World Refugee Day: After Fleeing Persecution At Home, Asylum Seekers Face Prison-Like Conditions In U.S.

In the dim light Jean-Pierre could make out his name on the guard's list. He was second in line to be killed.

"Welcome to your last day," the guard said.

Jean-Pierre expected to die. For the past few months, plainclothes policemen had been showing up at his house, asking his family for his whereabouts. He'd been followed. Not even twenty-three-years-old, he'd already been jailed four times for organizing lawyers to intervene in human rights abuses.

Rattled, Jean-Pierre backed off the human rights issues and focused on raising HIV-AIDS awareness in Guinea, the West African country where he was born and raised. But, because he worked with Canadian and American NGOs and attended conferences all over Africa and Europe, he was developing a reputation among some in the Guinean government as a rabble-rouser and a spy.

Friends had warned Jean-Pierre that he was in danger. Still, when someone knocked on his door in the middle of the night and asked for a light, Jean-Pierre opened the lock. That was the end. He was seized, hooded, and stuffed into the back of a car. Forty-eight hours later he was looking at his name on a death list. The last thing on Jean-Pierre's mind was immigrating to the United States.

Nevertheless, less than a week later Jean-Pierre was standing in line at U.S. immigration at Newark International Airport. The Guinean government decided at the last minute that Jean-Pierre would be too much trouble to kill--they didn't want to add any fuel to the civil unrest--and gave his family a day to rustle up the money for a plane ticket out of the country.

When Jean-Pierre's turn came at the immigration window, the officer glanced at his green Guinean passport and his business visa. Both were legit. Jean-Pierre had been planning to come to the U.S. to see some colleagues anyway, and a month ago he'd secured the visa from the consulate. The passport was stamped with his recent trips to South Africa, Spain, France.
It's likely the immigration officer would have waved him through. But Jean-Pierre, hoping to extend his stay in the U.S. a few months beyond what the business visa allowed, said, "I'm here to seek political asylum."

The officer blinked. He didn't seem to expect a well-dressed, well-spoken young man from an Air France flight to be asking for amnesty.

And Jean-Pierre certainly didn't expect what happened next. He was approached by security officers, escorted to the other side of the airport--where the flights from developing nations usually came in--and left to spend the night on the floor. The next morning, Christmas Day, he was shackled to another asylum seeker and taken to a detention center in suburban New Jersey. He wouldn't speak to his immigration officer for another two weeks; he wouldn't see the sun until March.

Like the bulk of people who come to the United States seeking asylum or without correct documentation, Jean-Pierre spent the first phase of his new life as a prisoner. He shared a room with dozens of other people, all of whom used a toilet and shower in full view of everyone else. He wore a jumpsuit. Except for emergencies, the only medicine available were two pills: a red one, and one to make you sleep. When Jean-Pierre took the latter for the muscle aches he developed from the rock-hard beds, he had to be shaken awake in the morning.

The prison-like conditions (or, in some cases, literal prisons) of the detention centers are only part of the issue surrounding would-be asylum-seekers, said Annie Sovcik, a lawyer with the nonprofit Human Rights First. There is also the question of due process.

Asylum-seekers are presumed guilty until proven innocent. If they aren't extradited on arrival, they're sent immediately to a detention facility without an opportunity to appeal their case before a judge. Sometimes it's weeks, if not months, until they see a lawyer. The government carries no burden to prove an asylee should remain detained.

In a report to Congress, the Congressional Research Center summarizes the controversy around detention centers. While Human Rights First and other advocacy organizations would characterize U.S. policy on asylum seekers as a failure to live up to an obligation to help people who need it, proponents of the policy suggest that terrorists could use a more lax system to gain entrance into the U.S. A less-strict policy could also be abused by those who are merely seeking an alternative channel to immigration, or to those who are only persecuted in their countries because they themselves are persecutors.

To address some of these concerns, Sovcik of Human Rights First proposes a system in which asylum-seekers are immediately given an opportunity to establish their identities and claim to asylum.

Some seekers might be undesirable, she acknowledges. Still, those who can make a credible case for amnesty ought to have an opportunity to do so without suffering prison conditions--conditions that are often comparable to the environments from which they were fleeing.

As it turned out, Jean-Pierre was one of the luckier ones. He spent only four-and-a-half months in the detention center, working in the kitchen, occasionally playing volleyball in an enclosed gym at the discretion of the guards, and never once having to be sent to the SHU--the Solitary Housing Unit. He even had the occasional visitor from a nonprofit that offered social support to a population that otherwise has no resources to psychological counseling--despite the fact that many of them have experienced trauma. Jean-Pierre talked with one of these "first friends" through a glass screen during visiting hours. Had he been able to afford the $1/minute cards, he might even have been able to call her on the phone...if he'd had access to a phone.

