09/01/2004

On a recent Monday 20 Haitian asylum seekers were arrested for illegally entering the United States after their boat landed on Hutchinson, near Stuart, Florida. They were detained and quickly sent back to Haiti.

If the returnees had been Cuban, they would have been released on bond until a ruling on their asylum applications. Unfortunately for them, they were Haitians, a group that Attorney General John Ashcroft has declared a threat to national security.  As a result Haitian asylum seekers face harsh treatment that violates international convention.  

U.S. legal principles specify that each person has a right to have claims decided on an individual basis.  “The essence of American justice is to evaluate everyone on an individual basis,” Sen. Arlen Specter (R. PA), a critic of the Ashcroft policy, told the Senate Judiciary Committee in June.  In addition, the 1951 U.N. Refugee Convention states that countries should treat all refugees equally, without discriminating against refugees on the basis of their national origin. Even the U.N. Refugee organization, UNHCR, believes that Haitians are treated differently than refugees from other countries. “The continued level of violence and poverty is so high in Haiti, that the U.S. applies a different norm than to countries where violence is less continuous.”

Current U.S. policy reflects domestic fears rather than legal fairness.  The U.S. government worries that accepting Haitian refugees who flee the country by boat will lead to a mass exodus similar to the flood of a decade ago, when up to 30, 000 Haitians left the island in makeshift boats for the U.S.  However, improved U.S. Coast Guard patrols make such an invasion impossible today.  

The 20 people captured on Hutchinson Island were the first Haitians to reach the U.S. by boat since the Department of Homeland Security launched “Operation Able Sentry” in February to keep Haitians from reaching the U.S.  The refugee blockade, established after President Bush declared that the U.S. “will turn back any [Haitian] refugee that attempts to reach our shore”, has been spectacularly successful.  Since February, The Coast Guard has intercepted some 2, 000 Haitians and sent them home, where they may face violence and reprisals.  

Human rights groups in Haiti report that political revenge and violence continue to give Haitians legitimate reasons to seek safety and asylum in the U.S.  One of the foundations of refugee protection and human rights law is the international principle of non-refoulement, which protects people from being sent back to countries where they face the threat of persecution.  The U.S. is denying that protection to Haitians.

Even the few Haitians who get a hearing, face difficult, uncertain conditions.  They are held in the Krome Processing Center in Miami, where their cases are supposed to be resolved in 90 days. Many, however, face indefinite detention. One young man, David Joseph, was 17-years old when he entered Krome; he is now 19 and still does not know when he will be released. Detainees, like David, are not referred to by the guards by their names, but by case numbers—a very dehumanizing practice. Visits from family members and attorneys take place in booths separated by glass.

U.S. policy towards Haitian asylum seekers is misguided and unfair. Ongoing political turmoil in Haiti means that the country is not safe. Under the UN Refugee Convention, no state is permitted to return an asylum seeker, even if not deemed a refugee, to a country if their life could be in danger.

Haitian asylum seekers should be treated humanely. They are not guilty of a criminal act. Breach of immigration law is a civil--not a criminal--offense.  Asylum seekers from other countries are entitled to bond and allowed to await legal proceedings in freedom.  By law, Haitians deserve the same treatment.

Mamie Mutchler, Refugees International’s human rights advocate, recently returned from Haiti.