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AAI and ADC Call for Fair Treatment of Haitian Refugees

Posted on Tuesday March 23, 2004

The Arab American Institute (AAI) and the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) express deep concern about the current U.S. government’s response to Haitians fleeing political and civil unrest in their country.

The U.S. government’s current policy endangers the lives and safety of Haitian refugees, many of whom are women and children. While political violence, economic instability, and human rights violations are escalating, the United States should not deny sanctuary, even a temporary one, for the innocent fleeing violence in Haiti.

As a party to the UN Refugee Convention, our current policies undermine basic standards of asylum protection, and threaten our reputation as a nation of immigrants. Such policies include the interdiction of Haitian boats both on the high seas and within the territorial waters of the United States, the summary return of those individuals who are interdicted with no real screening of their asylum claims, prolonged detention of those who are able to make it into the United States, denial of bond, extension of expedited removal procedures, and the application of expedited hearings resulting in little to no legal representation.

Since the beginning of the current crisis, more than 900 Haitians have been returned to Haiti by the U.S. Coast Guard. Only three have been held for asylum interviews because the U.S. government requires Haitians to demonstrate their need for asylum by shouting, jumping up and down, waving their arms, or otherwise making their distress apparent. Unfortunately, it is likely refugees are either ignorant of the necessity of these displays or unable to perform them due to exhaustion and exposure. Yet without these actions, they will not be screened to determine if they have a legitimate asylum claim.

The Arab American community knows too well the negative impact of blanket policies targeting individuals based on national origin, and shares the pain of our friends in the Haitian community. Denying Haitians the basic rights preserved for nationals of any other country is blatantly discriminatory, and should not be tolerated in the oldest and greatest democracy in the world. Those seeking refuge in the United States should be granted equal access and opportunity to due process. Therefore, we urge the U.S. government to issue a fair and humane policy for Haitian refugees.