Linkages and Strategies in Filipino Diaspora Mobilization for Regime Change

Abstract

Over the last century, the activities of migrants and refugees have been crucial in homeland democratization. How does the relationship between the homeland and hostland shape their strategies? Comparing the activism of Filipinos in the U.S. and in the Netherlands from 1972–1982 against the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos, this study shows that linkage influences the demands, arenas, and tactics of movement actors. Analysis of archival and interview data shows that activists in the U.S. pursued foreign policy lobbying due to strong linkage between the U.S. and the Philippines, which provided activists an accessible institutional target, channel, and resources for their claims making. In contrast, through transnational advocacy networks, Filipinos in the Netherlands engaged in naming and shaming in nongovernment tribunal due to weak Dutch-Philippine state relations. The article considers the relationship between two polities and societies as a shifting transnational field of relations that shapes the agency of actors in cross-border activism.

The Long Arm and the Iron Fist: Authoritarian Crackdowns and Transnational Repression

“…A country’s diaspora can play a key role in naming and shaming as they have insider knowledge, linguistic skills, connections, and motivation to work for change from abroad (e.g. Quinsaat 2019). Individuals fleeing authoritarian rule and domestic crackdowns can have a particularly outsized role as they can testify first-hand to the human experience of repression, which can be used in human rights reporting as a powerful spur to action (Moon 2012).…”

From helmets to face masks: how collective emotions sustain diaspora mobilization from homeland uprising to global pandemic among the Hong Kongers

“…Considering the dynamic nature of diaspora politics, Baser (2014) proposes that transnationalism could be "activated" with the awakening of "latent diaspora" owing to homeland political uprising. Such an awakening cultivates and sustains the "oppositional consciousness" to mobilize migrants using different strategies to support their homeland (Quinsaat, 2019). A majority of diasporic mobilization studies posit that mobilization is a result of the rational choices made by the diaspora group to maximize the probability of success based on local and global political opportunity structures (Adamson, 2013;Della Porta and Tarrow, 2005;Koinova, 2017;Polletta and Jasper, 2001;Yazdiha, 2021).…”

Going after the family: Transnational repression and the proxy punishment of Middle Eastern diasporas

“…By forming transnational advocacy networks dedicated to supporting victims of regime abuses, diaspora movements have the potential to threaten authoritarian rulers’ legitimacy, stability, and even sovereignty (Keck & Sikkink, 1998; Moss, 2022). Studies show that activists, journalists, and human rights defenders residing abroad can subvert regime censorship, expose abuses, fund local opposition groups, and pressure host‐countries to intervene (Betts & Jones, 2016; Quinsaat, 2019; Tarrow, 2005).…”