What Trump Needs To Know About Israel’s Border Fence And Why It Works
Israel’s border fence has been cited by proponents of President Donald Trump’s border wall as an example of how securing the border stems the tide of illegal immigration. However, a border fence or wall only works if the government decreases the incentives for illegals to enter.
Gideon Israel pointed out in a piece in Mida that around 61,000 illegals poured through Egypt’s border and into Israel from 2007-2012; that number drastically declined to less than 150 illegals per year from 2013 to 2016, with the one exception being 232 illegals in 2015. Israel’s border fence was established in December 2012.
On the surface, it would seem that the border fence is the cause for the steep decline in illegal immigration into Israel. But there were other factors that contributed to the decline.
There was a surge in illegals in 2007 due to scores of work permits being granted to illegals without permission of the Israeli government,
Suggesting that the rise in illegal immigration was primarily due to economic reasons rather than refugees fleeing to Israel.
Naturally, Israel sought to create economic incentives that not only discouraged illegals from entering Israel, but encouraged them to leave Israel. In addition to clamping down on work permits, Israel added the following measures:
- Prohibiting illegals from sending remittances to people in other countries.
- Mandating employers to put 20 percent of their illegal employees into a fund that could be retrieved when the illegal immigrant left the country.
- Providing $3,500 and a plane ticket for illegals to leave the country.
- Allowing illegals to be held in closed detention centers for as long as three months and an open detention center for as long as twelve months.
Illegals cannot receive Israel’s government-run healthcare or receive welfare; Israel has also tightened the requirements for residing legally in the country.
Not only has illegal immigration slowed in Israel, but 14,500 illegals have left the country since 2013. There are still at least 41,000 illegals in the country, so there is still work to be done.
Therefore, Trump shouldn’t just build the border fence; he needs to ensure that there are disincentives for illegals to enter the country as well as incentives for illegals already residing to leave. Trump may not need to do exactly what Israel did, but he can use their model as a blueprint.
