Human Rights Watch — US: Separated Families Report Trauma, Lies, Coercion

The United States government is not likely to comply with a second court-ordered deadline of July 26, 2018, to reunify migrant families forcibly separated at the border, Human Rights Watch said today. Only about half of the more than 2,500 families forcibly separated as a consequence of the Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” policy are expected to be reunited by the deadline, leaving hundreds subject to unexplained delays. These unconscionable delays are causing severe harm to children and families.

A dozen parents and separated children interviewed at the border and in Honduras by Human Rights Watch in recent weeks described weeks of agony and despair. Parents report being unable to speak to their children, or only being able to speak briefly if they could pay for calls. In some cases, parents spent weeks without knowing where their children were; in other cases, they were deported alone with no information about their separated children, who remained in the US. Some parents said that immigration officials induced them to waive their rights, including to seek asylum, telling them it was the only way, or the fastest way to be reunited with their children. Even for those who have been reunified, the harm to children and family relationships may be severe and lasting.

“Each moment of delay in reunifying these families compounds the extreme harm of ripping them apart,” said Michael Bochenek, senior counsel in the children’s rights division at Human Rights Watch. “The US government does not appear to be taking seriously its responsibility to immediately address the enormous damage it has caused and is still causing.”

“Pablo Z.,” who asked to be identified by a pseudonym, was deported alone to Honduras without his 4-year-old. He told Human Rights Watch he could not communicate with his son for two weeks after they were forcibly separated. One week after his deportation, he finally spoke to his son. “He said he didn’t want to talk to me because he said I left him there,” Pablo said. “When he says this, it makes me cry. I can’t speak. I just want to see him and hug him.”

Lawyers for the Trump administration told a federal court on Monday it had reunited 879 parents with their children so far and another 538 parents had been cleared for reunions and were awaiting transportation. The government also reported that 463 parents of migrant children are “no longer present” in the US, meaning that they may have been deported or departed the country after signing a “voluntary” return agreement.

KJ