LOS FRESNOS, United: Behind metal fences topped with barbed wire, men play volleyball and basketball at a detention center in Texas, passing time as they wait to hear if they will be allowed to stay in the United States.
They are among more than 1,000 men housed at this former naval base in the US city of Los Fresnos, just a few miles from the Mexican border, which they all crossed illegally.
Tens of thousands of people walk into America every week through informal crossing points along the 3,000-kilometer frontier, bringing hopes and dreams from Latin America, Africa and Asia.
Most of them turn themselves in and request asylum.
Families are usually released quickly on the promise of appearing before an immigration judge in the future.
But single men and women end up in centers like this one.
Miguel Vergara, director of the local Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations, said the US government has designated the Port Isabel Detention Center as a place where certain groups of migrants are kept.
“Individuals who pose a national security risk, a danger to public safety, who undermined our border control efforts, or (who) crossed into the United States recently,” he told reporters on Monday.
Last week, President Joe Biden, seeking to address an issue many see as a liability five months out from his presidential election contest with Donald Trump, announced an executive order intended to stem the flow of people coming into the country.
The order will allow the border to be effectively shut to asylum claimants once 2,500 people have been processed in a day.
It also makes it easier to deport people, a key demand on the US right, with Trump and others saying — without evidence — that criminals are swarming the country.
Port Isabel holds only men. When they arrive at the facility, they are sent to holding cells with cream-colored walls and thick doors.
On the walls of the cells, which can hold between 10 and 20 people, information is posted in 15 languages.
The men remain in these cells for a maximum of 12 hours before being classified and given a color to wear: blue uniform for first-time migrants, orange for those with some kind of criminal record and red for those considered dangerous.
After a medical check-up and any necessary treatment, the men are taken according to uniform color to what will become their new homes for as long as they are at the facility.
In the housing areas, detainees have access to ATMs which can be used to deposit any money they have, or for relatives to send them cash, which they can use in the facility’s vending machines.
Outside the center, which shimmers in the heat of the vast Rio Grande Valley, signs prohibit hitchhiking.
Cameras watch from all angles, generating the displays on a bank of monitors inside an air-conditioned control room, where guards can also see almost every corner of the facility.
No one is supposed to stay in a place like this for more than 90 days, but administrators admit that can easily slip as cases go to appeal.
Officials say they understand that confinement can be frustrating for these men, and say they do what they can to alleviate boredom.
Activities on offer include music classes often taught by a volunteer among the migrants.
Other men use their time to learn or improve the English they hope one day to use to get a better job in America.
One enterprising group of migrants offers haircuts.
There are movie nights, sometimes with films in the languages of the people detained.
Detainees are encouraged to take part in outdoor activities, but the hours can be curtailed by the punishing Texas sun.
Some people paint, producing art that represents their hope for a new life — a mural of the Liberty Bell on the library wall stands testament to the dreams of one occupant.
Migrants have access to private cubicles where they can speak with an immigration officer as they make their case to be allowed to stay.
The response will come in writing; if it is negative, the detainee can appeal to a judge, who has a court at the detention center.
Further appeals are possible all the way to the US Supreme Court.
A definitive “no” results in deportation. Those who are granted asylum leave within 48 hours.
Anyone who wants to give up on the process can request a return to their home country.
Biden’s announcement last week did nothing to slow the number of people arriving here, officials say.
On Monday, the facility had around 170 spaces, but, says Vergara, he expects it will be full again soon.
“Migration... is shifting kind of toward the west, so it has perhaps diminished a bit, but it is only a matter of time before the facilities in the west get full and their detainees begin to get transferred down this way,” he said.
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Color-coded migrants wait for answers in Texas heat
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Color-coded migrants wait for answers in Texas heat
- Tens of thousands of people walk into America every week through informal crossing points along the 3,000-kilometer frontier
- Families are usually released quickly on the promise of appearing before an immigration judge in the future
South Korean lawmakers pass bill targeting false information despite warnings on censorship
SEOUL: South Korea’s liberal-led legislature on Wednesday passed a bill allowing heavy punitive damages against traditional news and Internet media for publishing “false or fabricated information,” brushing aside concerns the legislation could lead to greater censorship.
Journalist groups and civil liberty advocates urged President Lee Jae Myung to veto the bill pushed by his Democratic Party. They say the wording is vague about what information would be banned and lacks sufficient protections for the press, potentially discouraging critical reporting on public officials, politicians and big businesses.
