://www.eti2.org.uk/Z/lib/2007/02/tlwgjourney/twlg_journey_to_licensing.pdf) (accessed 19 May 2008) TUC (Trade Union Congress) 2007 The Economics ofMigration -managing the impacts, 2006 'Social-Movement Unionism in theory and in Sweden', Social Movement Studies, vol. 5, no. 2, pp. 171-191 VERITĒ 2005 Protecting Overseas Workers -Research Findings and Strategic Perspectives on Labor Protections for Foreign Contract Workers in Asia and the Middle East, Unpublished Research Paper, Verité, Amherst: MA WATERMAN, PETER 2003 Adventures of Emancipatory Labour Strategy as the New Global Movement Challenges International Unionism http://groups.yahoo.com/group/GloSoDia/files/LABOUR%20INTERNATIONALIS M/, accessed 10 June 2006. _____ 2005 'Trade Unions, NGOs and Global Social Justice: Another Tale to Tell', in TUs and NGOs Review, http://www.choike.org/nuevo_eng/informes/1872.html, accessed 21 August 2006. WEE, VIVIENNE and SIM, AMY 2005 'Hong Kong as a destination for migrant domestic workers', in Shirlena Huang, Brenda S.A. Yeoh and Noorashikin Abdul Rahman (eds), Asian Women as Transnational Domestic Workers. Marshall Cavendish, Singapore, pp. 56-73. 2008 'Globalisation, International Labour Migration and the Rights of Migrant Workers, Third World Quarterly, vol. 29, no. 7, pp. 1247-1264. ------NICOLA PIPER is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Geography and Associate Director of the Centre for Migration Policy Research at Swansea University.

  a migration problem but a 'sector' specific problem. The inadequate legislative coverage of domestic addressed by the ILC (ILO's annual congress) in 2010 when beginning the drafting work for a new Homeworker Convention. 5 A statement published by PICUM (Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants) on the EU plans to impose employer sanctions (dated 15 April 2008) point to this particular problem also (see www.picum.org; accessed 19 May 2008).

  Organize for what? The resurgence of labor as citizenship movement', in Katz, Harry and Turner, Lowell (eds.), Rekindling the Movement: Labor's Quest for Relevance in the 20 th Century. Cornell University Press, Ithaca KECK, MARGARET and SIKKINK, KATRHYN 1998 Activists Beyond Borders: Advocacy Networks in International Politics, Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press KLOOSTERBOER, DIRK.2007 Innovative Trade Union Strategies. FNV, Utrecht KOFMAN, ELEONORE 2007 'The Knowledge Economy, Gender and Stratified Migrations', Studies in Social Justice, vol. 1, no. 2, pp. 122-135 LAW, LISA 2002 'Sites of transnational activism -Filipino non-governmental organizations in Hong Kong', in Brenda Yeoh, Peggy Teo and Shirlena Huang (eds), Opportunities and Constraints for Migrant Worker Activism in Singapore and Malaysia -Freedom of Association and the Role of the State', Asian

	F o r P e e r R e v i e F o r P e e r R e v i e F o r P e e r R e v i e F o r P e e r R e v i e F o r P e e r R e v e i JOHNSTON, PAUL 2001 'Gender Politics in the Asia Pacific Region, Routledge, London PIPER, NICOLA 2006 '
	w w w MARKOVA, E. and BLACK, RICHARD 2007 East European immigration and community w w
	-766 O n l y O n l y O n l y O n l O n l MIGRATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE 2008 Accession Monitoring Report May cohesion, York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation y y
	CHUN, JENNIFER JIHYE 2008 'The Limits of Labor Exclusion: Redefining the 2004-September 2008, A8 countries, London: Home Office and UK Border Agency
	Politics of Split Labor Markets under Globalization', Critical Sociology, vol. 34, no. MOODY, KIM 1998 Workers in A Lean World -Unions in the International
	3, pp. 433-452. Economy, London: Verso
	27 29

For a detailed literature review, see Piper 2007.

The notion of 'portable justice' captures the problem when undocumented migrants or temporary labour migrants are deported or sent back to their countries of origin upon completion of their contracts, but were not paid their wages, and the difficulties involved in claiming grievances in labour courts or labour standards offices when physically absent(Caron 2005). This problem, thus, has a transnational element (Piper 2008a).

For a detailed review of the literature, seePiper and Uhlin (2004).

Useful references can be found on http://www.crimt.org/2eSite_renouveau/Samedi_PDF/Cradden_Hall_Jones.pdf.

Such regional or sub-regional configurations are conducive for triggering transnational collaboration among unions. There is evidence from NAFTA countries US, Canada and Mexican unions also but without reference to migrant workers[START_REF] Bacon | Unions Without Borders[END_REF].

