The processes aim to discourage dangerous border crossings
The US Department of Homeland Security and the US Department of Justice have announced in a joint statement that they are issuing a proposed rule to incentivise the use of new and existing lawful processes and discourage dangerous border crossings by placing a new condition on asylum eligibility for those who fail to do so. These steps are being taken in response to the unprecedented migration in the region and are being implemented in the absence of congressional action to update an outdated immigration system.
However New York immigration advocates have denounced the so-called Asylum Transit Ban plan by the Joe Biden administration which would block asylum applications from Central America and the Caribbean who have travelled through third countries on their way to the United States but did not apply for asylum on their way.
The New York Immigration Coalition, an umbrella policy and advocacy organisation that represents over 200 immigrant and refugee rights groups, said the proposed rule favours more affluent asylum seekers who can arrive in the country by via air as opposed to those who arrive by foot and seek asylum at the border.
The coalition urged the Biden administration to strengthen protections for all asylum seekers, including those from Haiti, Cuba and Venezuela stating that a just and humane immigration system is an important and necessary part of a healthy democracy and a growing economy. Instead, the proposed asylum transit ban would be a blatant and ruthless attack on humanitarian obligations, and the children and families seeking refuge from violence and persecution.
