DC. DEAR MR. PRESIDENT: We are writing as religious leaders to request a meeting with your office concerning the emergency situation of Haitian refugees now on the verge of being forcibly returned to their home country by the U.S. Coast Guard. Over 1.800 Haitian asylum seekers aboard U.S. Coast Guard cutters and a Navy ship are now on the verge of being returned to Haiti. pending a temporary restraining order. This is despite the clear record of abuses and persecution inflicted upon the Haitian people by the armed forces since the military coup September 30. 1991. It has been widely reported that more than 300 innocent civilians have been killed in the violence since September 30. Hundreds more have been injured in these repressive acts. The United States has rightfully opposed forced repatriation of Vietnamese refugees in Southeast Asia. Our government has no ground to stand upon in the international community if we now engage in this forced return of Haitians. It is furthermore disingenuous to claim. as officials of the State Department have done recently. that because Caribbean nations are not willing to provide a regional safe haven in sufficient numbers. these refugees now need to be forced back. Mr. President. the contradictions In the treatment of Haitian refugees by the U.S. government during this present crisis are apparent. Has the United States returned any of the over 2.000 Cuban refugees who have fled in rafts and small boats? The answer is no. in fact. they have all been brought to the U.S. by the U.S. Coast Guard. allowed to remain and given at least a temporary safe haven while their claims before the Immigration and Naturalization Service are considered. Haitian asylum seekers deserve no less. The United States government must end this forced repatriation now. We must lead by example. and provide safe haven to people who flee the illegitimate government that has usurped power in Haiti.
Keywords matched
Naturalization Immigration asylum seekers refugees