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he was taken out of segregation. He was in segregation for three days. Ifelt very sorry of that man because they had no respect him. This is nothow to treat another human being, and no reason to put him in segregationfor this. It made me sad and worried for myself – how they treatedhim. I’m afraid that something can happen [to me].”One detainee relayed an instance in which guards’ ongoing threats ofsegregation were finally curtailed by a supervisor.Like the TV – if you want to change the channel you have to tell, youcan’t just change it yourself, or the guards say they’ll take you to segregation.One time the guards called the supervisor to take one of us tosegregation for changing the channel. And the supervisor said, ‘No, youcan’t put someone in segregation for that.’One asylum seeker described a hearing held after the sentence of solitaryhad already been meted out where the process appeared more intenton ratifying the sentence rather than providing an impartial hearing. Theincident began with another detainee who was whistling very loudly suchthat it disturbed others. Detainees complained to a guard and then asupervisor to no avail. The asylum seeker reports that subsequently, whenthe detainee did not stop whistling,A friend went to tell him (the whistler) to stop. They ended up pushingeach other and I went over to separate them.The asylum seeker reports that guards subsequently arrived and tookall three of them away. He reports the guards first took him to see the doctor,who asked him what happened and if he had any injuries (which hedid not.) Subsequently, he was brought to the segregation unit where hewas placed in a room by himself.He reports that on the first day, a supervisor came to the segregationroom and asked him to sign papers explaining he was moved from thedormitory to segregation. He asked for an interpreter. Subsequently, usinga phone interpreter he reports that he explained to the supervisor whathappened and then was brought back to segregation, where he remainedfor five days.He reports that he was then returned to his dormitory. One day later, hereports being called to a hearing where there was a male officer, a femaleofficer and a supervisor.At the hearing I told them what happened and they said next time Ishould not get involved. They asked me to step out of the room. Thenthey said ‘You have been found guilty. We sentence you to five days insegregation.’ I said ‘but I have already been in segregation for five days.’They said ‘Those are the days.’ They said ‘you can appeal.’ I said, ‘whyshould I appeal I have already been in segregation for five days.’TREATMENT IN DETENTION FACILITIES 123
There were no witnesses other than the asylum seeker at the hearing.Upon returning to the dormitory, he learned that the other detainees in thedormitory had written a letter on his behalf explaining he did nothing wrong.I don’t think this was fair. I didn’t do anything bad. The normal thing isto have the hearing the first day. Where did you meet something likethis? First to do the punishment and after that to have the trial.Unannounced TransfersThe INS moves detainees to other facilities without notice and often in themiddle of the night. Detainees are not allowed to call lawyers or lovedones to inform them of the transfer in progress. In fact, subjects interviewedby Bellevue/NYU-PHR reported that detention center phones aredisabled at these times, so that witnesses are not able to make calls onbehalf of a detainee who is being removed. Furthermore, the procedure fortransferring detainees to other facilities appears identical to the procedureused for deportations. Several asylum seekers mentioned these surprisetransfers as a source of distress, and a reminder of their profoundly disempoweredstatus. From the perspective of a traumatized politicalrefugee, aspects of this practice may echo techniques used in many countriesto break the will of political prisoners by instilling them with fear anduncertainty about their fate.The night before the interview for this study, an African asylum seekersaid another detainee had been taken away. “When I woke up he wasgone. I felt scared. I say, ‘It can happen to anyone.’”An asylum seeker who said she was tortured in prison in her nativecountry reported this type of move happens often. She described her ownexperience being moved to a county jail.They woke me up at 4 a.m. and told me to pack my stuff. They didn’ttell me where I was being taken. They took me to Processing and mademe change into the clothes I was wearing when I came to this country.They put shackles on my legs and handcuffs on me, and a chain aroundmy waist. And they gave me my bags and took me to the van. I wasn’tsure if I was being taken to the airport to be deported. They didn’t tellme anything. I was very frightened.”The detention center did not inform her lawyer; “They didn’t let me usethe phone to call anyone, which meant they didn’t want anyone to know.Something like this frightens me a lot.”Last week there was a hunger strike,” said an asylum seeker in a countyprison. “An INS officer and a captain came and said, ‘Who organizedthis?’ One man spoke up. After that they told him to pack up. We don’tknow where they took him. Another man called up the media and told124 FROM PERSECUTION TO PRISON
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From Persecution to Prison:The Heal
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CONTENTSAcknowledgements . . . . .
