It shows US’ broken immigration system: Sikh advocacy group
Wednesday, 19/06/2019
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WASHINGTON: The death of sixyear-old Gurupreet Kaur, a victim of human smuggling, near the US-Mexico border due to heat stroke is reflective of the “tragic culmination” of America’s “broken” immigration system,as per a Sikh advocacy group.
The girl, who was a month shy of turning 7, was found by the US Border Patrol officials 27 km west of Lukeville, Arizona on Wednesday, when temperature reached a high of 42°C. Kaur’s mother left her with a woman and her child and went in search of water. The deceased was travelling with four other persons, including her mother, and dropped near the border by human smugglers who ordered the group to cross in the dangerous and austere location.
“This story reflects the tragic culmination of a broken immigration system, immigration policies that deny basic human dignity and human rights particularly for asylum seekers and the unfortunate practice of individuals moving the most vulnerable for profit,” Kiran Kaur Gill, executive director of Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund , said .” The group has witnessed issues such as solitary confinement, denial of appropriate religious accommodation, language access and medical neglect faced by asylum seekers in detention facilities.”