Introduction

I. Arbitrary detention is clearly defined in the international law

II. Arbitrary detention of immigrants in the United States constitutes serious human rights violations

III. Horrible practices of arbitrary detention by the United States around the world

IV. Reasons for the abuse of arbitrary detention by the United States

Conclusion

Introduction

Freedom from arbitrary detention is a fundamental individual right stipulated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) of the United Nations, and an important provision in international human rights treaties. Though an important contributor in the drafting of the UDHR and one of the first countries to ratify international human rights treaties, the United States has carried out arbitrary detention in total disregard of its domestic legal provisions and international treaty obligations, causing serious physical and mental harm to people involved. This report is based on facts, and aims to expose the hypocrisy and double standards of the United States on arbitrary detention, and form an understanding that no country is now trampling on human rights more seriously than the United States.

I. Arbitrary detention is clearly defined in international law

◆Arbitrary detention occurs when an individual is arrested and detained by a government without due process and without the legal protections of a fair trial, or when an individual is detained without any legal basis for deprivation of liberty. Arbitrary detention,in essence, is unlawful detention.

◆The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), adopted in 1948, clearly states that “recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world.” Article 9 states that “No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.” On the basis of the UDHR, international human rights treaties including the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (the “Torture Convention”) have been adopted. According to Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966), “No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest or detention. No one shall be deprived of his liberty except on such grounds and in accordance with such procedure as are established by law.” With the advancement of the international human rights cause, freedom from arbitrary detention has become a fundamental individual right and an important provision in international human rights treaties.

II. Arbitrary detention of immigrants in the United States constitutes serious human rights violations

◆The US detention of immigrants at its domestic facilities is a serious violation of the “no use of torture” rule. Human rights treaties such as the “Torture Convention”, customary international law and the laws of different countries all explicitly prohibit the use of torture. The prohibition of torture has also been recognized as a mandatory legal norm by US courts, international tribunals and the International Law Commission, with special reports issued to prevent related incidents. However, numerous cases have shown that the US immigration agencies have violated the law and conducted torture against detained immigrants.

◆In 2018, the US Immigration Council and the US Immigration Lawyers Association filed a complaint with the oversight agencies of the US Department of Homeland Security, detailing DHS policy of family separation at the US border, and its practices of forcing separated families, through extreme coercive means, to give up their legitimate asylum applications in exchange of resettlement, which has seriously violated the prohibition against torture and other abuses, and caused severe sufferings and torture to parents and children forcibly separated.

◆In 2020, the US media revealed that women in custody at the Irvine County Detention Center in Georgia often suffered medical abuse and neglect, and that many received hysterectomies without proper informed consent or despite their strong resistance. The UN Special Rapporteur on Torture and relevant parties have expressed serious concerns on this issue. The UN human rights authority expressed strong condemnation and demanded that the US make an explanation and take corrective actions in accordance with its treaty obligations.

◆The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has explicitly recognized the conditions that migrants are subjected to while detained in the US as degrading. ICE regularly places migrants in local jails and prisons. Even when migrants are placed into separate immigration detention centers, they still suffer various kinds of physical abuse, including overcrowding, lack of adequate visitation hours, insufficient ventilation, poor food, inadequate water, unclean quarters, malfunctioning toilets, and verbal and physical abuse.

◆There is no specific regulations in the US on how long immigrants should be detained, so the length of detention is decided by the place of detention and economic factors. Some even become indefinite. With limited access to information, the detained immigrants are unable to fight for their legitimate rights. The Center for Victims of Torture notes that indefinite detention has damaging effects on the immune, cardiovascular and central nervous systems, and would cause harmful psychological effects including severe and chronic anxiety and dread, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and suicide.

◆In March 2022, the Associated Press and CBS News exposed a border detention center for unaccompanied children in the Rio Grande Valley, Texas as disorganized and overcrowded, with a high risk of COVID-19 infection. While US federal law requires that minors should not be held in border detentio