Throughout history, countries have built border walls, with famous examples including the Great Wall of China and the Berlin Wall. They tend to arise in times of conflict and tension, restrict movement and act as a rallying cry. Most recently, President Donald Trump issued a controversial executive order to construct a wall along the US-Mexico border. Why have countries opted to build walls? Carter and Poast (2017) offer a theory: as income inequality between two countries increases across time, the construction of a wall becomes more probable. Differences in wages between two countries may create incentives for individuals to seek work in the wealthier country without obtaining legal approval. Income inequality between countries may also give rise to the movement of black market goods from the less wealthy (and less regulated) to the more wealthy (and more regulated) country. The resulting instability may prompt a country to construct a wall as part of its border strategy.
The authors’ argument is supported by data concerning 62 instances of man-made border walls between 1800 and 2014. Notably, 28 of these walls have been built since 2000. Alternative explanations, such as the presence of civil war in one country, inflows of refugees, and territorial disputes, were not significant drivers of wall construction. Among other results, the authors also find that the wealthier country is more likely to have or construct a border wall, an effect that increases as the income inequality between the countries grows.
The authors note that they are not aware of a study on the effectiveness of border walls as a strategy to slow or stop the movement of people and goods; rather, the authors suggest that border walls may create a need for well-organized trafficking of goods or people, increasing border instability in turn.
This may indicate that border walls create more problems than they solve; in order to diplomatically resolve the increased instability created by a well-organized response to border walls, the state actors will have to find a way to bring the non-state actors to the negotiating table. Additionally, building a wall does not address the economic inequality that often prompts wall construction.
Conflict resolution practitioners and policymakers should therefore take note! Over the long-term, political interests may be better served and citizens’ lives improved by addressing economic inequality instead of building walls.
Carter, D.B. and Poast, P. (2017). Why Do States Build Walls? Political Economy, Security, and Border Stability. Journal of Conflict Resolution, 61(2), 239-270.
Photo Credit: U.S. Customs and Border Protection