Even Canada, one of the major receiving countries, was deporting immigrants who had no work. Many governments have tried to encourage guest workers to return home and allowed new arrivals only for family reunification. In recent years, however, even the US has become much more pre-occupied with immigration. The chief concern nowadays is that poverty will drive people in increasing numbers from developing to industrialized countries. The United States frets over its border with Mexico - and the estimated five million illegal immigrants it already has.
Many European countries are worried about influxes from North Africa.
And since the end of apartheid many more Africans from all over the continent have been heading for South Africa, where the government is becoming increasingly defensive - expelling well over 135,000 aliens in 1996. Asia is also a focus of increasing migration flows. But at least 300,000 others are thought to have arrived as tourists and overstayed their visas. Rapid economic growth elsewhere in East and South-east Asia has also stimulated many new migration flows. All have tried to control these flows.