|
||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||
|
|||||||||
 |
 |
|
|
||||||||||||
|
Urge
the U.S. Government to End Discriminatory Treatment of Haitian Asylum
Seekers  Women at Risk: Unfair U.S. Laws Hurt Asylum Seekers To request hard copies of the report, please call 212 845-5259 
Abstract from "The Welcome Mat Frays," a December 28th, 2002 NY Times editorial on the state of the U.S. asylum system
interested in protecting asylum -seekers and refugees in the United States. HRF has been advocating for refugees for two decades, and helping thousands to obtain asylum in the United States. Latest Issues  Book Details Struggles in U.S. Asylum System Wave of Denials to Stop Refugee Crisis In Iraq Act Signed By President Bush Material Support Waiver Legislation Amicus Briefs Submitted to Supreme Court on Serious Crimes Bar Update: Detention - ICE Issues new Guidance on Parole of Asylum Seekers Material Support: Hmong and Montagnard Waivers Update: Material Support Settlement Announced in Hutto Litigation GAO Finds Lack of Phone Access for Detainees Iraqi Refugee Crisis New Study Reveals Disparities in Asylum Decisions Child Soldiers and Material Support Iraqi Refugees Face Hurdles in Search for Refuge Commission Issues "Report Card" on Asylum Reforms Material Support Update: Progress for Some Asylum Seekers; Process Still Unknown 
Asylum |
|
|
|
Asylum Protection News 14 Update: Refugee Women Still at Risk Urge Secretary Ridge and Attorney General Ashcroft to Refrain from Limiting Asylum for Women who Fear Gender-related Persecution; Urge Ashcroft to Rule in Favor of Rodi Alvarado Take
Action on this Issue Now! Background In a prior newsletter issued in February, Human Rights First advised that the Attorney General was reported to be planning to issue a new decision in the case of domestic abuse survivor Rodi Alvarado and to issue regulations that would limit the ability of women fleeing gender-related human rights abuses to receive asylum in the United States. Other organizations and coalitions also worked to circulate information and raise awareness about this potential change of law. Ms. Rodi Alvarado , a Guatemalan survivor of severe domestic violence, had been granted asylum by an immigration judge only to have that decision reversed by the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) in 1999. Then Attorney General Reno vacated the BIA decision to deny asylum to Ms. Alvarado and issued proposed regulations clarifying that victims of domestic violence and other gender-related persecution are eligible for asylum. However, those proposed regulations never became final. Responses to the Attorney General’s Plans to Limit Asylum After learning of Attorney General Ashcroft’s plan to issue new regulations that would limit asylum for women, organizations and individuals around the country began writing to the Attorney General to express their concern. Through an action component on Human Rights First’s website, more than 1300 individuals have written or emailed the Attorney General. Many organizations concerned with women’s rights, domestic violence issues, and refugee rights have written to the Attorney General. To learn more about some of these efforts, you can visit the website of the The Center for Gender and Refugee Studies at Hastings College of Law. A bi-partisan group of nearly seventy congressmen and women under
the leadership of Congressman Meeks (D-NY) sent letters
to Secretary Ridge and Attorney General Ashcroft expressing
their concern. They urged Secretary Ridge to refrain from issuing
regulations that would reject gender-related violence as a basis
for asylum in the United States. In addition, Senator Leahy (D-VT)
wrote a
letter to Ashcroft urging him to not to reinstate the BIA’s
denial of asylum because Ms. Alvarado ’s life would be in jeopardy
if she was forced to return to Guatemala. On March 19, 2003, the BIA notified Ms. Alvarado ’s attorneys that the Attorney General had re-certified the case to himself. (The recertification had occurred on February 21, though Ms. Alvarado’s attorneys were not notified until March 19.) This means that the Attorney General could issue a decision in Ms. Alvarado’s case at any time. While it was initially reported that the Attorney General would attempt to issue the new regulations prior to the March 2003 transfer of INS immigration functions from the Department of Justice to the Department of Homeland Security, the Attorney General concluded that despite the transfer of these immigration functions, he would continue to retain a role in the issuance of regulations even after the March transfer. Because of the transfer however, Secretary Ridge now has a significant role in the formulation of regulations relating to asylum. As a result, it is critically important to write to Secretary Ridge – in addition to Attorney General Ashcroft – to express concern. So even if you have already written to the Attorney General, please take time to now contact Secretary Ridge as well. Ms. Alvarado and many like her are still in jeopardy. Please write to Secretary Ridge and Attorney General Ashcroft
and urge them to preserve asylum for women who suffer gender-related
violence. Please forward this newsletter to friends and colleagues. If you are not subscribed, and would like to continue receiving Asylum Protection News, sign up here |
|||||||||
