Nearly two decades ago, Christian families from Indonesia fled persecution in their country and sought refuge in the United States. Dozens settled in New Hampshire and Massachusetts and have since become valued members of their communities.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Boston field office, recognizing the families’ good standing in the community and their real fear of persecution should they ever return to Indonesia, began a program several years ago that enabled the families to stay in the United States.
The program was heralded as a success for keeping members of our community here in New Hampshire in exchange for voluntary and regular ICE supervision.
But suddenly, through no fault of their own, these families are set to be deported back to a country where they will almost surely face persecution unless the U.S. District Court intervenes.
These families are among those Washington is seeking to deport. Nowhere in ICE’s process, however, has there been sufficient consideration of the possibility that the U.S. government would be sending these people back to a country hostile to them.
These families voluntarily came out of the shadows years ago and cooperated with ICE’s requested process for supervision. They are now paying a heavy cost for their voluntary cooperation. Not because they have committed crimes. Not because they are a burden on our communities. But because of misplaced enforcement priorities that have now crossed the line into due process violations.
These Indonesian Christian families living in New Hampshire and Massachusetts will be in court today. They won’t be seeking citizenship or a permanent stay. Rather, they are asking only for more time so they may pursue remedies rightfully available to them in the immigration courts. They are seeking a few months reprieve – the amount of time it takes to make the case why they should not be removed from the United States.
Compare the cost of a few months to the cost of sending members of our community to be persecuted abroad.
These families fled violence many years ago, and the persecution against Christians in Indonesia has only worsened since. They have children who are U.S. citizens or who are DACA eligible. They are valued members of our community.
Humanity and due process would grant them the reprieve to plea their case through proper legal channels.
(Jeanne Hruska is policy director for ACLU-NH.)