Germany, London: Routledge. PIPER, NICOLA (2008a) 'The 'Migration-Development Nexus' Revisited from a Rights Perspective', Journal of Human Rights, vol. 7, pp.1-18. PIPER, NICOLA (2008b) 'Feminization of Migration in Asia and the Social Dimensions of Development', Third World Quarterly, vol. 29, no. 7, pp. 1287-1303 PIPER, NICOLA 2008c 'International Migration and Gendered Axes of Stratification-Introduction', in: Nicola Piper (ed), New Perspectives on Gender and Migration -Livelihood, Rights, and Entitlements, London: Routledge, pp. 1-18 PIPER, NICOLA 2008d 'Political Participation and Empowerment of Foreign Workers -Gendered Advocacy and Migrant Labour Organising in Southeast and East Asia', Nicola Piper (ed), New Perspectives on Gender and Migration -Livelihood, Rights, and Entitlements, London: Routledge, pp. 249-275 PIPER, NICOLA 2007 'Migration and Social Development: Organizational and Political Dimensions', Paper presented at the International Conference Migration and

Social Policy in Developing Countries, Stockholm, November 2007 (available on line at http://www.unrisd.org/unrisd/website/document.nsf/(httpPublications)/370A8EE6FB7 3B0D4C12574F000353C3F?OpenDocument)


Keywords: Latin America, Political Participation, Spain, United Kingdom, Transnational Migration, Colombia transnational migration, political participation, Latin America, Spain, United Kingdom, Colombia

Most existing scholarly work available on Colombian migrants' transnational political practices has emphasised the divisions, mistrust and apathy affecting them. However, research conducted by the author among Colombians in the United Kingdom and Spain departs from previous studies by stressing the broad nature of migrants' transnational political participation, which involves engagement in both formal and informal politics, at the individual and collective levels, and in initiatives coming from 'above' and 'below'. It also shows how transnational political practices oriented towards the home country occur simultaneously with activities in the host society, contrary to what has generally been thought. This was more the case among Colombians in Spain than those in the United Kingdom, which could be partly explained by differences in the historical development and size of each community, as well as the role played by individual factors, such as migrants' previous political experiences.

2 and the meaning of concepts such as nation-state and citizenship. This has been discussed mainly within the framework of the political opportunity structure developed for the study of social movements and later applied to migrants' mobilisation (Journal of Ethnic andMigration Studies 2004, 2005;Peró 2007). At the same time, new transnational approaches to the study of international migration have moved away from the traditional focus on incorporation and acculturation towards the recognition that migrants 'do not delink themselves from their home country; instead, they keep and nourish their linkages to their place of origin' (Itzigsohn et al. 1999, p. 317). Initially, studies of transnational migration focused on economic exchanges, but as research has expanded, there has been growing recognition that 'transnational social fields' also encompass political and symbolic links (ibid).

While the study of migrant political transnationalism has developed mainly out of research on Latinos in the United States, the issue of political participation in the host society has been discussed mostly in reference to long-established ethnic minority groups, both in the United States and Europe. In the European context, there is an ongoing public debate about migrants' political rights, especially in relation to voting (see Bauböck 2006). More recently, there has also been growing interest in the integration of new migrant groups, including Latin Americans. This article looks at the little explored subject of Colombian migration to Spain and the United Kingdom, focusing on migrants' political engagement. It first outlines the theoretical and methodological approach to the research conducted, as well as the characteristics of the communities studied. The second section focuses on the connections between involvement in 'home' and 'host' politics, seeking to compare similarities and differences across geographical locations, as well as highlighting the impact of individual factors. The transnational approach to migration focuses on how migrants 'forge and sustain multi-stranded social relations that link together their societies of origin and settlement' (Basch, Glick Schiller and Szanton Banc 1994, p. 5). This new way of looking at international migration did not emerge strongly until the second half of the nineties, mainly in the context of Latin American and Caribbean labour migration to the United

States. Work later expanded to cover other migrations to this country, as well as other types of migration and different world regions. The transnational focus on migration in the European context is relatively recent (see [START_REF] Rogers | A European Space for Transnationalism?[END_REF][START_REF] Grillo | Transnational Migration and Multiculturalim in Europe[END_REF][START_REF] Østergaard-Nielsen | .uk Ethnic and Racial Studies Political Practices[END_REF]. 1 Since then, there have been numerous studies looking at the conformation of 'transnational fields of action' or 'transnational social fields' (see, for instance, [START_REF] Faist | The Volume and Dynamics of International Migration and Transnational Social Spaces[END_REF]. These are defined as fields 'of social interactions and exchanges that transcend political and geographical boundaries' (Itzigsohn et al. 1999, p.317). [START_REF] Levitt | The Transnational Turn in Migration Studies[END_REF] 2008). More recently, there has also been an emphasis on the state level, looking at the political rights that nations afford their nationals abroad and the creation of programmes to strengthen links with the diaspora (see [START_REF] Gamlen | Diaspora Engagement Policies: What are They, and What Kind of States Use Them?[END_REF] for an overview of this).

