EUMIND- JAASP
'JAASP' is the name of our EUMIND group where J stands for Jainil, A for Aakanksha, A for Adit, S for Shashank and P for Preet.
Article 1- Introductory Video
Article 1- Introductory Video
Article 2
EUMIND-
Human Rights: Studying Abroad
With the increasing diplomacy within the countries of the world, more students are opting to study abroad for various reasons like better employment opportunities, standard of living in their host country or because of the revered education offered in that country. Students go abroad to study as an undergraduate student or to pursue their masters; for summer courses; as an exchange student, which is getting more popular by the passing day. However, although the idea of studying abroad seems very luring, it’s not as easy as it seems. To know about the same, our group interviewed a Mexican exchange student, Ingrid Varghas.
The biggest hurdle in studying abroad is a visa. While obtaining a visa, many students face problems arising out of paper work (documents) and visa laws that change during the course of study. Students have been known of not being able to attend their graduation ceremony or go back to their nation for holidays due to the fear of not being able to return to their university.
Another problem countered by the students is while issuing driving licenses. Most countries do not accept driving licenses issued by foreign countries. Students are required to get a license of the country they are studying in which is a big hassle. This problem is heightened in countries with a federal structure such as USA and Australia, where laws vary from state to state.
Racial discrimination is another severe problem. In March 2015, an Indian male student was denied internship by the professor leading that program citing the ‘rape problem in India’. This had created a buzz within the country and the German ambassador to India condemned this act, writing an apology letter. Such incidents are very common that probably occur everyday but are not brought to the public’s notice.
If sought carefully, these problems can be overlooked by the many benefits of studying abroad. There are organizations that offer exchanges that last a year wherein the student gets a chance to completely immerse himself in his host country’s culture and gets to study simultaneously. Students going to study abroad find themselves, according to a recent study conducted, with a better employment opportunity. Not only does it offer an international workplace but also helps in changing the way in which we perceive things. To cope with financial problems, universities are granting more scholarships, student loans and part time jobs.
We chose to interview an exchange student as knowing her responses to the questions we asked helped us to know how they embrace a new culture. It helped us appreciate the things offered in our country which would only be obvious to a foreigner’s eye like the domestic help in most Indian households, the rich and feisty culture and the mouth watering food India offers.
EUMIND-
Human Rights: Studying Abroad
With the increasing diplomacy within the countries of the world, more students are opting to study abroad for various reasons like better employment opportunities, standard of living in their host country or because of the revered education offered in that country. Students go abroad to study as an undergraduate student or to pursue their masters; for summer courses; as an exchange student, which is getting more popular by the passing day. However, although the idea of studying abroad seems very luring, it’s not as easy as it seems. To know about the same, our group interviewed a Mexican exchange student, Ingrid Varghas.
The biggest hurdle in studying abroad is a visa. While obtaining a visa, many students face problems arising out of paper work (documents) and visa laws that change during the course of study. Students have been known of not being able to attend their graduation ceremony or go back to their nation for holidays due to the fear of not being able to return to their university.
Another problem countered by the students is while issuing driving licenses. Most countries do not accept driving licenses issued by foreign countries. Students are required to get a license of the country they are studying in which is a big hassle. This problem is heightened in countries with a federal structure such as USA and Australia, where laws vary from state to state.
Racial discrimination is another severe problem. In March 2015, an Indian male student was denied internship by the professor leading that program citing the ‘rape problem in India’. This had created a buzz within the country and the German ambassador to India condemned this act, writing an apology letter. Such incidents are very common that probably occur everyday but are not brought to the public’s notice.
If sought carefully, these problems can be overlooked by the many benefits of studying abroad. There are organizations that offer exchanges that last a year wherein the student gets a chance to completely immerse himself in his host country’s culture and gets to study simultaneously. Students going to study abroad find themselves, according to a recent study conducted, with a better employment opportunity. Not only does it offer an international workplace but also helps in changing the way in which we perceive things. To cope with financial problems, universities are granting more scholarships, student loans and part time jobs.
We chose to interview an exchange student as knowing her responses to the questions we asked helped us to know how they embrace a new culture. It helped us appreciate the things offered in our country which would only be obvious to a foreigner’s eye like the domestic help in most Indian households, the rich and feisty culture and the mouth watering food India offers.
Article 3
“Remember, remember always, that all of us, and you and I especially, have descended from immigrants and revolutionists.” (Franklin Delano Roosevelt)
Most of the developed nation’s population today comprises of more than 50% of immigrants. Let's take the people residing in developing countries like India for instance; students wish to travel to developed countries like USA, Canada, UK and Australia for their undergraduate and graduate courses. Post completion, a majority look for a job there. Like Indians, there are a million Asian and European students wanting to settle abroad. In the modern world, this is how immigrants are born.
