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United States’ Denial of Temporary Protection for Colombians Shows “Shocking Disregard” for th

New York, NY

The Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children is greatly concerned that the U.S. government has declined to provide Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Colombians living in the United States, despite the support of dozens of nongovernmental organizations and the Colombian government itself.

TPS protects a person from deportation from the United States until conditions in their home country are safe for their return. TPS is granted to nationals of countries whose safety is threatened due to armed conflict in their home country.

“Despite the fact that violence against civilians, particularly journalists, labor and religious leaders, and human rights defenders is widespread, the Bush administration cited the administrative burden on the Department of Homeland Security as a reason for denial of this much-needed protection for Colombians,” said Wendy Young, director of government relations, Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children. “This is a shocking disregard for the very real safety concerns of the Colombian people.”

Internal conflict in Colombia has been raging for 38 years; tens of thousands civilians and combatants have been killed. According to Colombian and international refugee organizations, the number of people displaced by violence increased by 30 percent between 2000 and 2002, making Colombia’s displaced population of approximately 3 million people one of the largest in the world. These groups also say that the number of people killed or who disappear every day increased from 14 in 2000 to 20 in 2002.

The violence, which had been mostly contained to rural areas before 2002, has now spread to urban areas. Cities such as Medellin are experiencing an average of 13 killings a day.

Attacks against leaders and members of civil society organizations, particularly women’s groups in rural areas, have increased dramatically. These attacks, which include rape, kidnapping and torture, have fomented fear among women, some of whom are fleeing to urban areas with their children to live in hiding, often without their husbands or any support. Impunity is rampant for those who commit violence against women; the government is taking little or no action.

At least 150,000 Colombians are living in refugee-like conditions in the United States.

“The United States has an obligation to help protect Colombians seeking safe haven in our country,” Young says. “The United States has a strong foreign policy interest in Colombia and must couple its efforts to strengthen democracy with the protection of those who come here to escape violence and persecution. These protections are the values upon which our country was founded. It is shameful that we are not upholding them for Colombians.”