However, few studies have considered the connections between migrants' transnational political practices and their integration in the host societies. Jones-Correa (1998), in his research with Latinos in New York, argued that their low levels of naturalisation and participation in formal politics in the US were the result not only of political marginalisation, but also of their situation in a 'politics of in-between' based on the 'myth of return'. However, for Portes and Rumbaut (2006, p. 138, emphasis in original) when transnational political participation in the country of origin is measured against political loyalties in the country of settlement, there is not 'a zero-sum game', but rather 'many aspects of transnationalism end up accelerating the political integration of immigrants in the United States'. This conclusion was later reinforced in another study by [START_REF] Portes | Bridging the Gap: Transnational and Ethnic Organizations in the Political Incorporation of Immigrants in the United States[END_REF]Arana (2008, p. 1085) of Latin American transnational and ethnic organisations in the United States, where they concluded that '[t]ransnationalism and political incorporation proceed simultaneously'.

Bearing these issues in mind, the present article seeks to contribute to the emerging transatlantic debate on migrant political mobilisation from a transnational approach in the less studied European context (see [START_REF] Martiniello | Towards a Transatlantic Dialogue in the Study of Immigrant Political Transnationalism[END_REF]. It argues that migrant transnationalism and integration can be mutually reinforcing processes, and should be seen as part of a continuum rather than as separate issues as Latin American migration to Spain has been highly 'feminised', mainly as a result of the demand for women to work in domestic service. However, the data available suggests that the feminisation rate for Colombians (58%) is not as high as that of other nationalities [START_REF] Pellegrino | Migration from Latin America to Europe: Trends and Policy Challenges[END_REF]. Most Colombians in Spain are economically active (nineteen-forty four years old), although the proportion of under sixteens is growing (IOM/UN 2003). On the whole, it seems to be a younger community than the one in London, reflecting its more recent establishment. As in the United Kingdom, Colombian migrants have relatively high levels of education, but tend to work mainly in Colombian migrants interviewed had some level of transnational political participation, whether as individuals or as part of a group (or both). 5 There was participation in both formal and informal politics, at the individual and collective levels, and in initiatives coming from 'above' and 'below' (see [START_REF] Smith | Transnationalism from Below[END_REF]. In many cases, transnational political engagement with the home country coexisted with participation in the politics of the host society, although not always at similar levels or at the same time. (2 men and 2 women in Spain, 3 women in the United Kingdom) also talked about their engagement in the politics of the host country.

Colombians abroad enjoy wide political rights vis-a-vis their country of origin, including the right to double citizenship under the 1991 constitution, as well as to vote in presidential and congressional elections and be elected as a representative of the diaspora. 6 In addition, Colombians in Spain, despite being a recent migrant group, enjoy special facilities to acquire Spanish nationality, 7 a precondition for participating formally in host country politics. 8 This allowed some Colombian respondents to vote both in their country of origin and in the host society. For some, like Andrew, a refugee who arrived in Madrid in 1999, exercising the right to vote in both places was very important. He had always voted in the Colombian elections, even from Spain, and had found a way to vote in Spain even before acquiring Spanish nationality: These cases show that migrants can simultaneously engage in the politics of both their home and host countries. Previous political experience seems to be key when explaining migrant political engagement. It is mainly those Colombians with a prior history of interest and active participation in politics who sought to maintain their political engagement 'here' and/or 'there'. They were also long-term migrants, mostly refugees, and both men and women. For many of these refugees, continuing their we believe that we have to participate, and if this helps enhance citizen participation, then it will be good. We think that participating in this process might give people more opportunities for integration, and for having their voices heard (...) This project is interesting because it allows any person over sixteen to vote [candidates for the mesas], with the only requisite that they are registered in their neighbourhood, so they do not have to have legal migrant status or a residence permit (Aesco worker, Madrid).

