Trump team mulls separating women, kids at Mexico border

The reason for the proposal is to deter mothers from migrating to the United States with their children.

WASHINGTON: Women and children crossing together illegally into the United States could be separated by US authorities under a proposal being considered by the Department of Homeland Security, according to three government officials.

Part of the reason for the proposal is to deter mothers from migrating to the United States with their children, said the officials, who have been briefed on the proposal.

The policy shift would allow the government to keep parents in custody while they contest deportation or wait for asylum hearings. Children would be put into protective custody with the Department of Health and Human Services, in the “least restrictive setting” until they can be taken into the care of a US relative or state-sponsored guardian.

Currently, families contesting deportation or applying for asylum are generally released from detention quickly and allowed to remain in the United States until their cases are resolved. A federal appeals court ruling bars prolonged child detention.

President Donald Trump has called for ending “catch and release,” in which migrants who cross illegally are freed to live in the United States while awaiting legal proceedings.

Two of the officials were briefed on the proposal at a 2 February town hall for asylum officers by US Citizenship and Immigration Services asylum chief John Lafferty.

A third DHS official said the department is actively considering separating women from their children but has not made a decision. HHS and the White House did not respond to requests for comment.

In a statement to Reuters, DHS said: “The journey north is a dangerous one with too many situations where children — brought by parents, relatives or smugglers — are often exploited, abused or may even lose their lives.

“With safety in mind, the Department of Homeland Security continually explores options that may discourage those from even beginning the journey,” the statement said.

US Representative Henry Cuellar, a Texas Democrat whose district includes about 200 miles (320 km) of the border with Mexico, slammed the proposal. “Bottom line: separating mothers and children is wrong,” he said in a statement.

“That type of thing is where we depart from border security and get into violating human rights,” he said.

About 54,000 children and their guardians were apprehended between 1 October 2016 and 31 January 2017, more than double the number caught over the same time period a year earlier.

Republicans in Congress have argued women are willing to risk the dangerous journey with their children because they are assured they will be quickly released from detention and given court dates set years into the future.

Immigrant rights advocates have argued that Central America’s violent and impoverished conditions force mothers to immigrate to the United States and that they should be given asylum status.

Implementing the new policy proposal “could create lifelong psychological trauma,” said Marielena Hincapie, executive director at the National Immigration Law Center. “Especially for children that have just completed a perilous journey from Central America.” Days after the killing of an Indian engineer in an apparent hate crime, an Indian-origin businessman who was wellliked in his neighbourhood was shot dead outside his home in Lancaster, South Carolina, on Thursday night.

Harnish Patel, 43, had closed his shop at 11.24 p.m. and barely 10 minutes later After Pakistan approached the Interpol earlier this week to seek a Red Corner Notice against Baloch Republican Party (BRP) chief Brahamdagh Bugti and his aide Sher Mohammad Bugti, Baloch, Pashtun and Sindh separatist leaders unanimously supported Brahamdagh Bugti and criticised Pakistan’s attempt to extradite Baloch separatist leaders from Europe. The separatist leaders from different Pakistani provinces see Pakistan seeking a Red Corner Notice as a short-cut for Pakistan to tame all the separatist movements that are flourishing on Pakistan’s soil. The possibility of Interpol entertaining Pakistan’s request would be seen by separatist leaders as a “historical mistake”. Brahumdagh Bugti is living in Geneva since 2010.