US missing deadline to reunite migrant kids
WASHINGTON US officials have said less than half of 102 young immigrant children in their custody would be reunited with their parents in time for a courtimposed deadline on Tuesday, with the fate of dozens more still in limbo.
Ordered by a judge to reunite all children under the age of five with their families by July 10, officials said four had already rejoined their parents on Tuesday and another 34 reunifications would take place through the day.
But they said the rest would be delayed, some because the parents were still in legal custody, others because the parents were found to have serious criminal records, and still others because the parents had already been deported.
Reunifications are on-going throughout the day, said Chris Meekins, a senior official of the Department of Health and Human Services.
Our due diligence is protecting children. What we are doing now is insuring that those children are not being reunited with people who could do them harm, said Meekins.
San Diego Judge Dana Sabraw on Monday gave the government more time to reunite the 102 children, among more than 2,300 minors split from their families as a consequence of Donald Trumps zero tolerance policy that saw parents prosecuted for illegally crossing the border.
Older children have been ordered reunited with their fami- lies by July 26.
Despite the delays, the judge reportedly said he had seen real progress towards reuniting the youngest children with their relatives.
Meekins said reunifications for 20 were being delayed by logistical reasons including the fact that for 12, their parents had already been deported from the US.
He said DNA tests had also shown that five adults were not a childs parent as they had claimed upon entering the US.
Ten children will continue to await reunification while their parents remain in criminal custody facing charges of entering the country illegally.
Others faced a variety of problems, including one child who had been abused by the parent, and another whose parent had a contagious disease.
The US government came under fierce international criticism for forcibly separating thousands of migrant families, most of them from Central America and most seeking asylum due to violence in their home countries.
The backlash led Trump to suspend the separations ordered as part of an effort by the Homeland Security and Justice Departments to deter migrants from illegally crossing the Mexican border.
As quickly as possible
The US and Mexico on Tuesday vowed to work with Central American nations to reunite migrant families separated at the US border as quickly as possible as the Trump administration faced fresh criticism over the practice.
US Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen met with Mexicos foreign minister, Luis Videgaray, and ministers from Central America in Guatemala City to discuss the separations and how to beat the criminal gangs profiting from migration.
We remain very committed to re-unifying the families that have been separated as a result of illegal entry, and we will work with our colleagues here to repatriate as quickly as possible, Nielsen told reporters at a news conference.
Videgaray, who repeated his criticism of the policy, calling it inhumane, made the same pledge. The ministers also vowed to do more to crack down on people smugglers preying on migrants.
Guatemalan authorities said that 11 reunited family groups comprising 131 people were flown back to the country in one of two flights carrying deportees on Tuesday.
A Guatemalan migration official said access to the family groups was restricted. But other deportees still waiting to be reunited with families went to protest their plight outside the hotel where the ministers were meeting in Guatemala City.
The ministerial gathering came as a judge said the US government must rapidly reunite 63 children under the age of five who were separated by immigration officials after crossing the US-Mexico border, or face penalties. AFP/REUTERS