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State Department Senior Legal Counsel Harold Koh resigned last week in protest against President Biden
Joe Biden, Ambassador of Afghanistan on whether Afghans will trust an American president againThe continued use of the Trump-era Title 42 policy, calling it “illegal” and “inhumane.”
Koh wrote in his Oct. 2 resignation letter that the use of Title 42 “raises significant concerns about whether the United States is fulfilling its binding obligations under international law,” according to Politico, which initially reported the resignation.
In his letter, Koh explained how he spent his legal career ensuring that the United States complied with its obligations under the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT), a treaty of human rights revised by the UN of which the United States is a signatory.
Koh wrote that he believes Title 42 violates an article of the Convention against Torture which prohibits a country from returning a person to a state where it has “substantial grounds for believing that he would be in danger of being subjected to torture. the torture “.
Under Title 42, migrants can be deported without authorization for asylum in the event of a public health emergency. The Trump administration has used an interpretation of this to deport migrants at the border, citing the risk of the spread of COVID-19. The Biden administration recently implemented this policy to deport thousands of Haitians who had crossed from Mexico to the United States.
“I believe that this administration’s current implementation of the Title 42 authority continues to violate our legal obligation not to expel or return (‘refoul’) people who fear persecution, death or torture, by especially migrants fleeing Haiti, ”Koh wrote.
In recent months, Haiti has been shocked by a presidential assassination and a magnitude 7.2 earthquake.
Koh served as Legal Counsel for the State Department from June 2009 to January 2013 during the Obama administration. He was also previously Deputy State Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor from 1998 to 2001 under the former President. Bill clinton
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A source told Politico that Koh will remain at the department in a consulting role.
The Hill has contacted Koh and the State Department for further comment.
Koh’s resignation comes shortly after the resignation of US special envoy to Haiti Daniel Foote to protest what he called “an inhuman and counterproductive decision to expel thousands of refugees Haitians “.
“Our political approach to Haiti remains deeply flawed and my recommendations have been ignored and rejected, when not altered to project a different narrative from mine,” Foote wrote.
Last week, Juan Gonzalez, senior director for the Western Hemisphere of the United States National Security Council, apologized for the way the United States had treated Haitian migrants during his visit to Haiti.
“I mean it was an injustice, it was wrong,” Gonzalez reportedly said. “The proud people of Haiti and all migrants deserve to be treated with dignity.
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