28 de April de 2010 Press Release

Arizona Immigration Law Threatens International Human Rights Protections

 

CEJIL deplores the enactment of Arizona Senate Bill 1070

Arizona Immigration Law Threatens International

Human Rights Protections

 

Washington D.C., April 28, 2010

CEJIL expresses its deep concern over the approval of the Arizona SB 1070, which was signed into law last Friday, April 23, 2010, because it infringes upon the principle of non-discrimination and equal protection of the laws. Such measure opens the door to wrongful detentions, racial profiling and discriminatory enforcement of the law.

 

The Arizona bill requires enforcement officers to make a reasonable attempt to determine the immigration status of a person whenever there is “reasonable suspicion” that the person is unlawfully present in the country. It does not, however, define what constitutes “reasonable suspicion”, leaving ample space for the application of subjective and arbitrary criteria. It also expands the police officer’s discretion in deciding what person to investigate, regardless of whether that person infringed any criminal law. The vagueness in the law raises a question of equal protection and permits the application of discriminatory judgment that could lead to unlawful interventions and violations of other fundamental rights (due process of law, protection from arbitrary arrest, right to private and family life, equality under the law, among others).

 

The Bill directs state officials to maintain and share information on the immigration status of an applicant for public services. This section infringes on privacy rights and curtails lawful participation in public programs that are not contingent on immigration status. For example, it will discourage persons from applying for health, education, housing and food assistance programs which are of vital importance for the protection of vulnerable populations, particularly women and children.

 

Furthermore, this law criminalizes the solicitation of work by undocumented immigrants by way of verbal or nonverbal communication, including a “gesture” or “nod” that would indicate the willingness of the person to be employed. The criminalization of manifestations intended to convey a message is a violation of the right to freedom of expression. This section is discriminatory on its face, because the differential treatment is blatant, as it only criminalizes this type of expressions when carried out by a specific group of individuals.

 

The U.S. is a founding member of the Organization of American States, and is bound by the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man, which requires member states to uphold human rights protections. Under the American Declaration the fundamental principles of equal protection before the law and non-discrimination are essential for the preservation of human rights in both international and domestic law.

 

The United States has the international obligation not to introduce statutory norms that infringes upon the equal protection of the laws. It must abstain from enacting laws that create situations of “de jure” or “de facto” discrimination and eliminate practices that affect a group of persons and violate their human rights. The US is responsible for upholding these fundamental principles, regardless of the internal authority that states may have within the federal union.

 

“The recent immigration Bill approved in Arizona violates the fundamental rights of U.S. citizens and migrants. An impartial evaluation of its content reveals that it entails grave risks to the dignity and integrity of persons and thus, it is imperative to call for a fast rejection of this law” said, Vivana Krsticevic, CEJIL’s Executive Director.

CEJIL believes that the United States’ compliance with its human rights international obligations is critically important for the U.S., its citizens, residents, and the world.  Even in strong democracies with a longstanding commitment to the rule of law, human rights treaties serve to safeguard fundamental rights. All Americans benefit, therefore, when the U.S. commits itself to upholding certain basic standards of human dignity and takes concrete steps to meet these commitments.

 

CEJIL calls upon Arizona’s government to rescind Law SB 1070 and to ensure that the equal protection and non-discrimination principles remain unscathed. We urge the United States government to challenge in court the provisions of the Arizona Bill that are contrary to its international obligations and to publicly state its firm commitment to uphold the principle of non-discrimination and equal protection of the law.

Press Contact in Washington D.C.

Mauricio Herrera Ulloa
[email protected]
Tel: (202) 319-3000

www.cejil.org

 

The Center for Justice and International Law (CEJIL) is an advocacy of human rights in the Americas. CEJIL’s main objective is to ensure full implementation of international human rights standards in the Member States of the Organization of American States (OAS), through the effective use of the Inter-american human rights system and other international protection mechanisms. CEJIL is a nongovernmental nonprofit with consultative status at the OAS, the Organization of the United Nations (UN) and observer status with the African Commission on Human Rights.