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Greens Call The Mass Detention of Foreign-Born Muslims in California Illegal. |
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THE GREEN PARTY OF THE UNITED STATES MEDIA RELEASE Contacts: GREENS CALL THE MASS DETENTION OF FOREIGN-BORN MUSLIMS IN CALIFORNIA ILLEGAL Trapped by the INS during a routine registration, law-abiding Iranians and Arabs have been denied due process, face inhumane jail conditions and deportation; racial profiling recalls the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II; more arrests feared beginning January 10. WASHINGTON, DC -- "The mass detention of foreign-born Muslims in California deserves condemnation from every American who cares about human rights and equal treatment under the law," said Ben Manski, a Wisconsin Green and member of the Steering Committee of the Green Party of the United States. Greens called on the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to release the hundreds of detained Iranian and Arab men and boys immediately and demanded that Attorney General John Ashcroft end the Justice Department's "Special Registration" program, which Greens say will do nothing to deter future terrorist acts. Several hundred -- possibly over a thousand -- foreign-born Muslims, mostly Iranian, are reportedly being held and face deportation; there are reports of inhumane conditions in detention centers in Southern California, including crowded and freezing cells, strip searches, shackles, and denial of access to lawyers. "Those who showed up to register in California did so voluntarily and in willingness to comply with the law -- and many were immediately arrested," said Beth Moore Haines, Media Coordinator of the Green Party of California. "The fear of arrest will surely drive many foreign-born Muslims who are here legally into hiding. Would-be terrorists will also go underground, making it less likely that they'll be discovered." The Department of Justice mandated the INS's Special Registration policy in the wake of September 11, and the INS has already been registering and fingerprinting visiting men who are at least 16 years old, mainly from the Middle East, at airports and other points of entrance to the U.S. The first deadline, December 16, required registration by more than 3,000 male visa holders from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Sudan and Syria. The next registration deadline is January 10, 2003, and applies to over 7,000 foreign-born males from Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Eritrea, Lebanon, Morocco, North Korea, Oman, Qatar, Somalia, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen. "It's likely that we'll see more illegal roundups beginning on January 10," said Mark Dunlea, chair of the Green Party of New York State. "The arrests are illegal because no arrest warrants have been served, and because the men deported or threatened with deportation have been here legally, were voluntarily complying with a call for registration, and many were already in the process of filing or updating green card applications and residency documents with the INS. They're being held without bail or bond and face deportation without due process. They have complied with the law at every point, and now they're being punished -- for being Iranian or Arab." Many Greens plan to join public protests in California, New York, and elsewhere in the coming week, including a major lunchhour demonstration in front of the INS in Sacramento on Tuesday, January 7. Greens say the detentions betray a policy of racial profiling that undermines President Bush's public posture that Muslims should not be harassed and blamed for September 11. "These detentions and the dubious rhetoric about homeland security used to justify them recall the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II," said Nancy Allen, a Maine Green and member of the national party's Media Committee. "Nearly 70 years ago, another nation used language like 'Special Registration' -- when all Jews were required to register in Nazi Germany." "We face a real national security threat to the United States -- from the Ashcroft Justice Department," said Ben Manski. "Every American should be alarmed by the Bush Administration's increasing disregard for constitutional protections and procedures, contempt for basic rights and privacy, disinformation campaigns, and other policies in the name of 'Homeland Security' and 'Total Information Awareness.' How long will we tolerate these assaults on our democracy and the Constitution?" MORE INFORMATION The Green Party of the United States Class action lawsuit filed by the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, Alliance of Iranian Americans, Council on American Islamic-Relations, and National Council of Pakistani Americans http://www.adc.org/index.php?id=1540 Calif. Muslims Detained in Crowded, Cold Centers" Reuters, December 19, 2002 http://reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=1939069 Letter from the Alliance of Iranian Americans to INS Acting District Director in Los Angeles http://www.payvand.com/news/02/dec/1096.html
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