Dating back in history, the British had dominated the entire world. They ‘exported’ the Africans to their colonies like USA, England, Australia and Canada. These countries grew exceedingly rich with the help of slavery. Over the years, when the monarchical system was destabilized, these slaves settled in those foreign lands, passing on generations.
World War 1 and World War 2 were no less in changing the face of the world. It rendered millions homeless and dislocated them from their mother lands. This dislocation, in-turn resulted in the creation of refugees and immigrants.
Where ever one may go, in any part of the world, he is sure to be among these immigrants, immigrants from far away lands or from the neighbouring countries.
-written by, Aakanksha Saraf
“Recognize yourself in he and she who are not like you and me.” (Carlos Fuentes)
There is a lot of migration happening these days.Most of the people are quite positive and welcoming. But there is a group of people who hate everyone who come to their country, move into their houses and steal their jobs.
Hypnotised by their greed, people moan about migrants when they hear news stories about attacks against other races at railway stations, streets and schools. You can see their anger every time when somebody speaks with the accent. You can feel the negative energy and the attitude when they hear the names of poor or third world countries.
Now please, try to think about all those people who moved from their land for a moment. A large group of migrants are young people – students. They came with only one wish – to have a better education and I can’t see what is wrong with that. Young and bright people always bring something good, new and interesting on a table, they work hard, pay taxes and help the economy.
The other group is career driven people. Most of them are from small countries where they reached their limits and either have been promoted, got invited or just wanted to challenge themselves. Now who would mind an intelligent, successful person?
The largest group of migrants are those people who simply have a dream and want a better life. All of them have their own stories, backgrounds and abilities.Most of them moved not by choice. It simply was the only option.
If you would ask me, I feel sorry for these men and women. Can you imagine yourself in that kind of position where you have to leave Your country, Your roots, Your family and loved ones? Can you imagine how heartbreaking it must be to come to this point where in order to survive you have to change your life and start everything from nothing? Can You imagine how it must feel to know that your own country doesn’t want You? Or for some of them it is not safe in their homeland and they fear for their lives.
We need to show our support, respect and love for those people. If You haven’t done anything like that then you will never understand how it feels to live in a different culture, speak other languages and always feel different. If you would ask me, I’d say these kind of people inspire me the most! How brave, open minded and hard working they must be.
Today I am simply asking you to be a little bit kinder, more understanding, empathetic and less judgmental. Next time You want to complain about a migrant, try to imagine what it might feel like to be in his or her shoes and ask yourself if you could do it.
-written by, Preet Rupreila
"We asked for workers.We got people instead."(Max Frisch)
The quote of the Swiss author and playwright,Max Frisch on immigration/migration of people laconically shows us the almost never-ending wrangle between the workers and the employers which has been present through the centuries .
The above statement is quite inhuman as Max Frisch blatantly says that workers were needed instead of people,which implies in a way that he thinks that workers are beneath the status of normal human beings and are just supposed to work all day long as machines, with all their strength , at very low wage rates.
Human beings who migrate to countries go there in search of work oppurtunities and are not slaves to the host nations . They should be given egalitarian rights .He is clearly against immigration which is not right , he is discriminating against citizens from other countries which can be seen as a violation of human rights .
He is in favour of the open-door policy of workers coming to the host country as workers and nothing more.They need to leave after their work is completed implying that they are no more required there and cannot be given citizenship of the host country or any minor benefit.
According to me this is nothing but a convoluted idea of modern slavery which shows that the novelist and playwright's ideology was rooted in the past and he was narrow - minded.
-written by, Adit Patel
“Recognise yourself in he and she who are not like you and me” (Carlos Fuentes)
This is a very famous quote by Carlos Fuentes who says we must put ourselves in someone else’s shoes to understand them and be empathetic and less judgemental about someone who is not like you.
Immigration is the movement of people to another destination which is not their native or do not possess any citizenship. The people out there look at you in a way which is not appreciated. Most immigrants are young students who come for higher education and some for a better life which they did not get in their country. These people have different backgrounds and stories that help them learn something interesting and work hard towards their future. What we need to do is to comprehend their situation and be kinder to them as it is their right.
Recently, I hosted a professor from the Netherlands and whenever I took him out shopping or sightseeing, people around us were acting like they had never seen a foreigner. Due to this we could not go out much and had to be restricted to the four walls of my house. This disturbed me and made me think that if I go to Netherlands I would be treated in a similar manner which I would not like. So this is where human rights come into the picture.
We need to put ourselves into someone else’s shoes to understand their feelings and emotions before we mock them because everyone comes from a different background.
