Publicação
The Debt Crisis and Homeland-Diaspora Engagement in Portugal: Institutions, Remittances and Political Participation
| Resumo: | Emigration has been a structural feature of the Portuguese society. Recognising that diasporas are increasingly considered agents of change, particularly in situations of economic or political crisis, Portugal has sought to strengthen economic, social and political ties with Portuguese citizens and their descendants living abroad. Building on the concept of critical juncture, this chapter explores the drivers of change of Portuguese diaspora policies, since the establishment of the democratic regime, aiming to assess the relative impact of the 2008 economic crisis on those policies and in affecting diaspora mobilisation and engagement with homeland. Our analysis focuses on the economic and political relationships, combining secondary data on remittances and the electoral participation rate of Portuguese emigrants, in the national elections, with a survey of emigrants who had left Portugal after 2000. Our findings indicate that with the economic crisis and the resulting great emigration wave, the economic and business approach of the diaspora-engagement policies gained relevance. This, however, appeared to have had limited impact on the volume of emigrants’ remittances while the level of political mobilisation of the Portuguese diaspora has remained relatively weak. Yet it is important to highlight the change in the electoral law in 2018 which broadened the electoral weight of the diaspora. |
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| Autores principais: | Fonseca, Maria Lucinda |
| Assunto: | Diaspora engagement Diaspora policies Homeland Portugal Debt crisis |
| Ano: | 2022 |
| País: | Portugal |
| Tipo de documento: | capítulo de livro |
| Tipo de acesso: | acesso aberto |
| Instituição associada: | Universidade de Lisboa |
| Idioma: | inglês |
| Origem: | Repositório da Universidade de Lisboa |
| Resumo: | Emigration has been a structural feature of the Portuguese society. Recognising that diasporas are increasingly considered agents of change, particularly in situations of economic or political crisis, Portugal has sought to strengthen economic, social and political ties with Portuguese citizens and their descendants living abroad. Building on the concept of critical juncture, this chapter explores the drivers of change of Portuguese diaspora policies, since the establishment of the democratic regime, aiming to assess the relative impact of the 2008 economic crisis on those policies and in affecting diaspora mobilisation and engagement with homeland. Our analysis focuses on the economic and political relationships, combining secondary data on remittances and the electoral participation rate of Portuguese emigrants, in the national elections, with a survey of emigrants who had left Portugal after 2000. Our findings indicate that with the economic crisis and the resulting great emigration wave, the economic and business approach of the diaspora-engagement policies gained relevance. This, however, appeared to have had limited impact on the volume of emigrants’ remittances while the level of political mobilisation of the Portuguese diaspora has remained relatively weak. Yet it is important to highlight the change in the electoral law in 2018 which broadened the electoral weight of the diaspora. |
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