The Refugee Protec- Tion Act of 2010
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
S. HRG. 111–599 REVIEWING AMERICA’S COMMITMENT TO THE REFUGEE CONVENTION: THE REFUGEE PROTEC- TION ACT OF 2010 HEARING BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY UNITED STATES SENATE ONE HUNDRED ELEVENTH CONGRESS SECOND SESSION MAY 19, 2010 Serial No. J–111–93 Printed for the use of the Committee on the Judiciary ( U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 58–223 PDF WASHINGTON : 2010 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800 Fax: (202) 512–2104 Mail: Stop IDCC, Washington, DC 20402–0001 VerDate Nov 24 2008 12:23 Sep 28, 2010 Jkt 058223 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 5011 Sfmt 5011 S:\GPO\HEARINGS\58223.TXT SJUD1 PsN: CMORC COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY PATRICK J. LEAHY, Vermont, Chairman HERB KOHL, Wisconsin JEFF SESSIONS, Alabama DIANNE FEINSTEIN, California ORRIN G. HATCH, Utah RUSSELL D. FEINGOLD, Wisconsin CHARLES E. GRASSLEY, Iowa CHARLES E. SCHUMER, New York JON KYL, Arizona RICHARD J. DURBIN, Illinois LINDSEY GRAHAM, South Carolina BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, Maryland JOHN CORNYN, Texas SHELDON WHITEHOUSE, Rhode Island TOM COBURN, Oklahoma AMY KLOBUCHAR, Minnesota EDWARD E. KAUFMAN, Delaware ARLEN SPECTER, Pennsylvania AL FRANKEN, Minnesota BRUCE A. COHEN, Chief Counsel and Staff Director MATT MINER, Republican Chief Counsel (II) VerDate Nov 24 2008 12:23 Sep 28, 2010 Jkt 058223 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 S:\GPO\HEARINGS\58223.TXT SJUD1 PsN: CMORC C O N T E N T S STATEMENTS OF COMMITTEE MEMBERS Page Feingold, Hon. Russell D., A U.S. Senator from the State of Wisconsin, prepared statement .............................................................................................. 68 Leahy, Hon. Patrick J. Leahy, a U.S. Senator from the State of Vermont ......... 1 prepared statement .......................................................................................... 127 Sessions, Hon. Jeff, a U.S. Senator from the State of Alabama .......................... 5 WITNESSES Giantonio, Patrick, Executive Director, Vermont Immigration and Asylum Advocates, Burlington, Vermont ......................................................................... 9 Glickman, Dan, President, Refugees International, Washington, DC ................ 7 Timofeyev, Igor V., Associate, Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker, LLP, Washington, DC ................................................................................................... 11 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS Responses of Patrick Giantonio to questions submitted by Senator Leahy ........ 22 SUBMISSIONS FOR THE RECORD Advocates for Human Rights, Minneapolis, Minnesota, statement .................... 35 American Civil Liberties Union, Laura Murphy, Director and Joanne Lin, Legislative Counsel, Washington, Legislative Office, Washington, DC, joint statement .............................................................................................................. 47 American Jewish Committee, Richard T. Foltin, Esq., Director, National and Legislative Affirs, Office of Government and International Affairs, Wash- ington, DC, statement .......................................................................................... 53 Center for Gender & Refugee Studies, University of California, Hastings College of the Law, San Francisco, California, statement ................................ 56 Church World Service, Erol Kekic, Director, Immigration and Refugee Pro- gram, New York, New York, letter ..................................................................... 67 Frelick, Bill, Refugee Program Director, Human Rights Watch, New York, New York, statement ........................................................................................... 70 Giantonio, Patrick, Executive Director, Vermont Immigration and Asylum Advocates, Burlington, Vermont ......................................................................... 77 Glickman, Dan, President, Refugees International, Washington, DC ................ 88 Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS), Melanie Nezer, Senior Director, Washington, DC, statemenet .............................................................................. 94 Heartland Alliance National Immigrant Justice Center, Mary Meg McCarthy, Executive Director, Chicago, Illinois, statement ............................................... 101 Human Rights First, Washington, DC, statement ................................................ 107 Immigration Equality Action Fund, Washington, DC, statement ....................... 113 International Rescue Committee, Washington, DC, statement ........................... 116 Karadaghi, Pary, President, Kurdish Human Rights Watch, Inc., Fairfax, Virginia, letter ...................................................................................................... 