An indiscretion by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service (ICE) has compromised the situation of 46 Cuban asylum seekers in the US. At the end of November, the institution accidentally published a list of 6,252 immigrants in ICE custody that included sensitive information about your identity, dates of birth and immigration status,
The seriousness of the incident increases when considering that the Cubans on the list were part of a group of 103 people about to be deported to the island. The Cuban government, consequently, will receive these citizens knowing that they requested international protection in the United States. USA
In a apology note published on November 30, ICE reported that a document was “erroneously” published on its website, during “routine updates.” The text, which was available for five hours, was withdrawn as soon as notification of the fact was received. “While unintentional,” the report states, “this disclosure is a violation of policy and the agency is investigating the incident and taking any necessary corrective action.”
As they exposed various officials of emigration to the American newspaper Los Angeles Timesthe revelation is, in practice, a delivery of data by the US Department of Homeland Security to the Government of Havana about the 46 asylum seekers, who sought to avail themselves of federal protection against persecution and torture in their country.
ICE is trying to prevent possible reprisals from the regime against these citizens and has decided to delay the deportation of the 103 Cubans.
They added that ICE is trying to prevent possible reprisals from the regime against these citizens and has decided to delay the deportation of the 103 Cubans and has even considered releasing them from federal custody. In addition, those affected will be given the opportunity to renew their asylum request and contact their lawyers.
Deportation to the island would be a “nightmare scenario” for Cubans, said Robyn Barnard, associate director for refugee advocacy at Human Rights First. According to Barnard, those affected also risk having their families on the Island harassed by State Security.
Standard practice is to keep any information about asylum seekers strictly secret. “And we’re not talking about just any foreign government,” Barnard said, “but about a government that, according to irrefutable evidence, systematically detains and tortures its opponents.”
Anwen Hughes, director of legal strategy at Human Rights First, acknowledged that asylum seekers seek the NGO’s services “nervous” as they fear their relatives will be arrested when their claim is heard. That is why the US government should ensure confidentiality in the treatment of your information, she told Los Angeles Times.
Cubans are not alone in the consequences of this indiscretion, since they are part of the more than 6,000 migrants who appeared on the list and who had also alleged suffering “persecution and torture” in their countries of origin.
In addition, Cubans are not alone in the consequences of this indiscretion, since they are part of the more than 6,000 migrants who appeared on the list and who had also claimed to suffer “persecution and torture” in their countries of origin.
This is a scandal that concerns, first of all, US National Security institutions, since the information revealed by ICE should have been treated as a secret by those responsible for the incident.
A few weeks before the list of asylum seekers was leaked, the Reuters agency revealed that the Cuban government once again accepted the deportation by air of migrants detained on the border with Mexico, although it assured that it would only apply to “occasional groups.” .
The Biden administration viewed the measure as a “new but limited tool to curb the number of Cubans crossing the border,” three anonymous US officials told Reuters.
At that time it was learned that ICE was holding a dozen citizens of the Island who were denied asylum. In less than a month the number rose to 103. The exodus from the island to the US via the Central American route has already exceeded the figure of 220,000 Cubans.
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