Page 3 - aruba-today-20180824

A3
U.S. NEWS Friday 24 august 2018

Complaint: U.S. officials coerced migrants to sign documents

By ASTRID GALVAN the American Immigration was going to be deported
PHOENIX (AP) — The Hon- Council, who say attorneys and he would be adopted
duran mother said she felt spoke with 76 parents who by someone in the U.S. and
repeatedly pressured to said they were asked to that they'd cut off his fin-
sign documents she wasn't sign forms affecting their gers if he lied when being
given time to read, so she rights to reunify with their interviewed by authorities,
lashed out at an immigra- children. she said.Homeland Security
tion officer, telling him it All of them said they weren't spokeswoman Katie Wald-
shouldn't be this hard to get allowed to ask what would man declined comment
her son back. happen if they signed the Thursday on the complaint,
The officer put his hands in form. saying that the agency
a motion imitating chok- The U.S. government sepa- cannot comment on pend- In this Aug. 9, 2018, file photo, provided by U.S. Immigration and
Customs Enforcement, immigrants walk into a building at South
ing someone and told her rated more than 2,500 chil- ing litigation, although the Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas.
that's what he'd do to her dren from their parents this complaint is not a lawsuit. Associated Press
if she were his wife, the year as the Trump admin- But a top agency official,
woman said in an interview istration adopted a "zero- Matthew Albence, denied in Dilley, Texas. his son if he signed off on
Thursday. She spoke to The tolerance" policy requiring similar allegations during a Stories of parents who said his deportation. But it would
Associated Press on con- anyone who crossed the July 31 Senate committee they were coerced into be five months before the
dition of anonymity over border illegally to be pros- meeting. signing off on their depor- boy, Johan, would be re-
fears about her safety."I felt ecuted. That resulted in "A great many of these indi- tations and further separa- united with his parents in
so horrible because of so parents who had to go to viduals do not wish to have tions have circulated for Honduras. That happened
many things they told us, federal court to face crimi- their child returned home months. only after an immigration
that they were gonna de- nal misdemeanor charges with them. The reason most Rolando Antonio Bueso judge granted the boy a
port us, that our kids were of illegal entry to be sepa- of them have come in the Castillo, the father of a voluntary departure order,
gonna stay here," she said rated from their children, first place is to get their chil- 1-year-old boy, said he was which allowed the govern-
of her experience after be- often for months. dren to the United States," told he'd be reunited with ment to fly him home.q
ing separated from her son The policy ignited a world- Albence said at the time.
at the border this spring. wide furor and Trump even- The complaint claimed mi-
A complaint filed against tually reversed course. grant parents separated
the Department of Home- A federal judge overseeing from their children were
land Security on Thursday a lawsuit against the gov- subjected to verbal and
alleges many parents were ernment gave authorities physical abuse, including
coerced into signing pa- until July 26 to reunite all being deprived of food
perwork they didn't under- families, although over 300 and water and being put
stand and that they were parents who were deport- into solitary confinement.
verbally and emotionally ed to their home countries In another example, a
abused while detained have yet to be reunited Guatemalan mother who
and away from their chil- with their children. was separated from her
dren. The complaint to the De- 5-year-old son said an offi-
In some of the cases, par- partment of Homeland cer at the Port Isabel, Tex-
ents gave away rights to Security's Officer for Civil as, detention center told
be reunited with their chil- Rights and Civil Liberties her to sign a document to
dren when the non-English and Inspector General be returned to her home
speaking mothers and fa- claims several mothers said country so that she could
thers signed documents that Immigration and Cus- get her son back.
in English they could not toms Enforcement officers The officer didn't explain
read, according to the told them that if they didn't what she was signing and
complaint provided to the sign the form, they would the woman did so out of
AP before it was filed with never see their children desperation, according to
the Department of Home- again. the complaint. The woman,
land Security. The Honduran mother left like many others, also re-
In other examples, parents her homeland with her ported being threatened
who had been reunited 12-year-old son in April to with solitary confinement
were threatened with an- escape gangs that threat- because she was crying so
other separation if they ened their lives when she much over being separat-
didn't agree to be deport- reported them to police ed from her son.
ed with their children, the over their demands that The woman, referred to
complaint said. she pay them a cut of her only as "A.E." in the com-
The complaint was filed by clothing business. She said plaint, was eventually re-
the American Immigration authorities also repeatedly united with her son and is
Lawyers Association and told her son that his mother currently detained with him