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Two newcomers ‘ rights organizations in Texas filed a lawsuit against the federal government on Wednesday over a new presidential decree that temporarily stopped granting asylum to refugees in the majority of cases.
When the number of migrants entering the country illegally is great, President Joe Biden’s order, which was issued a week ago, generally suspends noncitizens ‘ access.
One of the organizations behind the petition, Jennifer Babaie, chairman of advocacy and legitimate services for El Paso-based Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center, said,” President Biden’s current executive order flies in face of our whole asylum system and has no criminal basis supporting it.” The president has more penalized vulnerable people and people who seek safety by doing this, according to the statement.
The maximum on prison calls will be lifted two days after the regular daily number of migrant encounters between all established ports of entry has decreased to less than 1,500 for seven days in a row, according to the purchase. When that number exceeds a daily average of 2,500 contacts for seven consecutive weeks, the restrictions may be lifted. When the order was issued a week ago, the level was met right away.
The new law, according to the lawsuit filed on Wednesday, violates laws that permit migrants to apply for hospital “whether or no” they arrive at an established port of entry.
The lawsuit claims that the policy “blatantly violates the simple language” of the U.S. immigration law that allows a migrant to seek asylum. According to the lawsuit, the order bars” an whole group of asylum applicants from accessing that shelter because of where they entered the country.”
Additionally, the lawsuit contends that the new regulations create illegitimate rules regarding the screening of immigrants.
Prior to determining whether a person had a real fear of persecution or torture, immigration officers first screened noncitizens to see if they intended to apply for asylum. A migrant can now be quickly expelled if they do n’t “manifest” a fear of persecution or torture, without being asked if they are afraid. The new rules ‘ screening standard requiring a “reasonable probability” of torture or persecution instead of the previous” significant possibility” standard is more stringent, according to the suit.
” In practice, noncitizens who have just crossed the border, and may be hungry, exhausted, ill, or traumatized after fleeing persecution in their home countries and danger in Mexico, are likely to be intimidated by armed, uniformed Border Patrol officers, and are thus unlikely to ‘ manifest’ their fear of return”, the suit states. Experience shows that asylum seekers ‘ fear of returning has gone unrecognized when a” manifestation of fear” standard or similar directives were in place in the past were not required to inquire about fear of removal.
The lawsuit contends that Biden’s proclamation’s exceptions are too restrictive. People exempted from the policy include permanent U. S. residents, unaccompanied children, trafficking victims and migrants who secure an appointment with U. S. officials. The phone app used to schedule those appointments has been criticized by migrants ‘ rights advocates because it is already crowded.
On behalf of Las Americas and the San Antonio-based Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services, the lawsuit was filed in Washington, D.C. They are being represented by a number of legal organizations, including the Texas Civil Rights Project and the American Civil Liberties Union, which last week pledged to challenge the order in court.
A legal challenge to Biden’s order was widely expected. In Texas, the proclamation was condemned by members of both parties. Republicans called the order an attempt to provide political cover in an election year largely dominated by immigration issues, while some Democrats claimed it went too far.
A dozen agency and administration officials are named in the lawsuit as defendants, including the Department of Homeland Security and its secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas.
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