Border Walls – View of Spanish-Moroccoan fence in Melilla

Border walls are the architectural opposites of bridges and are built to protect from foreign invasions or attacks. In the age of global trade, low cost flights and digital technologies, many countries rely on a physical division made of concrete, steel and barbed wires… Once upon a time there were the Chinese Great Wall and the Iron Curtain. Archipanic explores some of the most controverse geopolitical constructions across the planet.

The Economist published an interactive map showing all the walls and fences which were completed or are under construction (red lines) and even the planned ones (green line). In gray, the countries that have built barriers.

US BUILT $33M PROTOTYPES FOR A BORDER WALL EXPECTED TO BE PAID BY MEXICO

Trump US-Mexico border wall prototypes. Photo: courtesy of MAGA.

According to President Donald Trump, the controverse US-Mexico border wall is supposed to stop illegal immigration and drug trafficking, and – on top of that – Mexico should be paying for it. An idea blatantly dismissed by Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto. Eight 30-feet tall prototypes which already costed the US $ 33m stand up near San Diego in California. According to artist Christof Büchel, they should be protected as an architectural proof of the spirit of the times. Whether Trump’s dream will come true or not, “they can remind people there was such idea to have this border wall once” says the artist to Archipanic. Read the full story…

KOREAS ‘CHEERLEAD’ AND SKI ACROSS THE DMZ

DMZ from North Korea side – Photo by Uri Tours, Creative Commons (CC).

North and South Korea might be fighting cheek-to-cheek at Pyeongchang Winter Olympics 2018, but it is impossible not to mind the gap between the two countries. In the wake of World War II, the Korean Peninsula was divided in two. Within Cold War polarizing system, a society and culture that had maintained an unified state entity for more than a millennium evolved two radically, divergent countries. Northern and Southern Koreans might hug on a sledge or shake hand on a podium, but that is as far as it gets. Actually, the other only one meeting point between the two countries is an austere room in a check point along the DMZ (De-Militarized Zone) border. Read more about North and South Korea on Archipanic…

SPLITTING IRELAND – AGAIN – IN NAME OF BREXIT 

Titanic Belfast by CivicArtsand Todd Architects – Photo by Nico Kaiser, CC.

“Brexit, we will make a titanic success of it” said British Foreign Minister Boris Johnson in Belfast, the Northern Irish city where the the Titanic cruise left port over a century ago before sinking in the Atlantic Ocean.  In 2016, the United Kingdom voted for leaving the European Union. Two years after, most people in Europe and the UK are still puzzled about the real meaning of the word ‘titanic’. So far, negotiations mostly included messages of hope and threats, will of commitment and petty bickering. Given the red lines by both parts it seems there’s not much maneuvering space… Will Brexit end up meaning the re-creation of a UK-Irish border in an island with a bloody history of violence and divisive terrorism? Read more about Brexit on Archipanic…

SYRIAN-TURKISH BORDER WALL NEAR COMPLETION

Turkey-Syria Barrier – Photo by @nedretersanel IG

“We keep building goodness,” this is one of the mottos of TOKI, Turkey’s state-owned construction enterprise, which mostly operates in the housing sector with the aim of building over 1 million houses by 2023. This spring, the company will be achieving another goal, the completion of a 828 km long border wall preventing illegal crossing  and smuggling from Syria. The structure is made of seven-tonne concrete blocks topped with razor wire and stands 3 m high and 2 m wide. 120 tower and military patrols preside the barrier making sure nobody gets in. TOKI is also building a wall at the Iranian border which will be completed by spring 2019.

ISRAEL-PALESTINE: BANKSY WALLED-OFF HOTEL

Walled Off Hotel – All images courtesy of the Walled Off Hotel and Banksy.

Pillow fights, CCTV hunting trophies and an unconventional English tea room. Banksy’s Walled Off Hotel in Bethlehem overlooks the Israeli-Palestinian border wall and welcomes people from all faiths. Built in 2000, the 708 km long Israeli West Bank barrier is seen as an anti-terrorism security solution by Israelis and an apartheid wall by Palestinians. Due to security concerns, as well as immigration concerns, border fences and walls have been utilized with Lebanon, Syria and Egypt and the Palestinian) Gaza Strip. Read the full story…

BORDER WALLS IN EUROPE…

Lascar Short section of the Berlin Wall in Potsdamer Platz – Wikimedia, CC.