Thus, while fostering migrant participation more formally in Colombian politics,

given the lesser access of migrants to formal politics in the host society, these organisations were promoting more informal ways of mobilisation. As in the individual cases discussed above, this shows that migrant collective political engagement can also combine a transnational and domestic approach, with focus, type and levels of activities varying depending on contextual and other factors. However, this was less evident in the case of the United Kingdom. In general, the strength of Latin American migrant organisations in London was less, and they were more focused on solving the local practical needs of migrants than on more political goals. Although the Colombian community in the United Kingdom is older and heavily concentrated in London, it is much smaller and has not been growing as fast and dynamically in recent years as the one in Spain. In addition, the lack of 'ethnic' status of Latin Americans in the United Kingdom has made this community more invisible and politically marginal than other ethnic groups with a longer history of migration and colonial ties to the country. This contrasts with the 'privileged' position of Latin American migrants in Spain, based on the strong historical links between the two. Also, the legal and institutional environment in which these organisations had developed, in one country and another, was different. 13 Nevertheless, more recently some sectors of the Latin American community in London had been working towards greater politicisation of community activities. Many Latin American migrant organisations in London had their origins in the solidarity and support groups set up by political refugees arriving in the seventies and eighties, mostly from Chile and Argentina, but later also from Colombia. However, as in the case of Spain, as the community grew larger and more diverse, these organisations began to focus more on serving the local needs of migrants. These were the cases, for instance, of Coras (Colombian Refugee Association), Carila (Latin American Welfare Group) and IRMO:

IRMO used to be called Chile Democrático [Democratic Chile], but following the downfall of Pinochet a lot of Chileans returned to their country and the Chilean community was reduced to a small minority (...) then, those who were in charge decided to restructure the group, created a new constitution and opened up the organisation (...) which they renamed IRMO, which stands for Indoamerican Refugee Migrant Organisation (...)

for the whole Latin American community (IRMO representative).

With time, some of the organisations had focused their attention on specific groups, such as the elderly, the disabled, youth or women. But in general, their main focus of work had become service provision for migrants at the local level, mainly in the legal, social, economic and cultural areas, with issues of political participation being less prominent. Their transnational connections were also weaker, with some exceptions One of the founders of the Latin Front was Gloria, the Colombian woman who had run for local election in London and was also Aculco's representative there (see above). Given her political background, this initiative was from the beginning a more political one, aimed primarily at the legal and political recognition of Latin Americans in the United Kingdom as an 'ethnic' group. The Latin Front campaigned for an amnesty for irregular migrants, greater political rights for the migrant population (including voting), and the automatic granting of British citizenship to all children born in the country (interview with Gloria). As well as lobbying the UK authorities, the Latin Front had sought the cooperation of the countries of origin. More specifically, the Front wanted Latin American countries to become more involved in defending the rights of their citizens abroad and provide alternatives for those who wanted to return. As such, this new political initiative seemed to have been well received by the migrant population, at least initially. According to Gloria, the Front had some 4,000 affiliated members (mostly Colombian), and around twenty people working for it, twelve of them dedicated to the political side, and others focused on social issues. However, in the little time that had been operating, the Latin Front had also raised criticisms and scepticism, with some migrants seeing it mainly as a personal project to gain local political power.

As can be seen from the examples above, transnational and domestic political activities at the collective level were stronger in the case of Spain than in the UK, despite recent developments within the London community. These collective political activities were led by those migrants with higher levels and histories of political experience, as explored in the previous section. As in the case of individual participation, the linkages between politics 'here' and 'there' were stronger in the case of some organisations than others, with emphasis towards one place or another varying according to context. In some cases, like that of Aesco or Aculco, this research found, as [START_REF] Portes | Bridging the Gap: Transnational and Ethnic Organizations in the Political Incorporation of Immigrants in the United States[END_REF]Portes et al. ( , p. 1083) did in their study of Latin American migrant organisations in the United States, that 'the distinction between transnational and domestically oriented organizations' can sometimes be 'overstated'.

Conclusions

This article has sought to contribute to current debates on migrants and minorities' political mobilisation in the European context, from a transnational approach. That relatively new theoretical approach to the study of international migration allows us to bring to the fore forms of migrant mobilisation previously obscured, and to highlight the connections between transnationalism and integration. In addition, the article focuses Road, London E1 4NS, UK. Email: platypus@telefonica.net 1 For a review of transnationalism and international migration see Vertovec 2004.

2 I looked at electoral participation, membership of political parties, general interest in political events, participation in state or private initiatives linking the diaspora with the country of origin, as well as the role played by community organisations , the ethnic media, religious institutions and human rights organisations and networks.

3 According to official data , 96 per cent of Colombians living abroad concentrate in ten countries, Venezuela, the United States, Spain, the United Kingdom, Italy, the Netherlands, Panama, Mexico and Brazil (Guarnizo 2006a).

4 The information that follows is taken mainly from Guarnizo (2006b) andOpen Channels (2000). 9 All names used are pseudonyms, except in the cases of officials or leaders of organisations.

10 To apply for naturalisation as a British citizen, UK law asks for five years previous residence in the country (or three years if the person is married to a British citizen).

11 Diaspora politics is 'usually about political disputes over sensitive issues such as national sovereignty and security ' (ibid, p. 762-63).

