Book reviews Book reviews • DOI: 10.2478/v10202-011-0048-3 NJMR • 2(3) • 2012 • 260–274 Guild, Elspeth & Mantu, Sandra (eds.) (2011) Constructing and Imagining Labour Migration: Perspectives of Control from Five Continents, Farnham: Ashgate. 311 pp. This timely text looks into migration comparatively across world regions from the perspective of control. It does so by shifting the attention from national concerns to the global politics of labour migration. The approach is engaging, adopting something of a postmodern take on how free movement is restricted in different re- gional contexts around the world. The writers talk about ‘narratives of control’, and some (nation) states being more successful than others in presenting an image that labour migration can be ‘man- aged’. The premise of the book suggests that the writers advocate for more transparency to labour migration policy rhetoric. The book is divided into three sections, each of which contains chapters describing labour migration policies, programmes and ‘realities’ in different world regions. Part I looks into labour migra- tion regimes with ‘weak control claims’. It is argued that the states’ presumed absence in controlling labour migration obscures its presence, resulting in exploitation and exclusion of migrants from social security in the receiving states. Malaysia provides a case in point, as discussed by Blanca Garcés-Mascareñas. Although it has promoted the necessity of migrant workers to ease labour shortages in critical sectors during times of high demand, the temporality of foreign labour at the same time pushes migrant workers into illegality. The privatisation and commercialisation of recruitment has a part to play in the process. In the case of another Asian state, Taiwan, Melody Chia-Wen Lu likens control mechanisms to Michel Foucault’s biopower: whilst international businessmen have considerable freedom to enter the country, those deined as ‘high-risk’ migrants are subjected to ‘disciplines of body and sexuality’ in the form of physical and psychological evaluations. Part II features Canada, Australia, Japan and the European Union Member States where control claims are stronger. These states make substantial investments in their labour market policies and thereby manage to project images of control. The dominant narratives include that of the highly skilled ‘super-migrant’ meeting the needs of the market and moving effortlessly across borders in no need of integration. For Guild and Mantu, the politization of migration control is said to be evident in all cases. Migrants are warmly welcomed as guests who, however, should not overstay their welcome. The seemingly fair points based models, epitomiz- ing ‘skills’, are critiqued as encompassing gender, racialized and class exclusions. Some ethnic groups are less desirable than others within such systems. This issue appears as the paradox of migra- tion: labour migration is needed in the globalizing world whilst the imagery of the nation-state persists. 260 Brought to you by | Université de Strasbourg Authenticated | 130.79.184.173 Download Date | 10/17/12 1:33 PM