As it is known, the problem of immigration is one of the most difficult problems in the world today. The author analyzes the arguments against free immigration and shows that open borders should be considered within the framework of ethics as the right of every person to move freely being able to improve his/her life. The author notes that the various arguments against immigration have mainly economic, social or cultural character. From an economic point of view, uncontrolled immigration is considered to be harmful to the economy of the country because it provides the pressure on its economic resources given that most immigrants are poor people. It is believed that uncontrolled immigration has a negative impact on the level of wages in the country because it leads to fierce competition between the working populations that can cause cheaper labor. In addition, immigration is being restricted because of the fear of terrorist attacks. Finally, a critical attitude to immigration is due to the fact that it seems dangerous for the cultural unity of the country. Despite the validity of these arguments, the author proposes to analyze the problem from an ethical point of view. This gives him the opportunity to say that “there are two major reasons for favoring open borders. The first is a principle of freedom, and the second – a principle of humanity” (p 210). The first principle requires freedom of movement, which is an inalienable human right. In turn, the second principle protects the right of everyone to have the opportunity to improve his/her life by moving to a stable and prosperous country.
In my opinion, the author provides an excellent opportunity to reflect on the issue of open borders in terms of ethical ideas. Indeed, we say that the open borders are associated with different economic, social and cultural problems. Nevertheless, this issue should be addressed including the ethical point of view. In this regard, the position of the author is quite attractive in the sense that it expands our ability to consider the matter. On the other hand, we must recognize that the adoption of purely ethical point of view on the matter to the prejudice of the economic or social consideration of the issue of open borders is not possible at the moment. To understand this, one needs to analyze the terrorist threat that is relevant. Freedom of movement has its ethical value, but as practice shows, immigrants represent a potential terrorist threat. Therefore, I believe that the position of the author of the article may be regarded as an ethical perspective to be implemented in the future, but not now. We know that the liberal countries do not have methods to guarantee the prevention of terrorism on the part of immigrants, so the controls on immigration is a necessary measure. The personal rights of immigrants are extremely important, but we must not forget the rights of indigenous people who should have the guarantee of their security. For this reason, I believe that immigration should be controlled, at least in the conditions of modern realities.”
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