Page 6 - ARUBA TODAY

A6 U.S. NEWS
Saturday 23 March 2019

Judge scrutinizes Trump’s policy shift on asylum seekers

By SUDHIN THANAWALA case, and the court could
Associated Press hear it.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A The Trump administration
U.S. judge appeared skep- hopes that making asylum
tical Friday of one of the seekers wait in Mexico will
key arguments that civil discourage weak claims
liberties groups have made and help reduce an immi-
to try to block the Trump gration court backlog of
administration’s policy of more than 800,000 cases.
returning asylum seekers to Justice Department at-
Mexico until their cases are torney Scott Stewart said
heard. there is a process to pro-
Judge Richard Seeborg tect immigrants who could
also had tough questions face harm in Mexico. All 11
for a Justice Department plaintiffs in the lawsuit are
attorney who defended represented by attorneys,
the practice as a lawful re- and 10 already have ap-
sponse to an overtaxed im- peared for court proceed-
migration system. Seeborg ings, he said.
did not immediately issue a Seeborg questioned the
ruling at the end of a hear- Justice Department’s argu-
ing in San Francisco to help ment that the asylum seek-
him decide whether to stop ers sent back to Mexico
the policy while a lawsuit In this Tuesday, March 19, 2019, file photo, a man who only gave his first name as Ariel, of are not eligible for certain
moves forward. Honduras, center in blue shirt, crosses into the United States to begin his asylum case with others protections such as a hear-
The policy began in Janu- after being returned to Mexico in Tijuana, Mexico. ing before an immigration
ary and marked an un- Associated Press judge.
precedented change to that’s about 120 miles (193 to a judge that they face plied a U.S. law that allows “The same thing is hap-
the U.S. asylum system . kilometers) east. the potential of persecu- the return of immigrants to pening to these people for
Families seeking asylum are The lawsuit on behalf of 11 tion or torture if they are Mexico. The ACLU and the good or bad,” he said.
typically released in the U.S. asylum seekers from Cen- sent back to Mexico, said other groups say that law Border Patrol arrests, the
with notices to appear in tral America and legal Judy Rabinovitz, an attor- does not apply to asylum most widely used gauge of
immigration court, but the advocacy groups says the ney for the American Civil seekers who cross the bor- illegal crossings, have risen
Trump administration be- administration is violating Liberties Union, one of the der illegally or arrive at an sharply over the last year
gan sending them back to U.S. law by failing to ade- groups that is suing. entry port without proper but are relatively low in his-
Mexico to await their court quately evaluate the dan- “The process they have documents. torical terms after hitting a
hearings. gers that migrants face in right now completely turns Seeborg said they faced a 46-year low in 2017.
The policy affects those Mexico. the whole notion of protec- “tall order” convincing him The policy followed months
who seek asylum at the Under the new policy, asy- tion on its head,” she said. that asylum seekers were of delicate talks between
nation’s busiest border lum seekers are not guar- Seeborg questioned the always exempt from that the U.S. and Mexico. Mexi-
crossing, in San Diego, and anteed interpreters or law- lawsuit’s argument that law. He did say the plaintiffs cans and children traveling
the Calexico port of entry yers and don’t get to argue the administration misap- had authority to bring the alone are exempt from it.q

Flight attendant detained by immigration on return to U.S.

HOUSTON (AP) — A flight ever since. But soon after the agency tasked with In a joint statement with
attendant who traveled her husband, Arroyo, the overseeing the program the Association of Flight
to Mexico for work while airline and flight atten- known as Deferred Ac- Attendants, Mesa chief
enrolled in a program for dants’ association publicly tion for Childhood Arrivals, executive Jonathan Orn-
immigrants brought to the demanded her release, or DACA — declined to stein apologized to Saa-
United States as children Saavedra Roman called to discuss the case. But the vedra Roman and asked
was detained on her way tell him she was getting out. agency says on its website U.S. authorities to release
back by U.S. immigration “She was crying and she that those who travel out- her, arguing it was unfair to
authorities but said Friday said, ‘please come get side the country without a continually detain some-
she was being released, me,’ “ her husband, David special document allowing one “over something that is
her attorney said. Watkins, told reporters. them to do so are no longer nothing more than an ad-
Selene Saavedra Roman, a Immigration and Cus- covered by the program. ministrative error and a mis-
28-year-old originally from toms Enforcement said The agency no longer is- understanding.”
Peru who is married to an the agency was looking sues the document to the “She should have never
American citizen, was as- into her status at a Texas program’s enrollees, ac- been advised that she
signed an international detention facility. Earlier, cording to the website. could travel,” Arroyo said.
flight and raised concerns This 2018 photo provided by the agency said Saave- The Trump administra- “It was a big mistake.”
about whether she could Feldman Strategies shows dra Roman didn’t have a tion sought to end the Saavedra Roman — who is
go because of her immi- Selene Saavedra Roman. valid document to enter Obama-era program but scheduled to appear be-
gration status, said Belinda Associated Press the country and was be- was blocked by litigation. fore an immigration judge
Arroyo, her lawyer. on her return to Houston ing detained while going New applications have in April — was brought to
Mesa Airlines mistakenly as- Feb. 12 and sent to an im- through immigration court been halted, but renewals the country as a young
sured her she would be fine, migration detention facility, proceedings. continue for hundreds of child and attended Texas
but Saavedra Roman was Arroyo said. U.S. Citizenship and Im- thousands of immigrants al- A&M University, where she
stopped by U.S. authorities She has been detained migration Services — ready enrolled. met her husband. q