Hence, recognising yourself in someone else who is not like you makes you more responsible as a citizen of this world and NOT only the country.
-written by, Jainil Mehta
“Our country, our people, and our laws have to be our top priority.” - Donald Trump
This quote can be discussed on multiple levels. Every state does have the right to rank the welfare of its citizens ahead and hold up its laws in the highest regard possible. However there must be some consideration for immigrants whose rights should not cease to exist once they are out of their home country.
‘Our people’ – One of the prime anti-immigration and anti-migration reasons is that the local populace is bereft of suitable employment opportunities. Hence nations tend to ration jobs for foreign workers with quotas. But what needs to be understood here is that the nation, while trying to protect its workers, should not reach an extent where it completely or almost completely cuts off migrants. After all we are still a global community.
‘Our country’ – Sure citizens of a particular country might feel that the resources of the country belong to them completely. But it needs to be noted that there are many immigrants who depend on the host country whether it be financially (work related), politically (asylum), etc. These people do have a right, even if moral and not legal, to expect something in return for their labour, faith and character. After all, they may just end up being citizens of the host nation. A man/woman works in a foreign country for years, marries local citizens and settles there. The State should not deprive qualified people of citizenship, dual or otherwise.
‘Our laws’ – How well do the laws of the host nation protect the rights of the migrants? Do they afford the migrants the right to celebrate their culture, the right to own property or do they even provide them and their families with basic facilities like affordable education and healthcare?Consider a situation where a migrant commits a crime in the host country. It seems fair to prosecute him under the laws of the host country since the crime has been committed on their soil against their citizens. But do all of his rights provided by the home country cease to exist like the right to remain silent or a lawyer? Even if not, the most basic thing to do is to try the culprit under the same laws as a local would be tried under; definitely not tougher laws.
Now consider a situation when a crime is committed on an immigrant by a citizen. There should be the same penalties as those if the crime was committed on another citizen. The laws must not make it tougher for the immigrant to exercise his right to justice. How well do these laws protect the immigrants and their rights? If an immigrant goes missing, would the police look for him even if no local files a missing person report; or would the laws allow for people from the citizens home nation to file a report? The list goes on.
In a nutshell, this quote brings up an argument about the rights and privileges of migrants and how they fare against “Our country, our people, and our laws” in lieu of the fact that we are a global community with a concept of human rights.
Do we let go of outsiders or take them in as equals?
-written by, Shashank Dalmia
This quote can be discussed on multiple levels. Every state does have the right to rank the welfare of its citizens ahead and hold up its laws in the highest regard possible. However there must be some consideration for immigrants whose rights should not cease to exist once they are out of their home country.
‘Our people’ – One of the prime anti-immigration and anti-migration reasons is that the local populace is bereft of suitable employment opportunities. Hence nations tend to ration jobs for foreign workers with quotas. But what needs to be understood here is that the nation, while trying to protect its workers, should not reach an extent where it completely or almost completely cuts off migrants. After all we are still a global community.
‘Our country’ – Sure citizens of a particular country might feel that the resources of the country belong to them completely. But it needs to be noted that there are many immigrants who depend on the host country whether it be financially (work related), politically (asylum), etc. These people do have a right, even if moral and not legal, to expect something in return for their labour, faith and character. After all, they may just end up being citizens of the host nation. A man/woman works in a foreign country for years, marries local citizens and settles there. The State should not deprive qualified people of citizenship, dual or otherwise.
‘Our laws’ – How well do the laws of the host nation protect the rights of the migrants? Do they afford the migrants the right to celebrate their culture, the right to own property or do they even provide them and their families with basic facilities like affordable education and healthcare?Consider a situation where a migrant commits a crime in the host country. It seems fair to prosecute him under the laws of the host country since the crime has been committed on their soil against their citizens. But do all of his rights provided by the home country cease to exist like the right to remain silent or a lawyer? Even if not, the most basic thing to do is to try the culprit under the same laws as a local would be tried under; definitely not tougher laws.
Now consider a situation when a crime is committed on an immigrant by a citizen. There should be the same penalties as those if the crime was committed on another citizen. The laws must not make it tougher for the immigrant to exercise his right to justice. How well do these laws protect the immigrants and their rights? If an immigrant goes missing, would the police look for him even if no local files a missing person report; or would the laws allow for people from the citizens home nation to file a report? The list goes on.
In a nutshell, this quote brings up an argument about the rights and privileges of migrants and how they fare against “Our country, our people, and our laws” in lieu of the fact that we are a global community with a concept of human rights.
Do we let go of outsiders or take them in as equals?
-written by, Shashank Dalmia