Over 30 years after the disruption of the Berlin Wall re-joined Western and Eastern Europe, new border walls are being raised at the edges of the European Union. Barbed wired fences can already be found in Greece, Hungary and Spain. EU countries were unprepared to face the arrival of refugees from North Africa, Middle East and Ukraine.  The continent’s response ranges from a welcoming attitude to protectionism but also far right and racist populism.

Hungarian-Serbian border barrier – Wikimedia, CC.

Fences surround Spain’s enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla separating the country from Morocco. The 7 miles Everos wall was designed to prevent migrant to cross the Greek-Turkish border. Hungary began building a 177 km fence to block the flow from Serbia. The construction is capable of delivering electric shocks to unwanted migrants and are armed with heat sensors, cameras, and loudspeakers that blare in several languages. The country even detains all migrants in border camps while their applications for asylum are processed.

Hungarian-Serbian border barrier – Wikimedia, CC.

BORDER WALLS IN ASIA…

Photo by Oriol Gascòn, CC.

Forget the Great Chinese Wall [Above]. Majority-Muslim ethnic group Rohingya who have lived in the Buddhist nation of Myanmar led by Nobel Prize Aung San Su Ki are fleeing to neighboring Bangladesh in the wake of a deadly attacks which have been condemn internationally. According to Amnesty International reports, Myanmar’s military has been accused of planting landmines in the path of Rohingya mass exodus.

The Parliament of Bangladesh [above] passed a resolution demanding citizenship and the right of return for the Rohingya in Myanmar – CC.

Six of the nine countries neighboring India are classified as lowest developed countries in the world, including Bangladesh and Myanmar. Despite climate catastrophes, the country built barrier to prevent refugees and Islamist terrorist to sneak in illegally. In addition, India completed the construction of the Indian-Kashmir barrier, which runs along the Line of Control in Kashmir. Security barriers have been built by Russia against Mongolia, North Korea and even China. Afghanistan is almost entirely fenced off.

Iraq-Kuwait Border Wall – Photo from 18591km.wordpress.com.

Iran built a 700 km border barrier with Pakistan claiming is to stop the flow of illegal crossings and prevent terror attacks. The United Nations has constructed a demilitarized zone to stop Iraq from re-invading Kuwait.  Saudi Arabia has begun construction of a border barrier or fence between its territory and Yemen and Iraq to prevent the unauthorized movement of people and goods. 

Double decked bridge across the Shenzhen River between Shenzhen and Hong Kong – Wikimedia, CC.

As Special Administrative Regions, Hong Kong and Macau maintain controlled intra-national borders with mainland China. This might be a future point of geopolitical contrast between the regions and their supposed international allies – like the UK – and China. Even little Brunei is building a security fence along its 20-km border with Malaysia to stop the flow of irregular migrants and smuggled goods.

BORDER WALLS IN AFRICA…

Ceuta border fence – Wikimedia, CC.

Every day hundreds of migrants try to reach Europe by boat. But those who arrive are just a very, very little percentage of those who depart and try to cross the continent. Morocco has not only erected a joint barrier with Spain in the North but also a fenced frontier with Algeria and a an anti-vehicle barrier with Sarawi in the South. Libya is partly separated by Tunisia and Algeria. Zimbabwe is fenced off from Botswana and South Africa while Kenya erected a border with Somalia.

BORDER WALLS IN LATIN AMERICA…

Interviewing Venezuelan refugees at the Colombian border camp – CC.

Despite the MercoSur – the South American regional bloc promoting free trade and the fluid movement of goods, people, and currency –  border barriers separate Brazil from Colombia, while a new controverse proposal for a Peru–Ecuador 1.529 km long divisive construction is the source of a diplomatic row causing fierce dispute. Further barriers are expected to be built between Venezuela and its neighbours. The country is living a deep economic and social crisis which pushes people to flee across the border. Despite the commitment to support each other, Colombia and Brazil are taking architectural measure to control the diaspora of Venezuelan refugees which have got to the point to sell hair to survive.