But, perhaps Jean-Pierre was luckiest because he spoke English. Most fellow detainees couldn't even communicate basic information with their jailors, let alone charm them as Jean-Pierre did.
On his day in court, a pro bono lawyer from the Human Rights First helped secure Jean-Pierre temporary refugee status, and he was free to go. In a few years, he'll have an opportunity to apply for permanent residency in the U.S.

Jean-Pierre, however, is not so sure he'll seek it. "I don't understand the U.S.," he said, shaking his head. "They want to show other countries they accept refugees, but while they're helping some people, they're suppressing others."

Comments

[greyhound2]

Almost all illegal immigrants claim persecution but the real reason is almost always economic. What good does it do to enter a country illegally and then complain bitterly about treatment in the US. Maybe they could go home and complain to their own government and see how much they care. The US is already overloaded with people who want a free ride through life and we don't want and can't afford any more.

[kingshmoopy]

While I agree that some immigrants who claim asylum want to leave their countries for economic reasons your claim that they want a "free ride" is absurd.

I lived in Guinea for nearly 2 years and I have never seen people who work so hard--from before sunrise until after sunset--just to survive. In places like Guinea, where there is no infrustructure, even getting the water one needs for the day is an enormous amount of work.

The people I knew in Guinea who wanted to live in America didn't want a "free ride," they wanted to come to a place where they felt they could find a decent life for their famlies, they wanted to find work that would allow them to support their famlies.

I am not saying the laws should not be followed, I am saying the stereotype of immigrants who want a "free ride" and handouts is offensive and completely false.

[Atticus]

You mean he couldn't have gotten a cheaper ticket to some closer country? Why did he wind up here, and who let him in?

[cyberhippy]

It is the same in the UK. We have huge detention centres full of these poor people. Some of them are trafficed woman who have been forced to work as prostitutes. Others are torture victims whose bodies are covered with scars. People whose lives are in danger for demanding rights that we take for granted. Often we send them back to countries like Zimbabwe with nothing more than a 'reassurance' from the respective dictartorship that they will not be killed. We even have children in there. I have never been more ashamed of my country.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/markeaston/2009/04/the_arrest_and_detention_of_ch.html

[avocats]

So why not adopt or sponsor them yourself?

[Katylies]

I work everyday with folks seeking asylum, and this scenario is not what I see at all.

[Daly]

Working for US and Canada, if I were him in these times, I'd of opted for Canada.

[LooktotheLeft]

Facing persecution at home vs. Wal-Mart, being saved by Christ, and unlimited helpings of Freedom Fries, Jean-Pierre chose to not wait around for an answer and was last seen swimming across the Atlantic on his way to persecution at home

[SwingingFromCenter]

Maybe they shouldn't think they have some sort of right to "sanctuary" by coming here.

[SpaghettyIrish]

Maybe you should learn about the guarantees given to all people of the world by this country. Til then, quietly stay at the kids' table.

[ThisIsJustMyObservation]

LOL

[avocats]

Which "guarantees" are given to "all the people of this world," exactly? This country guarantees everyone the right to immigrate? Because that's what we're talking about here. If this refugee was in fear for his life, he could have stopped at any of 50 countries closer to Guinea. But "political refugees" seldom do so; they manage to fly HERE, thousands of miles away, because what we are talking about in virtually all cases is economic immigration. Torture and abuse are horrible, but I fail to see why the US has to be the solution for everyone. We have every right to limit the number of refugees we absorb, and weeding out the economic immigrants seeking a short cut is one way to ensure that there is room for the true refugee.

[Ohioan730]

"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

"right to sanctuary" There's no way you can be an American talking like that. Who sent you?

[Cambridge9]

I was about to post this same quote until I saw that you already had. Please accept my 'seconded' to your comment.

[lynettema]

I hope they leave this quote up all day. My how times have changed. This is a travesty. Perhaps there are some organizations that can get involved and help these new comers if our government can't.

[avocats]

And that sentiment is relevant to the 21st Century exactly how?

[PlainBread]

Jean-Pierre, however, is not so sure he'll seek it. "I don't understand the U.S.," he said, shaking his head. "They want to show other countries they accept refugees, but while they're helping some people, they're suppressing others."

[ObamAtomic]

Those asylum seekers are dealings with Bush policies still on place,we hope that change will
effective soon.

The *Redadas has been diminished or halted altogether .

Redadas=Immigration rounding people up at work or neighborhoods .

[IndyReader]

So Jean-Pierre was coming to the states anyway but decided to declare himself an asylum seeker? Why didn't he just keep his mouth shut, connect with his friends, and before it was time for him to leave, get a lawyer and seek asylum? He was imprisoned for 4 1/2 months, but it doesn't sound like he was mistreated. As someone below said, anyone can seek asylum, that doesn't mean they should be admitted. So now he doesn't think he wants to become a citizen because he had to wear an orange suit and pee in front of people for a while? Then he can trot his little butt back to Guinea to become the martyr that he actually wanted to become.

[SpaghettyIrish]

So, imprisoning people convicted of no crime is not mistreatment?

