AILA Denounces Deportations to Haiti as Life-Threatening
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Thursday, April 7, 2011
CONTACTS:
George Tzamaras / Jenny Levy
202-507-7649 / 202-507-7628
gtzamaras@aila.org / jlevy@aila.org
Washington, D.C. - This week ICE posted a new policy, signaling that more deportations to Haiti are imminent. “One year after the earthquake, Haiti remains in ruins and is now confronting a cholera epidemic. Our government is sending people back to horrific circumstances, possibly even death,” said David Leopold, President of AILA.
In the wake of the January 2010 earthquake that devastated Haiti, ICE suspended all deportations to the country out of humanitarian concern. However, on January 20, 2011, ICE reversed course, deporting 27 to Haiti. One deportee died within days of arrival of suspected cholera and another was taken gravely ill.
"AILA recognizes the importance of immigration enforcement, however, the U.S. government should not be placing people’s lives in peril. AILA urges the Obama Administration to immediately suspend deportations while life-threatening conditions in Haiti persist."
The American Immigration Lawyers Association is the national association of immigration lawyers established to promote justice, advocate for fair and reasonable immigration law and policy, advance the quality of immigration and nationality law and practice, and enhance the professional development of its members.