移民、疆界与公民身份——以戴维·米勒的观点为讨论中心

Immigrants,Border,and Citizenship——Reflections on Miller's Political Theory

从权利的角度界定公民身份,是一种普遍的做法。从这一角度出发,公民拥有根据自己的偏好,选择成为他国公民的权利。然而,现代各国却不遗余力地控制疆界,各种移民限制不容外来者置喙。这种单方面的做法是否具备正当的理据?单纯诉诸权利,能否辩护疆界控制的理据?能否解决移民与公民身份的问题?本文将主要围绕戴维·米勒的观点展开论述。

Debates of citizenship are currently dominated by the language of rights. Today,rights-based conceptions of citizenship draw on doctrines of human rights. Such rights claim to be fundamental and universal. As such,people must be capable of choosing which country they want to be naturalized. However,given the facts of increasing immigration,such an abstract theorizing is insufficient in itself to mount a convincing argument. Is border control incompatible with liberal democracy? The question of whether a closed border entry policy under the control of a state is legitimate cannot be settled until we first know the justification of nationality and territorial rights. This article reflects on the ideas of David Miller and gives an account of why his theory cannot serve as a good starting point for understanding the problems of citizenship and immigration.