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| TWO MONTH BATTLE TO FREE HAITIAN EARTHQUAKE SURVIVORS FROM ICE CUSTODY NEARS END | April 1, 2010 |
| Contacts: Cheryl Little, Executive Director, clittle@fiacfla.org Allison Kent, Staff Attorney, 305-573-1106 x1380, akent@fiacfla.org (Miami, April 1, 2010) In the days following the massive Haitian earthquake on January 12, 2010, as Americans from all walks of life volunteered to assist the survivors, a number of Haitians were flown here on military planes. At the end of January, about 30 of them were detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Pompano Beach, Florida. Although they had no criminal history and ICE was not deporting them, they remained detained for over two months. The Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center (FIAC), with help from law students from Yale Law School, Colombia Law School and The University of California Irvine, interviewed the Haitians and FIAC submitted detailed release requests on their behalf. Many of these earthquake survivors have U.S. citizen and lawful permanent resident relatives desperately awaiting their release. Allison Kent, a FIAC attorney who spent countless hours helping the detainees, said, "The pain and profound loss these detainees experienced during the earthquake and its aftermath are breathtaking. Many lost their mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, and children; one earthquake survivor even lost his twin nine-year old daughters." Charu al-Sahli, FIAC's Statewide Director, adds, "Many of the earthquake survivors, some of whom are teenagers, suddenly became the primary caregivers to younger or injured relatives. During their prolonged and unnecessary detention, many showed signs of depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder given their traumatic experiences." Yesterday (Thursday) afternoon, under increasing pressure to release the Haitians, ICE informed FIAC they will now expedite the Haitians' release. We are hopeful they will be released in the next few days. We were just advised that they have begun releasing our clients. FIAC's Executive Director, Cheryl Little, noted that "our clients prolonged detention only exacerbated the terrible trauma they had already suffered before fleeing Haiti. While we're obviously thrilled and grateful that this group will finally be able to attempt to recover from their horrific experiences, it's difficult to understand why they weren't released sooner." | |