The construction of the immigrant as deviant – How is the image of the deviant immigrant reflected in Norwegian policy and public debate?

Abstract

This thesis is a critical analysis of the public debate surrounding the refugee crisis Norway faced in 2015. Acknowledging the new policies that have been introduced in the aftermath of the refugee crisis, the emphasis on the stricter rules in the field of immigration, which I perceive to be moving towards a crimmigration field, is the starting point of this thesis. I have chosen a media analysis of Facebook and newspaper articles to get a glimpse into the public debate surrounding those who crossed Norway’s borders in 2015. I then proceeded to supplement this data with central reports. The inquiry looks into how the image of the deviant immigrant is reflected in Norwegian policy and public debate. The analysis has been carried out by two different methods. First, extracts from Sylvi Listhaug’s official Facebook page as well as other political and immigration authority discourses picked up by newspapers were used to analyse the image of the deviant immigrant. Second, the data from the opposite side of this crisis was portrayed using more positive articles based on welcoming those crossing Norway’s borders. The data on this side of the analysis is based on how civic groups in Norwegian society produced a counter-image to that portrayed of immigrants in the authority discourses. Invariably, the political and administrative officials’ rhetoric is of different length and consistency. The rhetoric has been presented in quotes in this thesis. Some politicians have uttered themselves throughout the crisis, while others have played a smaller part. The changes in the legislation were first introduced in this thesis before I proceeded on to analyse the similar suggestions that have been raised by some politicians in order to showcase how the legislation had broad agreement. The aim has nevertheless been to put forward the nuances of the debate. I have expressed my findings by using mostly a combination of criminological and legal sociological theories. Katja Franko Aas’ (2013) theory on “the deviant immigrant” has been helpful to view how those who crossed Norway’s borders have been portrayed. Migration research studies recognize how nation-states can criminalize irregular immigrants based on their laws. Some of my findings pertain to how Norway has likewise criminalized those crossing its borders with rejection of entry, denial of assessing an asylum application and the introduction of stricter visa requirements. One of the recurring themes is sending a signal of being stricter as a state to reduce the influx of asylum seekers. I have tried to analyse whether this rhetoric of portraying immigrants as deviant spread from the Progress Party and to other political parties and administrative organs. I believe these stricter measures in the immigration field portray how Norway as a state adopted a realist mentality during the refugee crisis, both in the policies introduced and in the political public debate. I believe Norway strove to get rid of a “humanitarian image” to appear less attractive as an asylum country as other states in Europe have as a measure of migration control. The opinions perspective has been used as a theoretical perspective on understanding the effects of the abrupt changes in the societal conditions of laws. On the one hand, the increase in asylum arrivals led to abrupt and stricter changes in the Immigration Act of 2008, whilst on the other hand it led to a mass mobilisation to help those crossing our borders. Politicians use “politically advantageous discourses” to create fear through distributing stories on crime and justice, according to Yvonne Jewkes (2015). This was similarly the case in some of the political rhetoric that relied on distributing stories from Sweden and Germany to inform the Norwegian audience regarding the negative issues that can arise from these increased asylum arrivals. Some of the political rhetoric focused on prioritising the security of citizens, with suggestions of electronically tagging immigrants. The stricter policies implemented and debated in the political discourses analysed are a sure sign that crimmigration policies have been adopted, and with broad political support during the refugee crisis.