US plan to deport families attacked by Democratic presidential candidates

Washington/New York: The Obama administration on Thursday came under fire from Democratic presidential candidates and human rights groups for plans to intensify deportations of Central American migrants by rounding up undocumented families.

The Washington Post first reported on Wednesday that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was considering launching the crackdown in January.

A spokesman for Hillary Clinton, who is leading among Democratic candidates seeking the presidency in next November’s elections, said she “has real concerns about these reports,” adding it is “critical that everyone has a full and fair hearing and that our country provides refuge to those that need it.”

An ICE spokesperson, asked why the agency was targeting families, said it focuses on people who pose a threat to national security, public safety and border security, “whether alone or with family members.”

Senator Bernie Sanders, chief rival to Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination, said in a statement, “Our nation has always been a beacon of hope, a refuge for the oppressed ... we need to take steps to protect children and families seeking refuge here, not cast them out.” Another of Clinton’s Democratic opponents, ex-Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley, tweeted: “Holiday plans for raids to round up/deport Central American refugees fleeing death are wrong. We are a better nation than this.” Many seek asylum in the United States by claiming their governments are unable to protect them from drug-related or domestic violence.

Support for the deportations came from Republican Senator Ron Johnson, who chairs the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee.

“The primary solution to reducing this ongoing crisis is to eliminate the incentive that results from allowing 95.6 per cent of these illegal immigrants to stay — by humanely and expeditiously returning them to their home countries.” DHS has put a priority on targeting for deportation previously convicted criminals who are undocumented. But it also wants to remove recently arrived Central Americans.

Hispanic-Americans are a growing force in US politics and Democrats hope a strong turnout in November could help them, especially with Republicans campaigning on a vow to seal US borders from illegal immigrants.

Michelle Brane, director of the Women’s Refugee Commission’s migrant rights programme, said she had not received briefings from the administration. But she worried that some families facing deportation may not have had proper legal representation, especially if their cases sped through the courts.

“It’s a pretty traumatic way to break in the new year,” she said.