Repatriation
Repatriation is the process through which individuals return to their country of origin or nationality, which can occur voluntarily or involuntarily. Under international law, individuals have the right to voluntary repatriation, and governments are obliged to allow their return to their homeland. However, persons recognized as refugees, who are fleeing persecution, are protected from involuntary repatriation. The determination of whether someone can be repatriated against their will often hinges on their refugee status.
Cases of repatriation can be complex and controversial, as demonstrated by historical events involving Haitian migrants and Southeast Asian boat people. For instance, many Haitian asylum seekers have been classified as economic migrants rather than political refugees, leading to widespread repatriation. Similarly, during the late 20th century, Vietnamese boat people experienced rigorous screening to establish their status before resettlement or repatriation. The issue remains relevant today, highlighted by legislative proposals aimed at protecting specific groups, such as Southeast Asian refugees, from deportation due to past criminal convictions. Repatriation continues to evoke strong sentiments and discussions about humanitarian rights, government policies, and the challenges faced by displaced individuals.
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Repatriation
Repatriation refers to the act of a person returning to his or her country of origin or nationality, either voluntarily or through deportation by a government. Voluntary repatriation is considered a right of individuals. Therefore, under international law, governments are required to permit persons to return to their countries of nationality. At the same time, under international treaties and increasingly under international customary law, governments are to refrain from involuntarily repatriating those persons who have refugee status—that is, persons who are recognized by the host government as being in flight from persecution in their country of origin. However, persons who are not refugees or who are undocumented immigrants may be repatriated against their will. The key to determining whether a person may be involuntarily repatriated, then, turns on his or her status as a refugee.
The United States government, for example, has treated Haitian asylum seekers as economic migrants rather than as political refugees and therefore has repatriated the vast majority. During the late twentieth century in Southeast Asia, boat people who fled Vietnam were screened to determine which were political refugees who would qualify for resettlement to third countries, and which were economic migrants who could be validly repatriated to Vietnam. In 2014, more than 60,000 unaccompanied Central American children, many of them seeking to escape violence from gangs and drug cartels in their homelands, crossed without documents into the southwestern United States. They were apprehended and detained. The immigration courts that evaluate such cases soon became overwhelmed as a result of the sharp rise in caseload, and the pace of status-determination hearings proceeded slowly.
Controversy inevitably surrounds such status-determination procedures. For instance, protests against screening procedures were raised by resettled Vietnamese communities in the United States, Canada, and other resettlement countries, and for those sent back home against their wishes, the experience was traumatic. Likewise, the 2014 migration crisis sparked debate as to whether the Central American children should be considered refugees and granted asylum or be deported back to their countries of origin. Moreover, due to a 2008 law, Mexican migrants, coming from a neighboring nation, can be turned back without the formalities accorded the Central Americans, much to the outrage of some.
In 2022 lawmakers introduced the Southeast Asian Deportation Relief Act, which aimed at ending the policy of deporting Southeast Asian refugees (largely from Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia) who had been convicted of certain crimes following the completion of their sentences. The bill also would limit the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) authority in deporting Southeast Asian refugees who had arrived in the United States before 2008, as well as halting Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) policy of conducting in-person check-ins with refugees. At the time of the bill's introduction, NBC News reported that nearly 15,000 Southeast Asian refugees could be affected by the changes in policy.
Bibliography
Bradley, Megan. Refugee Repatriation: Justice, Responsibility and Redress. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2013. Print.
"Children in Danger: A Guide to the Humanitarian Challenge at the Border." Immigration Policy Center. Amer. Immigration Council, 10 July 2014. Web. 4 May. 2015.
"Fact Sheet: Unaccompanied Children from Central America." WhiteHouse.gov. Office of the Press Secretary, White House, 20 June 2014. Web. 4 May. 2015.
Gerver, Mollie. "Refugee Repatriation and Voluntariness." International Journal of Human Rights 19.1 (2015): 32–52. Print.
Long, Katy. The Point of No Return: Refugees, Rights, and Repatriation. Oxford: OUP Premium, 2013. Digital file.
Masud-Piloto, Felix R. From Welcomed Exiles to Illegal Immigrants. Lanham: Rowman, 1996. Print.
Yam, Kimmy. "Lawmakers Introduce Bill to End Deportation of Southeast Asian Refugees." NBC News, 20 Sept. 2022, www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/lawmakers-introduce-bill-end-deportation-southeast-asian-refugees-rcna48441. Accessed 11 Nov. 2022.