121 Lamm, Carolyn B., American Bar Association, Washington, DC, statement ..... 122 Letter of Support, Signed by 86 organizations and 97 individuals ..................... 129 Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, Washington, DC, statement ........ 145 Migration and Refugee Services, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Wash- ington, DC, statement .......................................................................................... 147 Miller-Muro, Layli, JD, MA, Executive Director, Tahirih Justice Center, Falls Church, Virginia, statement ................................................................................ 153 (III) VerDate Nov 24 2008 12:23 Sep 28, 2010 Jkt 058223 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 S:\GPO\HEARINGS\58223.TXT SJUD1 PsN: CMORC IV Page National Association of Immigration Judges, Dana Leigh Marks, President, San Francisco, California, statement ................................................................. 160 Physicians for Human Rights, Cambridge, Massachusetts, statement ............... 165 Refugee Women’s Network, Inc., Decatur, Georgia, statement ........................... 169 Survivors of Torture International, San Diego, California, statement ............... 171 Timofeyev, Igor V., Associate, Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker, LLP, Washington, DC, statement ................................................................................ 173 United Nations High Commissoner for Refugees, Washington, DC, statement . 179 United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, Washington, DC, statements ..................................................................................................... 181 VerDate Nov 24 2008 12:23 Sep 28, 2010 Jkt 058223 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 S:\GPO\HEARINGS\58223.TXT SJUD1 PsN: CMORC REVIEWING AMERICA’S COMMITMENT TO THE REFUGEE CONVENTION: THE REFUGEE PROTECTION ACT OF 2010 WEDNESDAY, MAY 19, 2010 U.S. SENATE, COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY, Washington, DC The Committee met, Pursuant to notice, at 10 a.m., Room 226, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Patrick J. Leahy, Chairman of the Committee, presiding. Present: Senators Franken and Sessions. OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. PATRICK J. LEAHY, A U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF VERMONT Chairman LEAHY. Good morning, everybody. Welcome, and thank you for being here. Before we get to the hearing, and because a number of members of the press have asked me, I am announcing that the Senate Judi- ciary Committee will hold the confirmation hearing on the nomina- tion of Solicitor General Elena Kagan to be an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court beginning on June 28. We will do that so that the hearing can be concluded before the July recess. I have reached out, of course, and talked with Senator Sessions, the Committee’s Ranking Republican, to discuss the scheduling of this hearing. We met again yesterday. I will let Senator Sessions speak for himself. I am sure some would like more time. On the other hand, some would like to do it earlier. But we did work cooperatively to send a bipartisan questionnaire to the nominee last week, something sent from both Senator Sessions and myself, and we received the response yesterday. Yesterday, the two of us also joined in sending a letter to the Clinton Library asking for files from the nominee’s work in the White House during the Clinton Administration. Of course, I will continue to consult with Senator Sessions on that material as we get it. I know that we gained a lot of respect for the conduct of the Sotomayor hearing and for the Roberts hearing. I would like to fol- low that example, because last year we proceeded with the hearing on the nomination of Justice Sotomayor 48 days after she was des- ignated. This year, I am scheduling the Kagan hearing 49 days after the nomination was announced. (1) VerDate Nov 24 2008 12:23 Sep 28, 2010 Jkt 058223 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 S:\GPO\HEARINGS\58223.TXT SJUD1 PsN: CMORC 2 Justice Stevens, of course, announced on April 9 that he would be leaving the Court. He noted, quote, ‘‘It would be in the best in- terest of the Court’’ to have his successor appointed and confirmed well in advance of the commencement of the Court’s next term. I wholeheartedly agree with Justice Stevens; it is in the best of the Court and, of course, of the country. One person criticized this nomination, saying she has not been a judge and does not have years of opinions to be considered. Well, actually, that should make preparing for a hearing less labor-inten- sive and must make it easier. But she was confirmed just a year ago for Solicitor General, so much of this material we looked at when we considered her record last year. She was then, by a bipartisan majority