Nearly 100 Vietnamese arrested in first 100 days of Trump's term

According to Voice of America, in the first 100 days of his term, US President Donald Trump ordered the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to launch a nationwide inspection campaign, targeting immigrant communities with criminal records. Nearly 100 illegal Vietnamese residents have been arrested and are at risk of deportation.

Illustrative photo. (Source: AFP)

In a recent joint statement, three volunteer organizations, including the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC), APIROC, an organization that supports the reintegration of Asian-Pacific Islanders, and VietLead, said: "In the first two weeks of March alone, nearly 100 Vietnamese people were arrested, most of whom were detained at the York County Jail in Pennsylvania and the Krome Detention Center in Florida."

VietLead Executive Director Nancy Nguyen said the three organizations are currently compiling files of Vietnamese detainees, on one hand lobbying ICE to release them, and on the other hand working with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) to sue ICE.

Meanwhile, APIROC founder Nguyen Thanh Tung said that under the Trump administration, ICE has been more aggressive in cracking down on deportees.

“In recent months, the number of Vietnamese people in deportation status - now arrested again - is greater than in previous years,” said Mr. Tung.

Also in the above announcement, the three volunteer groups quoted Ms. Jessica Shullruff Schneider, an immigration lawyer and monitor of the "Detention Monitoring" program of the Immigrant Justice Organization in Miami, Florida, saying: "Vietnamese people are being detained mainly for violations that occurred many years ago. When harsh immigration laws are blindly enforced, it often leads to unjust consequences."

In addition, activists recommend that victims, families and communities should put aside their guilt or shame, speak up, and approach organizations with legal capacity and knowledge to quickly protect people within the framework of the law./.

According to Vietnamplus