Cristosal reaffirms human rights mission in El Salvador in wake of TPS decision
A statement from Noah Bullock, Executive Director, Cristosal
Cristosal, a leading voice for human rights based in El Salvador, released the following statement regarding the end of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for 200,000 Salvadoran immigrants:
Cristosal deeply regrets the unnecessary human suffering that will result from the suspension of protective status for 200,000 Salvadorans, not to mention our Haitian, Honduran, and Nicaraguan brothers and sisters. This decision hurts TPS-holders, their 190,000 U.S.-born children, and the many U.S. communities that depend on and benefit from migrants’ economic, cultural and social contributions.
Cristosal’s experience providing assistance to 438 individuals, a fraction of the total number of people who were displaced by violence in El Salvador in 2017, has shown serious weakness in the Salvadoran state’s ability to safeguard the lives of people fleeing violence. New deportees will join the tens of thousands of Salvadorans deported annually from the United States and Mexico who struggle as a result of inadequate or nonexistent reintegration programs. Deported TPS-holders will confront the same precarious security environment that compelled 43,302 Salvadorans to seek asylum globally in 2016.
We urge political decision-makers in the United States to exercise global leadership by developing an immigration policy that upholds human rights principles and recognizes the important role immigration plays in driving development within the United States and across the globe, not one that disrupts hundreds of thousands of lives to defend the concept of “temporary” in a humanitarian protection program.
Noah Bullock, Executive Director, Cristosal
January 9, 2018
About Cristosal
Cristosal is a nongovernmental organization working to advance human rights in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras through rights-based programming, research and learning. Bishop Thomas Ely is a member of the Board of Directors and will be attending the Board’s annual meeting in El Salvador February 8-12. For more information about Cristosal, please visit www.cristosal.org