The House Appropriations Committee must reject all funding increases for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in next year’s budget for the Department of Homeland Security, Amnesty International urged in a letter as the committee prepares to mark up the FY19 DHS budget.
The current bill proposes increased spending on border enforcement, including an unprecedented $5 billion for President Trump’s Border Wall, as well as funds for 44,000 ICE detention beds per day, a record high.
“This bill will threaten asylum seekers at every turn. It will fuel this administration’s cruel policies of detaining, deporting, and punishing children and families seeking humanitarian protection” stated Joanne Lin, Amnesty International USA’s National Director of Advocacy and Government Affairs.
“Congress should have no hand in funding and fueling the inhumane practice of locking up children and parents seeking humanitarian protection.”
The statement and the letter are available at: https://www.amnestyusa.org/press-releases/house-of-representatives-must-reject-funding-increases-for-ice-and-cbp/
