Sovereign performances in shared border regimes: The cases of Australia and Papua New Guinea & Italy and Libya

Abstract

Borders are simultaneously at the periphery and the center of the sovereign state. They are central to establishing the territorial jurisdiction of the state and function as a boundary denoting the extent to which exclusive sovereign authority may apply. However, restrictive transnational border regimes are becoming more commonplace within the contemporary global context of human migration. These arrangements are generally initiated by wealthy western states who have both political and financial means to outsource their border priorities to other state actors. This has elicited important questions about the status of sovereignty as the exclusive and supreme authority of the state. This study focuses on two distinct cases in which states have conferred aspects of their sovereign authority over border control in order to exclude or detain asylum-seekers and refugees. This study of Australia and Papua New Guinea, and Italy and Libya critically examines the ways in which these bilateral relationships perform difference kinds of sovereign performances. This thesis suggests that these performances may become more evident as legitimate responses to the phenomena of irregular migration.