The government of American President Joe Biden presented Tuesday a proposal to impose new, tougher restrictions on asylum seekers as the only way to deal with the huge influx of illegal immigrants at the US’s southern border with the Mexico.

Each month up to 200,000 people from Latin America cross the fence and border crossings illegally, most of them seeking asylum in the US.

The new regulations with… influences from Trump

Under the new rules, asylum seekers who do not have an appointment at a US border crossing or do not use one of the humanitarian programs available to certain nationalities will not be able to receive asylum, except in certain circumstances.

They should also first seek protection – and be refused – by the countries they are transiting through before they can apply for asylum in USA.

The new regulations were officially published online on Tuesday and for 30 days the public can submit their comments.

The new regime appears to bring back some of the regulations adopted by Donald Trump that were blocked by courts.

“This administration will not allow chaos and mass disorder at the border because of the failure of Congress to act,” said a US official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The new measures will concern adults and families, while minors are excluded and will last for two years with the possibility of extension.

The Biden administration began debating the new measures last year aimed at curbing the flow of undocumented immigrants once the restrictions imposed during the covid-19 pandemic, known as Title 42, which allowed many undocumented immigrants to be deported, are lifted in Mexico.

Title 42 expires on May 11.

Reactions

Already the reactions from defenders of human rights are great.

The new measures will “close the door” to countless refugees seeking safety and protection in the US, said Abby Maxman, president of Oxfam America.

“This policy is illegal, immoral and will have a horrific impact on children, women and men seeking safety,” he added.

For its part, the civil rights group ACLU announced that it would take legal action against the new measures, which it compared to restrictions imposed by the Trump administration.

Karen Mussalo, director of the Center for Gender and Refugee Studies at the California College of the Law, based in San Francisco, pointed out that the Biden administration’s proposal ignores the dangerous conditions in the countries through which migrants transit until they reach the USA and their limited capacity to accept asylum seekers.