12 In its website, Aesco states that part of its mission is to "formulate and manage cooperation projects that help improve the quality of life of emigrants and potential emigrants as well as their environment, based on the principles of solidarity, co-development and human rights" (own translation)

[http://www.aesco-ong.org/] (20/01/09). See also Aculco's website [http://www.aculco.org/].

13 See [START_REF] Bloemraad | The Limits of de Tockeville: How Government Facilitates Organisational Capacity in Newcomer Communities[END_REF] on how states can foster, or presumably impede, the ability of migrants to establish and sustain community organisations.

14 Although this is not always stated, these factors play a significant role when comparing the transnational linkages of Latin American migrants in the United States and Europe, and is evidenced in the lesser institutionalisation of transnational politics in the latter (less active presence of Colombian political parties at election time, less penetration by Colombian diasporic initiatives, etc ...).

Page 28 of 28 URL: http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/rers ethnic@surrey.ac.uk

Ethnic and Racial Studies

  Transnational Political Practices of Colombians in Spain andthe United Kingdom: Politics 'Here' and 'ThereIntroductionThe issue of migrants' political participation in host societies (mainly in the Global North) has received renewed attention, linked to the debates on migration and security

  domestic service, followed by catering, construction and retail (IOM/UN 2003).However, in contrast, the Colombian population in Spain is geographically spread. The largest number by far live in the Madrid region, with a similar amount equally (mainly Barcelona) and Valencia(INE 2008). Most Colombian migration to Spain originates from the same regions as UK flows. The IOM/UN study(2003, pp. 176) found a close relationship between area of origin within Colombia and specific destinations in Spain, which reflected 'the existence and great importance of migratory networks, based on links related to family, community and friendships' (own translation). These networks are key in the decision to migrate, the organisation of the trip and the settlement of migrants, but are also evident in the links maintained with the home country, not only at the personal and economic level (remittances), but also politically.The political experiences of Colombian migrants in Spain and the UKThe work available on US-based Colombian migrants' transnational political practices has emphasised the divisions, mistrust, lack of involvement and apolitical nature of these(Guarnizo and Díaz 1999; Guarnizo, Sánchez and Roach 1999;[START_REF] Guarnizo | Assimilation and Transnationalism: Determinants of Transnational Political Action Among Contemporary Migrants[END_REF]. However, my research with Colombians in the UK and Spain, using a broad definition of what constitutes transnational politics, found widespread evidence of engagement by migrants, calling into question previous findings. Most of the

  formal politics at both ends At the individual level, migrant engagement was mostly in formal politics, through voting or active involvement in party politics (as a candidate, party member, participating in meetings and election campaigns). Although the main focus of the research conducted was on home country politics, at least six Colombians interviewed

  migration was not only a matter of personal fulfillment, but also a way to survive the experience of exile (see Bermúdez[START_REF] Bermudez | Gender and Forced Migration: The Experiences of Colombian Refugees Living in London[END_REF]. Longer-term residents, on the other hand, tend to have a more stable socio-economic position, as well as the legal conditions, to participate more fully in the politics of the host society (at least formally). Finally, the type and level of transnational and domestic political involvement varied depending on context, with some migrants maintaining a double militancy while others participated in one country or another in different ways and with different intensity at different times. Nevertheless, the connections between transnational and domestic politics were stronger in the case of Colombians in Spain than in the UK, partly a reflection of historical ties as well as the size and characteristics of the communities studied as further explored below.Collective political mobilisation: the role of migrant organisationsColombians in Spain and the UK have also been a key force behind the organisation and collective activity of the wider Latin American migrant communities. This can probably be explained by their numerical weight, as well as their high levels of human capital and political experience. Two of the main Latin American migrant organisations in Madrid, Aesco (see above) and Aculco (Asociación Socio-Cultural y de Cooperación alDesarrollo por Colombia e Iberoamérica -Socio-Cultural and CooperationDevelopment Association for Colombia and Latin America) were led by Colombians (a woman and a man). Both were founded, with some Spanish participation, in the early nineties with a very transnational approach, although with a different focus. Aesco started as an example of what Østergaard (2003) calls 'diaspora' politics: 11 founded by people who arrived here in the eighties (...) Colombians in search of asylum (...) They wanted to become involved from here, to support the human rights struggle and the incipient civil society movement for peace that started to emerge then (...) But later this became frustrated, because the FARC, the main guerrilla force, did not hand in their weapons, and negotiations with the government were broken (Aesco coordinator, Madrid).Aculco, on the other hand, started as an attempt to promote Colombian culture abroad and counter the negative image of the country. However, as migration to Spain started to accelerate, both organisations began to focus more on the local needs of Colombian migrants, and later of the wider Latin American community. Their main activities involved offering labour, legal, social and cultural assistance to migrants. But this did not mean that the focus on the country of origin had disappeared completely; the organisations' original political and cultural aims were still there, even if more subdued. In addition, more recently, both organisations had become involved in the promotion of development and co-development projects in Colombia. 12 At a more political level, Aesco and Aculco had also in recent years undertaken initiatives aimed at increasing the political participation of migrants both at the local level (in the host society) and in the country of origin. As well as promoting the need to vote in Colombian elections among migrants, both organisations were participating in the mesas de diálogo y convivencia (neighbourhood committees for dialogue and coexistence):[this is] a project of the Madrid town hall (...) an innovative process, but

