Asian Americans Advancing Justice Urges Congress to Intervene for Nepali TPS Holders
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Washington, D.C. — April 26, 2018 — Today, the Department of Homeland Security announced that it will terminate temporary protected status (TPS) for Nepal in one year on June 24, 2019. At that time, approximately 9,000 TPS holders will lose their work authorization and be at risk of being swept up in ICE’s aggressive deportation raids.
Asian Americans Advancing Justice, an affiliation of five civil rights organizations, issues the following statement:
“Asian Americans Advancing Justice (Advancing Justice) urges the Department of Homeland Security to reconsider its decision to terminate temporary protected status (TPS) for Nepal. The government’s plan to strip TPS from Nepali immigrants is cruel and unnecessary. We encourage TPS holders to contact attorneys to see if they qualify for other types of relief.
TPS was granted to Nepali nationals after a deadly 7.8-magnitude earthquake in 2015 caused major destruction. Nepal has not yet recovered from this earthquake as 75 percent of the infrastructure that was destroyed has yet to be rebuilt — impeding access to basic needs such as housing, health care, education, and food and water security.
This administration continues to ignore humanitarian concerns in its decision to end TPS programs. The administration has been systematically terminating TPS programs as part of a larger agenda to restrict immigration and increase deportations. Advancing Justice urges Congress to step up and pass legislation — specifically the American Promise Act of 2017 (H.R. 4253) and the SECURE Act (S. 2144) — to provide a permanent solution for all TPS recipients.”