As expected in the early days of the year, the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Department of Justice (DOJ) released a proposal for an immigration rule that would deny incoming immigrants the ability to seek asylum at the border.
However, administration officials have clarified that it is not an outright ban on asylum, but “a rebuttable presumption of ineligibility” that can be reversed if you encounter a serious medical emergency, an extreme and imminent threat to your life or safety ( rape, kidnapping, torture or murder) or trafficking.
The measure has specific exceptions for those who are already authorized to travel to the United States on a DHS-approved probation process; those who use the CBP One app to schedule a time and place to report to a port of entry, or who report to a port of entry without using the CBP One app and find that you are due to a Could not access or use the App due to language barrier, illiteracy, significant technical failure, or other obstacles; or prove that they were denied asylum in a third country en route to the United States.
The official statement ensures that the purpose is to “encourage the use of new and existing legal processes”, such as the humanitarian parole for Haitians, Cubans, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans and requesting asylum appointments via the CBP One application.
The measure in question sees the immediate expulsion according to Title 8 authorities, which is subject to a five-year re-entry ban.
The new rule, under review by March 27, aims to “deter dangerous border crossings and impose a new condition on eligibility for asylum for those who don’t.”
According to information released Tuesday on the official DHS website, the United States is facing “the largest displacement of people since World War II” and accuses the US Congress of trying to update a “very broken and outdated immigration system.” to have opposed.
For now, DHS advises that while preparations are made to deactivate Title 42, which became effective during the administration of former President Donald Trump, that title will remain in effect while the “processing of all citizens under the Authority.” of title 8”. , with which DHS emphasizes: “Persons attempting to enter the United States without authorization will be deported“.
In this regard, Alejandro Mayorkas, Minister of Internal Security, stated that they are strengthening the availability of legal and orderly routes for immigrants: “As we have seen time and time again, individuals who are offered a safe, orderly and legal route to the United States risk less probably their lives traveling thousands of miles at the hands of ruthless smugglers just to reach our southern border and face the legal ramifications of illegal entry.”
For his part, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland warned that “The Department of Justice is responsible for administering the country’s immigration courts and ensuring that applications are processed promptly, fairly and in accordance with due process.
The new measure “will establish temporary rules for eligibility for asylum in these procedures if the Title 42 order is lifted. We look forward to reviewing public comments on this proposed rule,” Garland said, noting the possibility for the public to comment on the proposal once it is posted in the Federal Register.
The announcement of this new provision drew numerous criticisms, including those from Democratic Senators Bob Menéndez, Cory Booker, Ben Ray Luján and Álex Padilla, who reiterated it a statement to be “deeply disappointed” by the proposed rule, “which only perpetuates the pernicious myth that asylum seekers are a threat to this nation”.
“In reality they are looking for a legal route to the United States. We have a duty to protect vulnerable immigrants under domestic and international law, and not leave them stranded in countries that cannot protect them. We call on President Biden and Secretary of State Mayorkas to step back and pave the way for a better path that protects the right to asylum while addressing the real operational challenges of our southern border,” the statement said.
Members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus also expressed frustration with the administration when the rule was originally announced, he recalled CNÑ publication.
On Tuesday, Senior House Judiciary Committee Member Rep. Jerry Nadler, DN.Y., and Senior Integrity, Security and Immigration Enforcement Subcommittee Member Rep. Pramila Jayapal, DN.Y. Washington backed the measure and recalled that “the ability to seek asylum is a fundamental principle protected by federal law and must never be violated.”
“This rule goes to the dustbin of history to revitalize one of the Trump administration’s most damaging and illegal anti-asylum policies,” Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, president and CEO of the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, said in a statement.
“Demanding that those persecuted seek protection first in countries that do not have functioning asylum systems is a ridiculous and potentially deadly undertaking,” the activist criticized.
The United States government has carried out more than 1.9 million Title 42 expulsions, which denies the ability to seek asylum provided by US law and international treaties to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
The Associated Press Agency has published that Title 42 does not apply equally to all nationalities. For example, Mexico has agreed to accept migrants from Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and Mexico. But for other nationalities, the high cost, poor diplomatic relations, and other considerations for the United States make it difficult for the United States to send them back to their home countries under Title 42. Instead, they are usually released to the United States to seek asylum or a place of refuge under other legal regimes.