VOA新闻杂志2024--Biden Places New Restriction on US Southern Border

Biden Places New Restriction¹ on US Southern Border

President Joe Biden announced an executive action Tuesday that temporarily places restrictions² on the number of migrants unlawfully entering the United States.

The action is called a proclamation. It says people who cross the southern border of the United States illegally will not be eligible⁴ for asylum⁵ unless there is an extraordinary reason why they should be permitted to stay.

Speaking at the White House, Biden said, “These actions alone aren’t going to fix our immigration system, but they can help us a good deal in better managing what is a difficult challenge.”

The proclamation says that temporary asylum restrictions will go into effect when the average number of “encounters” is 2,500 or more. The U.S. Border Patrol counts all interactions with people unlawfully entering the U.S. as an encounter. This includes arrests, expulsions and releases.

The limitations will be suspended when the average number of encounters is less than 1,500. In both cases, the average is for a seven-day period.

The restrictions took effect Wednesday. Information first reported by CBS News shows that U.S. Border Patrol officials recorded 3,000 apprehensions⁷ on May 20. They also recorded an average of 3,700 apprehensions each day during the first 21 days of May.

Who is affected⁸?

The new rules affect most persons illegally crossing the southern U.S. border.

A Department of Homeland Security official (DHS) told VOA that migrants who cross the southern border and who are being processed for fast removal will meet with an asylum officer. The asylum officer will decide if there is a reason why the person can seek asylum. But the migrant can only seek asylum if they express “a fear of persecution⁹ or torture.”

Immigration activists¹⁰ say this is not fair.

Amy Fischer is director of refugee and migrant rights at Amnesty International USA. She told VOA, “If you're able to shout and claim asylum, then you might be able to get through. But what we know is that people don't always speak English. They don't always know that is the way that they have to seek safety.”

Officials who did not want to be identified spoke¹¹ to VOA about the new measures. A DHS official said the measures are in effect for migrants from all over the world. “In terms of returns to Mexico, we will continue to return nationals of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela per our previous arrangements,” the official added.

Exceptions

There are exceptions in the proclamation for “unaccompanied children” and “victims of a severe form of trafficking in persons.” Migrants facing medical emergencies and those with valid¹² visas or other lawful³ permission can enter. People who use lawful entry processes, like the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s CBP One mobile application or other lawful pathways also are not affected.

A DHS official said those who illegally cross when the restrictions are in place and do not meet asylum requirements will be quickly removed. They will also face at least a five-year ban on reentering the U.S. and possible criminal charges.

During a phone call with reporters, officials from DHS and the Justice Department said the restrictions are necessary. They said summer is a time when migrant encounters usually increase. The action on border security also takes place during an election year. American voters have shown concern about the issue.

Criticism

Immigration activists have criticized the measure saying it takes away asylum protections.

Amnesty International’s Fischer said the proclamation will prevent more people from getting asylum. She said it would make it more difficult for people to make their claims. Fischer said the action “does not sort out people that have false or ineffective asylum claims. What it does is, it sorts out the most vulnerable.”

The American Civil Liberties Union, or ACLU, said it will bring legal action to stop the restrictions.

Lee Gelernt works with immigrants’ rights for the ACLU. He told reporters in an email that the group will oppose the proclamation in court.

Biden administration officials say the U.S. will continue to meet international requirements.

“These steps will strengthen the asylum system, preventing it from being overwhelmed and backed up by those who do not have legitimate¹³ claims,” a DHS official said.

Words in This Story

eligible –adj. able to be considered for something

manage –v. to have control of something

challenge –n. a difficult task

apprehension⁶ –n. to detain a person to find out if they are doing something wrong

persecution –n. to treat someone unfairly especially because of some difference such as race, religion or belief

arrangement –n. an informal agreement

vulnerable –adj. easily hurt or harmed

back up –v. (phrasal) to cause a process to slow resulting in delays

1 restriction   

n.限制，约束

参考例句：

• The park is open to the public without restriction.这个公园对公众开放，没有任何限制。
• The 30 mph speed restriction applies in all built-up areas.每小时限速30英里适用于所有建筑物聚集区。

2 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

3 lawful   

adj.法律许可的，守法的，合法的

参考例句：

• It is not lawful to park in front of a hydrant.在消火栓前停车是不合法的。
• We don't recognised him to be the lawful heir.我们不承认他为合法继承人。

4 eligible   

adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的

参考例句：

• He is an eligible young man.他是一个合格的年轻人。
• Helen married an eligible bachelor.海伦嫁给了一个中意的单身汉。

5 asylum   

n.避难所，庇护所，避难

参考例句：

• The people ask for political asylum.人们请求政治避难。
• Having sought asylum in the West for many years,they were eventually granted it.他们最终获得了在西方寻求多年的避难权。

6 apprehension   

n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑

参考例句：

• There were still areas of doubt and her apprehension grew.有些地方仍然存疑，于是她越来越担心。
• She is a girl of weak apprehension.她是一个理解力很差的女孩。

7 apprehensions   

疑惧

参考例句：

• He stood in a mixture of desire and apprehensions. 他怀着渴望和恐惧交加的心情伫立着。
• But subsequent cases have removed many of these apprehensions. 然而，随后的案例又消除了许多类似的忧虑。

8 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

9 persecution   

n. 迫害,烦扰

参考例句：

• He had fled from France at the time of the persecution. 他在大迫害时期逃离了法国。
• Their persecution only serves to arouse the opposition of the people. 他们的迫害只激起人民对他们的反抗。

10 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

12 valid   

adj.有确实根据的；有效的；正当的，合法的

参考例句：

• His claim to own the house is valid.他主张对此屋的所有权有效。
• Do you have valid reasons for your absence?你的缺席有正当理由吗？

13 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。