International Migration Organisation

Date: Sunday, May 04, 2003 1:38 PM

JOB DESTRUCTION NEWSLETTER

www.ZaZona.com

The National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) is
a powerful Indian organization that seeks to promote the IT industry in
India. Their closest U.S. equivalent is the ITAA. Both organizations
effectively promote H-1B and outsourcing in the United States.

NASSCOM president Kiran Karnik, acknowledges that Americans are going
to be angry when they learn their jobs are outsourced to India (see his
paper below). To "manage" their anger he emphasizes the need to use
propaganda in order to hype the value of outsourcing jobs to India.
Karnik understands how easily the American media can be manipulated and
intends on exploiting their bias towards monopolistic businesses.

Karnik whines that it takes too long to get visas and complains that
the WTC 9/11 terrorist attack made Americans too paranoid about
security. He implies that the USA is slowing down visa approvals by
doing too many security checks on pending visas. His nonsensical
analogy that the delaying of visas is like leaving fruit in port to rot
is the only thing about this document that's funny. Karnik promised
that he would work with foreign missions to reduce the lead-times and
speed-up the visa process. In other words, he will convince them not to
do time consuming security checks that are meant to prevent terrorists
from attacking the USA.

Karnik's paper challenges the right of the United States to control
immigration and it's own borders. He boldly proclaims that he wants to
control our laws. This is not an idle threat since NASSCOM is
registered as a foreign lobby of the U.S. Senate. Karnik, said that,
"immigration authorities abroad need to understand the different
business and work models used by the Indian IT industry." The
color-of-money speaks loudly on Capitol Hill so you can bet that our
politicians will listen to Karnik even as multitudes of angry Americans
are losing their jobs.

***** Here is where things get really scary *****

Karnik wrote that Indian IT workers need to be protected by creating a
mechanism to lodge complaints to the WTO. What this means in practical
terms is that if an Indian is not happy with the visa process in the
United States, he/she would be able to lodge a complaint with a World
Tribunal. Potential H-1Bs may even be able to sue US companies if they
refused to hire them. If the idea of world tribunals sounds far fetched
to you, consider the lawsuit that Canada filed against California over
the gasoline additive MTBE. Go to these links for more information:
http://www.globalexchange.org/economy/rulemakers/collier061899.html
http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,38718,00.html

Even worse, Karnik wants to form an "International Migration
Organisation" to look into all issues of people movement. This
organization would work with the WTO to force countries like the United
States to allow people to cross our borders in much the same way that
goods and services do.

Karnik may calling for an organization that ties together Trade
Promotion Authority (TPA) and the General Agreement on Trade in
Services (GATS). For those of you that are new to this newsletter:
Congress granted President Bush Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) in
2002. TPA was formerly called Fast Track Authority, TPA gives the
president the authority to negotiate NAFTA like trade agreements that
include visas for aliens that come to work in the United States. TPA
agreements with foreign countries will have provisions for the free
movement of international labor. TPA will open our borders to labor
markets and has the potential to render nonimmigrant visas such as H-1B
and L-1 as unnecessary. These agreements between the United States and
other countries will possibly be modeled after the NAFTA/TN visa. TPA
agreements can be used to open our borders to the free movement of
labor and will eliminate the need for any type of labor certification.
Corporations favor these types of visas because it would force
expensive American workers to directly compete in a world labor market
for jobs.

The following quote by Karnik calls for a TPA agreement with India in
order to invoke a visa that allows Indian workers to come to the US
without the so-called encumbrances of the nonimmigrant visa process.
Karnik dismisses those of us who feel that easy to obtain visas will be
used by terrorists. Karnik thinks that "security" is nothing more than
a catchword.

Unfortunately, it is the votaries of globalisation and
free trade who are likely to be the opponents of easy
mobility. The catchword security will certainly be invoked
to justify cumbersome procedures and serious restrictions
on movement. To overcome this, we have suggested a
professional service or a so-called GATS visa, which will
facilitate the movement of professionals.

http://www.nasscom.org/artdisplay.asp?Art_id=1726

A matter of statistics - Kiran Karnik

Hindustan Times

The last few months have seen a series of disquieting incidents
involving professionals from Indias information technology (IT)
industry. Extensive media coverage has not only generated great
awareness, interest and concern, but has also led to speculation about
connections, commonalities and conspiracies.

