Asylum
Protection News 31
September 28 ,
2004
September 28, 2004
Asylum Protection News Update:
Thank you for taking action on behalf of asylum seekers!
In the past several months, thousands of people have written to government
officials to express support for asylum seekers and refugees. We want to
thank those of you who have taken action, and encourage you to continue supporting
refugees through our Action Center.
Update: Pastor's Wife Jailed for 7 Months in
the U.S.
Urge
Secretary Ridge to Improve Detention Policies!
On June 18, we asked you to take action on behalf of Mrs. E, a pastor's wife
and the mother of young children who fled persecution in Togo and was jailed
by U.S. immigration officials when she arrived in the U.S. in search of refuge. Mrs.
E and her husband had been attacked by government soldiers in their home and
in their church because of Mrs. E's husband's preaching and prayer for change
in Togo.
Mrs. E's request for parole was denied by the Department of Homeland Security
despite the fact that she met all of the eligibility criteria for parole.
On September 2, 2004, Mrs. E was granted asylum by an Immigration Judge and
was released from the Queens Contract Detention Facility after having been detained
for nearly seven months. We want to thank those of you who took action
on behalf of Mrs. E; through your action you expressed to Secretary Ridge and
the Department of Homeland Security that the current detention and parole policies
are unfair and should be changed.
Take
Action now by writing to Secretary Ridge and urging him to improve parole
policies so that asylum seekers such as Mrs. E will not have to endure unwarranted
months of detention.
Detention of
Asylum Seekers in the News:
A September 25 New York Times editorial, entitled "The Persecuted,
in Chains," discusses the harsh treatment of asylum seekers who are jailed in
the U.S. and calls on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to improve its
treatment of detained asylum seekers.
Read the editorial.
Update: Rodi Alvarado and Gender-Based Asylum
Protect
Women Refugees!
In the August 16, 2004 edition of Asylum Protection News, we advised you that
Attorney General John Ashcroft is poised to rule on the asylum case of Rodi Alvarado,
a Guatemalan woman who fled ten years of brutal violence at the hands of her
husband after her country's government ignored her repeated requests for help. We
asked you to take action by urging Attorney General Ashcroft to grant Rodi Alvarado
asylum, and you responded in force.
Over 35,000 individuals from a wide variety of organizations and communities
took part in a nation-wide effort to urge Attorney General Ashcroft to protect
Rodi Alvarado and other women who have suffered similar violence and persecution. Attorney
General Ashcroft has not yet made a decision on this important case. A
denial of Ms. Alvarado's claim would not only affect her fate, but could prevent
other women who have fled from violence, sexual slavery, honor killings, and
other persecution from receiving protection in the United States.
We want to thank those of you who took action and encourage those of you who
have not yet done so to write
to Attorney General Ashcroft as soon as possible and urge him to grant Rodi
Alvarado asylum.
Visit the New "Refugee Stories" Section
of HRF's Website
Visit the Human
Rights First website to read stories of refugees from countries including
Mali, Tibet, Afghanistan, Cameroon, Ukraine, Sierra Leone, and Chechnya.
If you are not subscribed, and would like to continue receiving
Asylum Protection News, sign up here.
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