U.S. bishops say refugee program in crisis

Social justice news
June 2002

Bishops call for Vatican III
Bishops to consider Charter to protect children
Frosted mini-nukes?
Maryland calls moratorium on death penalty
SEIU in landmark contract with Catholic Healthcare West
Tactical nukes next up in arms-control agenda?
U.S. bishops say refugee program in crisis
Voice of laity emerging

U.S. bishops say refugee program in crisis
Immediately following the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States, the Bush administration suspended refugee admissions into the country. At that time, approximately 22,000 refugees had been approved to come to the United States for resettlement but were not allowed to travel pending a comprehensive security review of the refugee program. While students and tourists were allowed to travel to the United States, refugees fleeing terror were not. Because of the security review and the attention of the government to the war on terrorism, President Bush did not sign the Presidential Determination on refugee admissions for Fiscal Year (FY) 2002 - which authorizes the admission of 70,000 refugees - until November 21st, almost two months after the commencement of the new fiscal year.

Despite the completion of the security review and the signing of the Presidential Determination, only 11,000 refugees were admitted into the United States from October 2001 through May 2002, far below the number needed to meet the 70,000 ceiling by the end of the fiscal year. In fact, the State Department now estimates that as few as 45,000 refugees could be brought into the United States during FY 2002. This low level of admissions comes despite pledges by Arthur “Gene” Dewey, Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, and James Ziglar, Commissioner of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), to exert their best efforts to admit 70,000 refugees this fiscal year.

There are several reasons for the lower number of admissions. First, additional security measures have been incorporated into the admissions process. For example, the United States government now runs name checks on all refugees against the databases of U.S. law enforcement agencies; requires a photograph of refugees at the time of initial processing and verification at the time of departure; fingerprints refugees at both the point of departure and arrival; and reviews all family reunification cases for fraud and other security considerations. Because of the fingerprinting requirement, there is a limit on the number of refugees who can arrive on any given flight. This increases the number of flights needed and delays arrivals into the United States.

In addition, the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) has been slow to travel to various spots around the globe to interview applicants for resettlement, pending security approval by the U.S. Department of State. Locations which were previously determined to be secure for conducting refugee interviews are being reconsidered. Efforts to identify other secure locations for interviews have proceeded slowly. The INS also has been slow to review family reunification cases from the 22,000 refugees already approved for admission into the United States.

These additional security measures, together with a lack of political will to find solutions which balance security considerations with the protection of refugees, have lead to a crisis in refugee admissions. As a result, thousands of deserving refugees in urgent need of the protection afforded by resettlement in the United States continue to languish in often dangerous conditions. Among these refugees are Afghans who fled the Taliban, Iraqis fleeing the regime of Saddam Hussein, and Africans fleeing conflicts in that war-torn continent.Catholic Social Teaching

The Judeo-Christian tradition is steeped in images of migration. Papal teaching has reflected biblical images of migration, including the plight of those fleeing danger and persecution. Pope Leo XIII's 1891 encyclical Rerum Novarum included the right to migrate to sustain one's family. Exsul Familia, Pius XII's response to the unprecedented populations of refugees and displaced persons following World War II, called the Holy Family the "archetype of every refugee family." And Pope John Paul II, speaking in Centesimus Annus about the condition of refugees and immigrants, said that "no one can say that he is not responsible for the well-being of his brother or sister."Next Steps
The U.S. Catholic Bishops and other refugee advocates are calling upon the State Department to honor the commitment made by President Bush to admit 70,000 refugees to the United States during FY 2002.

What You Can Do

* Write, call, or visit your Congressional representatives and President Bush and urge them to call upon the State Department to admit 70,000 refugees during the current fiscal year.

* For more information, or to be added to the advocacy list, contact Walter Ewing at the Office of Migration and Refugee Policy, Migration and Refugee Services, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops: (202) 541-3448 / wewing@usccb.org.

Back to page top