Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2019
Abstract
International political borders have historically performed one overriding function: the delimitation of a state’s territorial jurisdiction, but today they are sites of intense security scrutiny and law enforcement. Traditionally they were created to secure peace through territorial independence of political units. Today borders face new pressures from heightened human mobility, economic interdependence (legal and illicit), and perceived challenges from a host of nonstate threats. Research has only begun to reveal what some of these changes mean for the governance of interstate borders. The problems surrounding international borders today go well-beyond traditional delineation and delimitation. These problems call for active forms of governance to manage human mobility and interdependence. However, human rights norms sometimes rest uneasily alongside unilateral border governance. A research agenda which documents and explains new border developments, and critically assesses emerging rules and practices in light of international human rights, is an essential direction for international studies research.
Keywords
Migration, immigration, border crossing, border security, international politics, interstate relations, refugees, refugee law, national security, political boundaries, boundary delineation, border control, border walls, border fences, human rights
Publication Title
International Studies Review
Repository Citation
Simmons, Beth A., "Borders Rules" (2019). All Faculty Scholarship. 2045.
https://scholarship.law.upenn.edu/faculty_scholarship/2045
Included in
Human Rights Law Commons, Immigration Law Commons, International Law Commons, International Relations Commons, International Trade Law Commons, Law and Politics Commons, Law and Society Commons, National Security Law Commons, Transnational Law Commons
Publication Citation
International Studies Review (forthcoming 2019).