JRS/USA Calls on Department of Homeland Security to Clarify Haitian Deportation Policy

The Jesuit Refugee Service/USA (JRS/USA) has come out against the recent decision by the U.S. government to resume the deportation of Haitians, saying it “will put lives at risk while creating an additional problem for the maintenance of public order in beleaguered Haiti.”

Haiti, which is still struggling to recover from last January’s earthquake, is in the midst of a cholera epidemic. Deporting Haitians from the United States at this time is an unwise and dangerous policy, according to JRS/USA.

JRS/USA and other faith-based and legal services groups wrote a letter to Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano on Dec. 22 asking that the department reconsider this pending action but has not received a response.

“While we support the enforcement of immigration laws, we are concerned that the continuing state of emergency in Haiti will jeopardize the lives of those deported and divert resources from the recovery and reconstruction effort,” said JRS/USA in a statement.

JRS/USA is asking the Department of Homeland Security to clarify their new policy and to provide an explanation of how conditions have materially changed in Haiti to justify the resumption of deportations. [Jesuit Refugee Service/USA]