WASHIGTON: The US administration is considering a plan to curtail sharply the rights of foreigners to seek asylum in the United States.
Ina draft document now circulating in the Justice Department, the administration is proposing to introduce the concept of “summary exclusion,” which would give immigration authorities the power to forbid entries to foreigners with fraudulent document.
The plan, an amendment to the immigration law that would need congressional approval, would also allow authorities to deport immediately any applicant for asylum who is declared ineligible.
No review or appeal would be allowed in such cases.
The administrations draft includes proposals similar to those introduced by the Regan administration which never became law.
The administration would appear to be strictly limiting illegal immigration and extensive asylum during recession when jobs are already scarce for Americans
Lawyers representing refugee groups argue the amendment would be unconstitutional because it would deny the right of due process.
These refugee advocates also say that such a law would be incompatible with international humanitarian standards.
Under present practice, thousands of foreigners who enter the United States with suspect documents, no documents at all or with what are considered insufficient grounds for asylum claims are nevertheless allowed hearings and often repeated appeals.
About 177,000 asylum cases are pending in the United States. Exceptions to summary deportation would continue to be made for people with a credible fear of prosecution, according to the draft, which also accepts that some foreigners will arrive with false documents because they were needed to leave a dangerous situation safely.
Article extracted from this publication >> February 28, 1992
