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The United States’ family separation policy has ended.
The policy has seen thousands of children separated from their parents at the US-Mexico border.
US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order to end the policy after days of outrage from the public and politicians.
“We’re going to have strong — very strong — borders, but we are going to keep the families together,” Mr. Trump said.
“I didn’t like the sight or the feeling of families being separated,” he said when explaining why he ended the policy.
Children will now be able to stay in detention with their parents along with other “alien families … where appropriate and consistent with law and available resources”.
However, Trump’s changed stance does not address the situation of the 2,300-pluschildren who have already been separated from their parents.
Federal officials initially said those children would not be immediately reunited with their families while the adults remain in federal custody during their immigration proceedings.
However Brian Marriott, the senior director of communications for the Administration for Children and Families division of the Department of Health and Human Services indicated decisions still need to be made.
He said “it is still very early, and we are awaiting further guidance on the matter … reunification is always the goal”.
Marriott says the Children and Families division “is working toward that [reunification]” for the children separated from their families because of Mr. Trump’s policy.
Meanwhile, Trump has directed US attorney general, Jeff Sessions, to go to court to ask for a modification to a 1997 court settlement.
This settlement, known as Flores, prohibits the detention of migrant children for more than 20 days.
If the court agrees to modify it, children could be held in detention until proceedings have been completed.
Trump said he will continue to maintain a tough stance on immigration.
Source
- The Guardian
- The New York Times
- Image: PBS
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News category: World.