  work done in connection with the defense of human rights in Colombia).Nevertheless, as the Latin American community became more established, issues of long-term integration, including at the political level, were beginning to emerge. Two examples of this were the recent establishment of a Latin American Workers' Association, led by Colombian trade unionists, and the Latin Front (see Peró 2007).

5Page6

  Although the sample was non-representative and biased towards those who were politically engaged, I also interviewed Colombians with no or very little transnational political participation (7 in Spain, 6 In addition, Colombia has a bilateral agreement with Spain on dual nationality since 1980. The United Kingdom, on the other hand, recognises dual citizenship.7 Latin Americans can apply for nationality after two years of continuous residence, compared with five years for refugees and ten years for nationals of other countries. Colombians were the largest group of migrants acquiring Spanish nationality in 2005, with 7,334 (OECD 2007).8 Spain is currently debating the possibility of granting the right to vote in local elections to migrants from outside the European Union with an specific length of legal residence in the country. However, at the moment, citizens from Colombia cannot vote in Spain or the United Kingdom.

  In the last two decades, Spain has gone from being a country of emigration to one of immigration. The composition of migration flows to Spain has also changed, from being mainly Western European to a majority of migrants now coming from Africa, Latin America and Eastern Europe. Traditionally, Colombian migration to Spain was mostly by refugees, intellectuals and students. However, throughout the eighties, and especially since the late nineties, the community has grown in size exponentially. Official data estimates that there were just under 300,000 Colombians living in Spain at the beginning of 2007(INE 2008), making it among the five largest migrant communities in the country. However, unofficial reports believe that the real figure could be much

	number of Colombians arrived despite the ending of that system, as migration networks
	author on the transnational political connections of Colombian migrants in Spain Traditionally, migration in Colombia has tended to be internal, across borders became established; and 1986-1997, which saw an upsurge in the number of asylum-
	(Madrid/Barcelona) and the United Kingdom (London) during 2004-2007. The study (mainly to Venezuela) and to the United States. However, from the nineties, seekers. Although the arrival of Colombian refugees in the United Kingdom dates back
	was qualitative, involving semi-structured interviews, participant observation and destinations have also diversified, both within the region and in other directions. Europe to the seventies, numbers increased greatly during the following two decades as
	content analysis of websites and other materials. In total, 96 people (49 in Spain and 47 was initially only a destination for the Colombian elite, political refugees, intellectuals violence in the country intensified, declining subsequently as immigration laws became
	in the UK) were interviewed, mostly Colombian migrants, but also some key experts and others. However, in the seventies, as the UK government authorised the entry of stricter. In addition, there are a significant number of Colombian students and
	F o r and officials. Since the aim was not to find a representative sample, the selection of participants was driven by the characteristics of the research and involved mainly Colombian migrants with some level of involvement in transnational politics. F o r non-skilled migrants to work in services, between 4,000-10,000 Colombians arrived as temporary workers. From the end of the eighties-beginning of the nineties, a third and more important wave of emigration towards Europe (mainly Spain) started, as part of F o r professionals in the country. F o r
	P Interviewees included refugees, labour migrants, professionals and students, as well as P wider Latin American flows (Semana 30/11/03). Spain and the United Kingdom P P
	e people who had migrated for other reasons. Finally, the conceptual framework used a e currently account for the first and second largest Colombian communities in Europe e e
	e r wide definition of political activities, whether individual or collective, both formal and e r respectively. 3 e r e r
	R e R e R R Colombians in the UK: a largely invisible community informal.2 e e
	v i e v i e Latin Americans are currently one of the fastest-growing migrant groups in the United Colombian migration abroad v i e v i e
	w Colombia has a long history of internal and external migrations, both forced and w Kingdom, but this is still a recent and small community, and thus hardly visible (see w w
	O n l voluntary. However, the phenomenon of substantial Colombian migration abroad is very recent. Emigration rates started to climb up in the sixties and rapidly accelerated throughout the nineties and into the twenty first century, as levels of violence and O n l McIlwaine 2007; Peró 2007). According to Guarnizo (2006b), England, and London in particular, had always occupied a special place for the Colombian upper classes, attracting political leaders, young professionals and students. These linkages were later O n l O n l
	y insecurity in Colombia increased and economic conditions deteriorated. According to y widened to include all sectors of the Colombian population, especially from the y y
	current estimates, there are more than four million Colombians living abroad (or around seventies. Today, estimates of the total number of Colombians in the United Kingdom
	one in ten of the national population) (Colombia Nos Une 2008). Although it is assumed range from 50,000 to 150,000 (Guarnizo 2006b). A recent study (Open Channels 2000)
	that most Colombians migrate abroad for economic reasons, refugees have also divides Colombian migration to the country into roughly three stages: 1975-1979, when The larger, more recent Colombian community in Spain
	contributed to these flows. many came under the work permit system; 1980-1986, during which an increasing
	6 7 8

