Nation : U.S. Immigration Bias Alleged
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WASHINGTON — The United States illegally discriminates against refugees from Guatemala, Haiti and El Salvador who have “reasonable fears for their lives,” Amnesty International charged today.
The organization, which monitors human rights violations, said government bias against asylum-seekers from particular countries “appears to be a worldwide pattern.”
It said Congress, however, passed a refugee act in 1980 requiring U.S. officials to use a single standard regardless of the applicant’s nationality, ideology or immigration status.
Despite this, Amnesty International said, only 2.5% of Salvadorans and 2% of Guatemalans and Haitians seeking asylum between 1983 and 1989 were successful.
The organization said government records show that people of other nationalities were granted asylum at a rate of more than 36%.
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