EU-Limboscapes: Ceuta and the proliferation of migrant detention spaces across the European Union

Ferrer Gallardo, Xavier; Albet-Mas, Abel

doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0969776413508766

EU-Limboscapes: Ceuta and the proliferation of migrant detention spaces across the European Union

Citation

Ferrer-Gallardo X, Albet-Mas A. EU-Limboscapes: Ceuta and the proliferation of migrant detention spaces across the European Union. Eur Urban Reg Stud. 2016;23(3):527-30. DOI: 10.1177/0969776413508766

Abstract

This Euro-commentary puts the lens on the European Union (EU) North-African city of Ceuta. In so doing, it introduces the notion of EU limboscapes. In the 1990s and early 2000s the iconic twin-metal fencing of Ceuta’s borders added powerful visual strength to the metaphorical Fortress Europe. Today, Ceuta is still (or even more) central when it comes to the conceptual understanding of the socio-spatial articulation of the EU project vis-à-vis migration management. In this respect, we suggest that the limboscape profile drawn by Ceuta’s spatial dynamics is now iconic in terms of current EU b/ordering practices. The notion of limboscape helps us conceptually grasp/map the expanding archipelago of migrant confinement spaces scattered within and beyond EU space.