Most Colombians, and Latin Americans in general, have settled in or around London, especially in the boroughs of

Lambeth, Islington, Southwark and Camden (Open Channels 2000)

. As the community in London has increased in size, so also has its heterogeneity.

4

The majority of migrants have an urban, working-or middle-class background, coming from Bogotá and other large and medium-size cities in the Valle del Cauca, Eje Cafetero and Antioquia. They also have relatively high levels of formal education. Despite this, most work in low-skilled activities, such as domestic and industrial cleaning, catering or retail. Suggestions are that there are more women than men, with the female ratio being 53.5%-58.7%. The majority of Colombians in London are twenty-fifty years old and in the productive age bracket. The studies available suggest that most Colombians migrate to the United Kingdom for socio-economic reasons, with a small minority escaping political violence. However, other research has highlighted the connections between the different types of migration, and the relevance of violence and insecurity as explanatory factors (McIlwaine 2005).

higher given those migrants in an 'irregular' situation. Available research suggests that they are mostly labour migrants, although violence and security were also important reasons for migrating (IOM/UN 2003). In addition, a significant number of Colombian students and professionals reside in Spain.

  do not vote if they can (...) Since they were not voting, I asked them to do it for me and told them who to vote for.Andrew had been a journalist in Colombia and had always 'liked politics a lot'.Prior political experiences also helped shape migrants' levels and types of political engagement in London. For Colombians in the United Kingdom, obtaining British nationality can take more time.10 Nevertheless, according to Home Office (2008) data, 1,845 Colombians were granted British citizenship in 2007, the largest category in the Americas after the United States and Jamaica. Three Colombian women interviewed in London talked about their involvement in British politics. Two of them had migrated in the eighties, the other in 1999, which means they were among the earliest arrivals. In Among respondents in my study, this extended to more active forms of involvement. Two women and one man in Spain, all refugees, and a woman in the UK participated in party politics in both countries. For Elena, who had a personal and family history of Left-wing activism before arriving in Spain in 2000, maintaining her political activism had not been easy. Like many other migrants, her main preoccupation had been sustaining herself and her family. However, she had managed to keep up some level of involvement in Colombian politics, going to meetings, giving talks and attending electoral events organised in Madrid. But this was not enough for her so she had started to contact some Spanish parties closer to her ideological position. She also justified this saying that she now had a daughter born in Spain, whom she wanted to learn about the political history of both her country of birth and that of her

	9 Colombian woman, was elected to the Madrid assembly in the 2007 local elections, the F o r P e e r R e v i e w O n l y y y incredible that people identified with party politics, something she disliked and did not want to become F o r P e e r R e v i e w O n l but especially in Spain, to slowly gain in political visibility. Yolanda Villavicencio, a P e e r R e v i e w l n O Solidaridad y Cooperación / America, Spain, Solidarity and Cooperation), one of the largest migrant organisations in Spain, and as well as fulfilling her responsibilities as a Socialist deputy in the Madrid legislature, Yolanda remained actively involved in Colombian politics. The story of Gloria Gómez, in London, is similar. She arrived in the United Kingdom in the eighties and had a history of community involvement in London, as well as being a member of a Colombian political party, and had been very and types of engagement. This 'double militancy' was helping Latin American migrants, both in the UK active in campaigning for Colombian elections from London. However, in her case it F was disillusionment with Colombian politics, and not only her desire to improve o r conditions within her community, that led her to create the Latin Front and run for
	I have Spanish citizenship. During the last elections I was already Spanish, involved in. first migrant of Latin American origin to occupy such a post. Since arriving in Spain in
	but had not received my identity card yet, which meant that I could not the eighties, Yolanda had continued her political activism, first working around issues
	vote. But my boyfriend (...) was not interested in voting, so I asked him to Guarnizo (2006b), in his study of Colombians in London, also found a strong of human rights and peace in Colombia and later defending the needs and rights of
	vote for me. On other occasions, friends have also voted for me. I find it correlation between electoral participation in both polities, with differences in the levels migrants in the host society. She had become coordinator of Aesco (América, España,
	11 12 13

