Opendoormigration

GOOD AFTERNOON LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, MEMBERS OF THE JURY AND OPPOSITE TEAM. MY NAME IS (………………………………………) AND I REPRESENT LEZAETA’S TEAM SUPPORTING THE MOTION: Should Chile maintain its current open door policy on immigration?

The current Chilean open door policy on immigration has had different kinds of controversial political issues during the last few decades. In fact, over the centuries,Chile has received a number of immigrants, mainly from Europe followed by Americans and Asians. Today, millions of their descendants still live in the country and are found in all areas of the community. Much of the immigration to Chile occurred during the 19th and 20th centuries, from various foreign communities. Today, the main immigrant groups are those originating in neighboring countries, dueto the interaction of its relations with Chile. The largest immigrant group is from Argentina, followed by Peru. One of the main factors that has led to this migration is the country's relatively stable political history, compared with the rest of Latin America and in the past few decades, the significant growth of the Chilean economy. Similarly, emigration from other Latin American countriesbeyond its borders has also been of great importance. As an example, one of the founders of the famous University de Chile was Venezuelan, Andrés Bello. Copper and nitrate mines in the Atacama Desert depend on Bolivian contract workers from neighboring Bolivia.

It is important to mention that today, thanks to the great number of immigrant groups corresponding to the countries bordering Chile,this has created various advantages for our country. One of the main benefits is the economical growth that Chile has experimented with during the last few decades. From this point of view, I can say that this open door policy on immigration can’t be restricted in any form. This is due to the fact that new people entering our country bring many benefits and introduce advantages in terms of economy,education, health and commercial services. Addressing these points, I will analyze some arguments that state immigration as an effective way of helping our country grow and become more economically productive. Therefore, this open policy would be a good alternative for our country in the long term.

It is very important to define what immigration really is and the implications that this wouldprovide our country. According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), there are more than 200 million migrants around the world today. Immigration is the process in which an individual or a group of people travel to another country from their own, with the intention of permanently settling in that country. These people are generally considered immigrants in that country until theircitizenship is confirmed. Immigration can occur due to a natural or man-made calamity that causes people to immigrate to another country for security, such as civil war. This causes a rise in the number of refugees, who are fleeing their country because of an immediate threat to health. Many people also immigrate to other countries for employment, to have better job prospects. This ofteninvolves immigration on a mass scale from one country to another. Taking that into account, let’s see what has happened in our country over the last century.

The increasing economic stability of Chile, in conjunction with the deteriorating economic and political situations of other nations in the region, has made Chile an attractive alternative for immigrants, and redirected some migratory flowstoward the country. If we take this from a businessman’s point of view, today, Chile is one of the most attractive countries for immigration. During the two last decades, within Latin American countries, Chile is the country most stable and secure economically for foreign investors. In comparison with other countries in South America, Chile has the advantage of having the best quality of life, but...