[allentothemax]

He wasn't imprisoned he was detained. Did you read the article? There is a very good reason why this and every other country detains those that show up seeking asylum. I would agree that the conditions should be improved and the government should be made to address these people in a reasonable and standardized amount of time. Just don't call it imprisonment because that's not what it is.

[julia23]

Because he was being honest. Its illegal to enter the country under false pretenses. He was probably thinking the US was a civilized country and knew how to deal with asylum seekers.

[lynettema]

What kind of logic is this? Not sure what is your point? Lie or go back home? Good grief.

[joceeco]

We have too many liars in America already. Do you want to become a nation of liars?

[StoicRep]

Furthermore, I would guess that many millions of people have entered the US using all those VISAa issued by Congress, that never left the country. What we need to do is check up on these people - tag them biometrically, keep track of where they are and deport them if they are here illegally.

[StoicRep]

Mexicans come to the US using a temporary worker Visa, and have stayed for 6-7 years without leaving. Now they expect residency status. Why would anyone asked for asylum?

People from the Middle East came to the US on student Visas and never left, etc, etc, etc,

The problem is that the system obviously is broken down - and the expectation is that everyone, including terrorists, by the way, are persons and should be given due process. This has come to include ,by stretching the 14th amendment, the right to health care and education.

[getcaption]

your ancestors came withOUT any kind of visa and you are still here. what do you say for yourself?

methinks you need to leave the country and re-enter with a visa. and then we will see about letting you stay etc etc.

[deepfreezevideo]

My ancestors might have come without a visa but they came with the intention of BEING AMERICANS. Nuff said.

[avocats]

Oh seriously. First, you have no idea how his ancestors came here. Perhaps he's even a Native American. Second, it doesn't much matter. We didn't require visas in the 19th century; we didn't require vaccinations or high school education either. The fact is that this is no longer the wide-open frontierland. Population growth is one of our most serious problems. Granted, it is no longer discussed, as it was in the 70s (remember Zero Population Growth?) because it is considered non-PC to inquire where additioonal people will be getting land or water or economic support.

[fcsakes]

My grandfather came here as a stowaway on a ship when he was 16 years old. He fought in the Spanish-American war and was wounded. Funny they didn't ask him if he was illegal, even though he had a heavy accent. He ran a newspaper somewhere in Wyoming, had his own band, was an artist and contributed much to build this country. If that doesn't make a citizen, I don't know what does.

And yes, all persons should be given due process. Just because they have been rounded up and thrown into jail cells with the label "terrorist" does not make them terrorists. After all, we could do the same to you.

[avocats]

How do you know your grandfather was an illegal immigrant? Arriving as a stowaway back then may have been illegal because you didn't pay for passage. Seriously, he never became a citizen?

[ObamAtomic]

Unless you are a Native Indian for the love of life adjust your tongue !

[ObamAtomic]

Listen to you ,you are a rightful native.

[bdaved]

If you want to talk about about stretching the 14th Amendment, take a look at corporate personhood. Other than that, looking at a human being as a person doesn't seem unreasonable. If you want to deny that someone is a "person" because they are a terrorist, and should then be denied due process, can't you just use that to deny due process to anyone?

[adevarul]

Have you considered that the story may be concocted? What corroboration do you have of the events described? They seem quite far fetched to this reader. Moreover, have you considered that in most countries one is detained during the pendency of the asylum process? Lastly, if he truly fears death, they awaiting a decision whilst in detention in an American facility surely is preferable to a return to his nation, is it not?

[LiberalBuzz]

Having worked with immigration attorney's back in the 80's this guy's story is entirely believable. Unless you have worked around and for these people you don't know what you're talking about. His story is repeated thousands of times a day all around the world.

Do try to research the subject. Just because the odds of it happening here are small doesn't mean it doesn't happen all over the rest of the world. AND it can happen here thanks to the cons and the Patriot Act which allows for the disappearance of American citizens and no way of them telling the world about it.

And jail here is still jail when you are expecting to be a free person while you get your act together. DO spend some time in immigration jails before you speak.

[davidwayneosedach]

ANYBODY can apply for asylum. That includes criminals, rapists, and other undesirables. The United States does not promise asylum to all takers. They are welcome to try some where else.

[Nonpartay]

Anyone interested in this subject should read the book, "Do They Hear You When You Cry?," a poignant account of one young woman's efforts to obtain asylum here to escape FGM. I'm really hoping President Obama will get to this issue soon. It's really appalling what these perfectly innocent people, many of them very young, must go through when they get here. Something needs to be done.

[SwingingFromCenter]

With all that's going on, this doesn't rank anywhere near the top of the list of things that should be prioritized.

[lynettema]

It is mind boggling all that is needing correction. Demands to President Obama from everywhere and right now because we have waiting for so long for some common sense laws in this country. Call your Senators and Congressmen and women. We are the ones that must hold their feet to the fire. They aren't going to be perfect and we aren't going to get everything we want. BUT if we don't do our part, we can't blame continue to blame the media and individuals in government.