Walkinshaw, McGovern, Merkley, Duckworth Urge Trump Administration: Do Not Deport People Back to Persecution and Torture in China

WASHINGTON —Yesterday, Representative James R. Walkinshaw (D-VA), Representative James P. McGovern (D-MA) , Ranking Member of the House Rules Committee and the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC), along with Senators Jeff Merkle y (D-OR) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), sent a letter to Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin and Secretary of State Marco Rubio calling on the Trump Administration to protect people who have fled repression in China and could face persecution or torture if they are sent back. McGovern, Merkley, Duckworth, and Walkinshaw all serve on the CECC—a congressional commission that monitors and documents human rights violations in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). In the letter, the lawmakers called on the U.S. government to stop the practice of detaining at-risk individuals, release those currently in detention, prohibit them from being deported to the PRC, and give fair and timely consideration of their applications for asylum. “Many people who have fled persecution in the PRC come to the United States with an expectation that they can find refuge,” the Members wrote. “They should be given every opportunity to apply for asylum if they have not yet done so and given fair and timely consideration of such application for asylum or other protection. Under no circumstances should at-risk individuals be deported to the PRC.” The Members also made the letter public so immigration attorneys and advocates can use it in cases involving Uyghurs, Hong Kongers, Tibetans and others who fear persecution if returned to China. “There are likely many more detainees at ICE facilities, perhaps lacking representation, who fear deportation to a country run by a government that seeks to do them harm,” the Members continued. “There are perhaps others who have already been sent back to the PRC who are now experiencing persecution, torture or worse. Thus, we see value in making this letter and its message public.” The letter notes that the U.S. government deporting an individual to a country where their life or freedom would be threatened (also known as “refoulement”) would violate both United States and international law, and would also be a betrayal of that promise by then-Senator Marco Rubio to provide refuge to those subject to the repression of the Chinese Communist Party, when he introduced the Hong Kong Safe Harbor Act and the Uyghur Human Rights Protection Act. The full text of the letter is available here . ###