two cases, voting in UK elections was explained in relation to electoral participation in Colombia. One woman explained that although she had never voted while living in Colombia (she was in her early twenties at the time of migration) she had recently started to vote in her country of origin prompted by her brother in Colombia, who was actively involved in party politics. This had increased her interest in participating electorally in the United Kingdom, and following her acquisition of British nationality she had started to do so. By contrast, Julieta, who also had double nationality, explained that she had never voted in Colombia or the United Kingdom, since she was 'not inclined towards one side [political ideology/option] or another'. In her case, voting was parents. Luis, on the other hand, participated in the 2006 Colombian elections, actively mobilising in support of a new Left-wing movement, while at the same time helping to organise a new Spanish party for immigrants: 'a party operating within the Spanish state that is born out of the real need to make true the civic and political rights of migrants and that aims to support other citizens' demands, creating new forms of citizen participation' (party leaflet). election in the borough of Lambeth (she was not elected): This year I am not campaigning because I am totally disillusioned, after seeing the behaviour of the Colombian government towards Colombians abroad. I am not interested in Colombian politicians contacting me during election time, or when they need to count remittances ... I am more interested in helping Colombians locally, and see how they can get on their own feet and think by themselves (...) these are my political interests at the moment.

  notwithstanding the greater geographical distance, smaller numbers and shorter history of migration of Colombians in Europe compared with their counterparts in the United States.14 Even more interesting for the purposes of this special issue, the research found evidence of many connections between migrants' political mobilisation oriented towards the home country and activities related to host politics (and between different migrant destinations). The cases analysed here show that these connections happen both at the micro and meso levels. On the one hand, individual migrants participated in the political life of both their countries of origin and destination, mainly through voting and involvement in party politics (formal politics). On the other hand, migrant organisations can also perform a political role vis-a-vis both(and other)

	attention on a new migrant collective, one that remains understudied despite its growing significance, that of Colombians (and Latin Americans in general) in Europe, and more F o r P e e r R e v i e w O n l article has emphasised similarities and differences depending mainly on migrants' country of settlement, previous political experience and specific contexts. Differences in F o r P e e r R e v i e w O n l political experience, emerged also as crucial to explain political engagement. While that might seem obvious it has not always been recognised or acknowledged, migrants often erroneously being assumed to lack any worthwhile experiences prior to their migration (for exceptions see Kosic 2007; Torres 2008). F o r P e e r R e v i e w O n l F o r P e e r R e v i e w O n l F o r P e e r R e v i e w O n l F o r P e e r R e v i e w O n l F o r P e e r R e v i e w O n l F o r P e e r R e v i e w l n O TORRES, LEONORA 2008 'The Role of Latin Americanness for Immigrant Activism in Europe. An Exploration of Qualitative Interviews with Latin American Leaders', POLITIS-Working Paper no. 14, University of Oldenburg. VERTOVEC, STEVEN 2004 'Trends and Impacts of Migrant Transnationalism', WP-two countries, The level, type and orientation of political participation can vary. The present 04-03, COMPAS, University of Oxford.
	specifically in Spain and the United Kingdom. the historical development and size of the Colombian communities in the two countries y y y y y y y y
	studied (also versus the United States), as well as in the structural and institutional
	Despite the emphasis by other studies on the lack of political activism among environments in each destination, are important. They have contributed to greater
	Colombian migrant communities abroad, the study on which this article is based found opportunities for political mobilisation and the development of transnational links
	widespread evidence of migrant political transnationalism among Colombians in the among Colombians in Spain. However, personal characteristics, and especially previous
	20 21 27

polities. These findings support evidence from US-based research indicating that there is no contradiction between sustaining transnational ties and pursuing integration

(Portes and Rumbaut 2006;[START_REF] Portes | Bridging the Gap: Transnational and Ethnic Organizations in the Political Incorporation of Immigrants in the United States[END_REF]

. It is further argued that, rather than seeing participation in home country politics as fostering or impeding political integration of migrants in the host society, both types of political participation should be seen within a continuum.

ANASTASIA BERMUDEZ is

Visiting Research Fellow in the Department of Geography, Queen Mary, University of London. ADDRESS: Department of Geography, Queen Mary, University of London, Mile End

Acknowledgements

This article is based on PhD research conducted at Queen Mary, University of London, financed by the ESRC (PTA-030-2002-01565). I want to thank these institutions, the migrants and others who participated in the study. Gratitude is also due to the two anonymous referees, as well as Dr. Cathy McIlwaine and Prof. James Dunkerley, for their useful comments on earlier drafts.