However, these have been very different incidents, taking place in
rather different countries, triggered by distinctly varied causes. I do
not see any link, overall design or hidden hand behind them. The very
large number of IT professionals who are constantly required to travel
abroad increases the statistical probability of some problem arising.
This is promptly picked up by an extremely-vigilant media, actively
contributing to the perception of this as a major and recurrent issue.
In my view, though, the incidents, however abhorrent, are one-of-a-kind
aberrations.

At the same time, there is little doubt that the general ambience of
insecurity, engendered post-September 11, is contributing to a
suspicion of the other and leading to some excesses with regard to
checking of visas, etc. In many countries, this is further accentuated
by the increasing unemployment rates, and concerns that immigrants are
taking away local jobs. The widely-publicised success of the Indian IT
industry, the substantial and visible presence of Indian professionals
in some countries, stories about large-scale outsourcing of work to
India and consequent fears of job-loss: all these are bound to have
some degree of back-lash. One of the challenges facing NASSCOM is how
to manage this inevitable reaction, while continuing to propagate and
promote the tremendous value proposition of outsourcing to India.

One of the causes of problems is ambiguity about the appropriate visa
for a given task, especially as between a business visa and a work
permit, or between an intra-company transfer visa and a work permit.
Since this is substantially a matter of interpretation, NASSCOM is
taking steps to create a dialogue between Indian IT companies and
foreign Missions to ensure that there is a clear understanding about
the correct visa for any given type of work.

At the same time, immigration authorities abroad too need to understand
the different business and work models used by the Indian IT industry.
Another necessary effort is to simplify and speed-up the process of
issuing visas, and especially work permits. This is important because
the long delays in issuing work permits, upto 6-8 months in some cases,
create serious impediments for business. It also increases the
possibility of using other valid, but not so appropriate visas.
Companies must resist this temptation, and scrupulously follow the
letter and spirit of the visa requirements.

NASSCOM is propagating this view of being conservative, cautious and
correct in choosing the visa category. NASSCOM also hopes to work with
foreign Missions to reduce the lead-times and speed-up the visa
process. This is important because such delays are, in effect, serious
non-tariff barriers to trade. It is analogous to detaining a shipment
of perishables at the port of disembarkation (e.g., fruit landing in
Mumbai port) for a few months while the pesticide residue is checked.

Irrespective of whether the delays in issuing visas is intentional or
not, the effect is the same as delaying consignments of perishables.
There is, therefore, a need to evolve a complaints mechanism of some
sort to solve these issues, analogous to the dispute settlement
mechanism of WTO.

I feel that there is definitely a need for an International Migration
Organisation to look into all issues of people movement, with a role
similar to what WTO plays for goods and services. As trade increasingly
moves from goods to services, mobility of people is going to be a
critical - and probably contentious -issue. Unfortunately, it is the
votaries of globalisation and free trade who are likely to be the
opponents of easy mobility. The catchword security will certainly be
invoked to justify cumbersome procedures and serious restrictions on
movement. To overcome this, we have suggested a professional service or
a so-called GATS visa, which will facilitate the movement of
professionals.

I would urge the government to continue taking a very strong stance
against any mis-treatment of Indian nationals, as they have done in
recent cases. The government should also push for the setting up of an
International Migration Organisation or an arm of WTO to look
specifically into visa and people-movement issues. It should also work
in GATS/WTO or at the bilateral level to create a special
professional-services visa.

Despite all this, I do fear increasing impediments in the cross-border
movement of people (especially post the Iraq invasion). In the
long-run, this will not affect - and, in fact, may help - the Indian IT
industry because if people cannot go to where there is work, then work
will come to where there are the best people. However, we do need to
work on ensuring that barriers to such mobility are minimal.

The writer is President, NASSCOM. These are his personal views.

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