Editor's note: Here is a look at immigration-related news around the U.S. this week. Questions? Tips? Comments? Email the VOA immigration team: ImmigrationUnit@voanews.com.
DACA Made Into Federal Regulation, but Future Still Uncertain
The Biden administration has revised a program that protected from deportation hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children, in hopes of satisfying one of the arguments made by Republican-led states in federal courts that the program was not created properly.
The new version of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, also known as DACA, was issued by Biden officials in late August and takes effect October 31. It went through a period of public comments as part of a formal rule-making process to increase its odds of surviving an ongoing legal battle. Story by VOA’s immigration reporter Aline Barros.
FLASHPOINT UKRAINE: Helping Refugees Find Safety
At least two are reported dead after a missile attack in the city of Dnipro. As Russia continues its global disinformation campaign, why is it targeting the African continent? How three high school students are using technology to help young refugees find safety. In Washington, VOA’s Steve Miller hosts VOA's Flashpoint Ukraine.
Migration around the world
Canadian Parliament Urges Government to Accept 10,000 Uyghur Refugees
Members of Canadian Parliament have urged the government to expedite the resettlement to Canada of Uyghur refugees now living in third countries. The Parliament voted Tuesday on a motion from Conservative MP Garnett Genuis to reaffirm its recognition of the Uyghur genocide in China and to call for special immigration measures to assist Uyghur refugees at risk of deportation to China from third countries. Reported by Asim Kashgarian.
UN Urges Malaysia to Stop Deporting Myanmar Asylum-Seekers
The U.N. refugee agency UNHCR is calling on Malaysian authorities to stop forcibly deporting asylum-seekers from Myanmar back to their home country, where agency officials say their lives are at risk. The U.N. refugee agency says these forced returns from Malaysia have been going on since April. Over the past two months, UNHCR officials report hundreds of Myanmar nationals have been sent back against their will. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from Geneva.
Aid Group Warns of Measles, Cholera Outbreaks at Kenya Refugee Complex
The charity Doctors Without Borders said Thursday that Kenya's Dadaab Refugee Complex faces a high risk of measles and cholera outbreaks as thousands of new refugees arrive from areas of Somalia where the diseases are circulating. More than 233,000 refugees live in three overcrowded camps in the complex. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from Geneva.
UN Accuses Australia of Breaching Its International Torture Obligations
The United Nations is accusing Australia of breaching its human rights obligations after it suspended a tour of detention facilities. U.N. inspectors say authorities in the Australian states of New South Wales and Queensland have denied them access to various detention facilities. Australia ratified the United Nation's Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture in 2017. Reported by Phil Mercer.
Why Don't Rich Muslim States Give More Aid to Afghanistan?
More than 10 months after the United Nations launched its largest ever single-country appeal to mitigate the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, less than half of the appeal has been funded, with Muslim governments conspicuously missing on the list of major donors. Reported by Akmal Dawi.
New Swedish Government to Tighten Migration Policy
Sweden has historically been viewed as Europe’s most welcoming country for refugees, but observers say that changed in 2015 when the government decided to close its borders. The election in September of a new government steered by the far-right Sweden Democrats has further tightened migration policy. Dale Gavlak reports.
News in brief
Negotiations between the Biden administration and attorneys representing immigrants enrolled in the Temporary Protective Status (TPS) program collapsed Wednesday. The case is Ramos v. Mayorkas (then Nielsen), and about 265,000 people are set to see their TPS status expire by December 31.
Back in 2018 and 2019, the Trump administration terminated the humanitarian program known as TPS for six countries. TPS holders and their U.S. citizen children challenged the terminations in court — and won a temporary reprieve. But as it stands, people from El Salvador, Honduras, Nepal and Nicaragua are set to see their status expire by the end of 2022. The Biden administration announced extensions of the TPS programs for Haitian and Sudanese immigrants living in the U.S., but it has not announced for El Salvador, Nicaragua, Nepal and Honduras.
U.S. immigration officials told VOA they “cannot comment on ongoing litigation,” and that “current TPS holders from El Salvador, Nepal, Nicaragua and Honduras will continue to be protected over the coming months.”