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The Bellevue/NYU Program for Surviv
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don, Miranda Ip, and Meriam Alrashi
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Significant symptoms of depression
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Detained asylum seekers participati
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persecution, yet most emphasized ho
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In many facilities, the response to
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years in detention, she finally got
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abuse For example, while being take
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They didn’t let me use the phone
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intensely personal events they had
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Limitations of this study include t
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Non-governmental organizations serv
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22 FROM PERSECUTION TO PRISON
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the late 1990s ranging from 10 to 7
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Historical BackgroundFor most of th
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international standards with the 19
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apply for asylum make up the majori
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tion judge. 57 Yet in many parts of
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York and Newark, New Jersey has had
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trict began denying parole to them
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Correctional Facility in 2000. “[
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men of which 750 were detained on i
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from that same country from seeking
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Detention Facilities in this StudyF
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high reliability in numerous langua
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York County Prison in York Pennsylv
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TABLE 2:Demographic Characteristics
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TABLE 4:Prevalence of Pre-Migration
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on a part time basis, researchers w
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Case #1(DK): “Loneliness and Fear
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TABLE 6:Hopkins Symptom Checklist-2
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TABLE 8:Harvard Trauma Questionnair
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think such services were available.
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When I am talking to you now it is
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After being granted asylum and rele
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“Being here is like going through
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Page 85 and 86: Thoughts of SuicideSeveral asylum s
Page 87 and 88: here?’ I told the doctor, they br
Page 89 and 90: Another subject reported a positive
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Page 93 and 94: eported that her experience in dete
Page 95 and 96: 86 FROM PERSECUTION TO PRISON
Page 97 and 98: e somatic manifestations of the psy
Page 99 and 100: Case #2 (JG): “Health Care in Cha
Page 101 and 102: TABLE 11:Detainee Perceptions of He
Page 103 and 104: TABLE 13:Availability and Quality o
Page 105 and 106: detainees, or because they did not
Page 107 and 108: Difficulty Obtaining Specialized Ca
Page 109 and 110: Another detained asylum seeker repo
Page 111 and 112: One detainee who speaks French and
Page 115 and 116: Detention Facilities in this StudyS
Page 117 and 118: even though many reported having ex
Page 119 and 120: CASE #3 (HN): “SOLITARY CONFINEME
Page 121 and 122: Here, I’m scared. In [the detenti
Page 123 and 124: emote control and watch what he wan
Page 125 and 126: Whenever someone misbehaves, they t
Page 127 and 128: This subject was himself threatened
Page 129 and 130: One detainee reported several incid
Page 131: Some Process Exists to Respond to R
Page 135 and 136: tion. An INS officer said they put
Page 137 and 138: There is an Anglican minister who c
Page 139 and 140: The dentists didn’t explain anyth
Page 141 and 142: tion between dental age and chronol
Page 143 and 144: Case #4 (LK): “Fifteen-Year-Old G
Page 147 and 148: TABLE 16:Treatment/Abuses Reported
Page 149 and 150: “There is no political asylum her
Page 151 and 152: I was crying. I was so afraid with
Page 153 and 154: save her life, but was not able to
Page 155 and 156: Case #5 (CR): “Begging for Mercy
Page 157 and 158: ehind and told me to sign. He physi
Page 159 and 160: days and it is now 2 years and four
Page 161 and 162: viewers asked for additional inform
Page 163 and 164: y study participants. In evaluating
Page 165 and 166: trast, under US law, detention of s
Page 167 and 168: nation for an asylum determination
Page 169 and 170: very negative effects of detention
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Page 173 and 174: absconding.” 250 Since the passag
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Page 177 and 178: Standards relevant to this study ar
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Page 181 and 182: which they are charged and a fair h
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esponse to substantial public press
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specified procedures, provided they
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PunishmentThe Detention Standard on
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any time the detainee complains.”
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while in detention, thus adding to
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Establish a Uniform National Parole
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that effect. These officers should
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Besides their inaccuracy, these exa
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friends so asylum seekers can maint
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appropriate staffing of such groups
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efugees and asylum seekers who win
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of thorough documentation. However,
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Human development is complex and di
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18. Country from which fleeing pers
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9. Being close to death.10. Forced
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Complete for each health problem:5.
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Explain:(Interviewer: Write brief n
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2. Depression SymptomsA How much we
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B. You said that you have experienc
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Explain:13. How was your physical h
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Yes ...........1No............22. W
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Explain:20. At the time of your arr
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