Does AIUSA oppose the detention of refugees?
A. AI is concerned about the detention of asylum seekers because: 1. detention may impede or obstruct the preparation of an asylum claim (it’s hard to find a lawyer and pursue an asylum claim from jail); 2. the debilitating effects of detention may cause some to abandon their claim for asylum and return to their country of origin, even if this puts them at risk (detention can be so difficult that people give up their legal pursuit of asylum); 3. detention may increase the risk to persons in danger in their home countries by discouraging them from seeking asylum in a country where they believe they will be detained on arrival (someone being persecuted might be discouraged from seeking asylum in the US because he fears being put into jail when he gets here). AI calls on governments to demonstrate that in any case where asylum seekers are detained, such detention is lawful according to international standards. If a government cannot so demonstrate, AI opposes that detention practice.
