UNHCR concerned about US detention of asylum seekers

WASHINGTON, March 21 (UNHCR) - While acknowledging the need for heightened security measures in the United States, the UN refugee agency has raised concerns about Washington's new policy to mandatorily detain asylum seekers based on nationality. Also of concern is the policy's linkage of terrorism with asylum seekers - people who are themselves fleeing violence and persecution and seeking safety in the US.

The new policy, "Operation Liberty Shield", calls for the automatic and continued detention of asylum seekers arriving in the US from over 30 classified countries and territories throughout the entirety of their immigration proceedings. These procedures can take six months or longer, even a year or more in the case of appeals.

In a letter to the US government on Thursday, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Ruud Lubbers said, "Detention of asylum seekers should be the exception, not the rule and should be based on an individualised assessment of the security risk the person poses."

UNHCR's press release on Thursday added that the agency fully recognises and supports the need for heightened security measures during these tenuous times of increased insecurity, but cautioned that blanket mandatory detention based on nationality varies from accepted international human rights norms and standards.

While sharing US concerns about potential abuse of the asylum system, UNHCR noted that this system already has in place a number of screenings to identify individuals who pose potential security risks. US asylum law and the 1951 Refugee Convention exclude any persons engaged in terrorist acts from refugee protection.

The refugee agency warned that it is wrong, even dangerous, to associate asylum seekers and refugees with terrorism, stressing that these people are often victims, not perpetrators, of such attacks.

"The United States has always been a generous and safe harbour for those victims of war, persecution and human suffering," said the UNHCR press statement. "UNHCR hopes these people in need will continue to find safety and dignity on US shores."