The Democrats, who have failed to pass similar legislation under past governments, say the law is needed to counter a growing threat of fake news and disinformation that they argue undermine democracy by fueling divisions and hate speech.
The bill would allow courts to award punitive damages of up to five times the proven losses against news organizations and large YouTube channels that disseminate “illegal information or false, fabricated information” to cause harm or seek profit.
The bill also would allow damages of up to 50 million won ($34,200) for losses that are difficult to quantify in court. The country’s media regulator would be able to fine outlets up to 1 billion won ($684,000) for distributing information a court confirms to be false or manipulated more than twice.
The bill passed the National Assembly by a vote of 170-3 with four abstentions after many lawmakers from the main conservative opposition People Power Party boycotted the vote. The vote was delayed after a 24-hour filibuster by PPP, during which lawmakers from both parties debated the bill.
PPP lawmaker Choi Soo-jin said during the filibuster that the bill fails to define the degree of inaccuracy for information to be banned, warning it could be broadly applied to content containing minor errors or general claims and used as a tool to silence critics with the threat of lawsuits.
The Democrats argue punitive damages would apply only when there is clarity that false information has been deliberately spread for harmful or profit-seeking purposes and causes actual damage, while routine allegations or claims would not be penalized.
They note the law prohibits filing damage claims with the purpose of “obstructing just criticism or oversight conducted in the public interest,” although legal experts and journalist groups have criticized the provision as vague and unrealistic.
“What the law targets is not (legitimate) criticism but the malicious and deliberate dissemination of false information,” Democratic Party spokesperson Park Soo-hyun said. “(The bill) is based on the requirement of intent and also exempts satire and parody, clearly distinguishing (what should be respected as) freedom of expression.”
The National Union of Media Workers urged Lee’s government and the Democrats to address concerns that regulating false or manipulated information by law could infringe on freedom of expression and expose media companies to abusive lawsuits, chilling scrutiny of those in power.
“We urge (them) to clearly reaffirm that the law would target only a tiny portion (of content) that’s ‘false or fabricated information’ and to carefully review the bill to eliminate any potential infringement on freedom of the press and of expression,” the group said in a statement. “We call on them to carefully define the law’s scope when drafting (the law’s) enforcement ordinance.”
Journalist groups and civil liberty advocates urged President Lee Jae Myung to veto the bill pushed by his Democratic Party. They say the wording is vague about what information would be banned and lacks sufficient protections for the press, potentially discouraging critical reporting on public officials, politicians and big businesses.
The Democrats, who have failed to pass similar legislation under past governments, say the law is needed to counter a growing threat of fake news and disinformation that they argue undermine democracy by fueling divisions and hate speech.
The bill would allow courts to award punitive damages of up to five times the proven losses against news organizations and large YouTube channels that disseminate “illegal information or false, fabricated information” to cause harm or seek profit.
The bill also would allow damages of up to 50 million won ($34,200) for losses that are difficult to quantify in court. The country’s media regulator would be able to fine outlets up to 1 billion won ($684,000) for distributing information a court confirms to be false or manipulated more than twice.
The bill passed the National Assembly by a vote of 170-3 with four abstentions after many lawmakers from the main conservative opposition People Power Party boycotted the vote. The vote was delayed after a 24-hour filibuster by PPP, during which lawmakers from both parties debated the bill.
PPP lawmaker Choi Soo-jin said during the filibuster that the bill fails to define the degree of inaccuracy for information to be banned, warning it could be broadly applied to content containing minor errors or general claims and used as a tool to silence critics with the threat of lawsuits.
The Democrats argue punitive damages would apply only when there is clarity that false information has been deliberately spread for harmful or profit-seeking purposes and causes actual damage, while routine allegations or claims would not be penalized.
They note the law prohibits filing damage claims with the purpose of “obstructing just criticism or oversight conducted in the public interest,” although legal experts and journalist groups have criticized the provision as vague and unrealistic.
“What the law targets is not (legitimate) criticism but the malicious and deliberate dissemination of false information,” Democratic Party spokesperson Park Soo-hyun said. “(The bill) is based on the requirement of intent and also exempts satire and parody, clearly distinguishing (what should be respected as) freedom of expression.”
The National Union of Media Workers urged Lee’s government and the Democrats to address concerns that regulating false or manipulated information by law could infringe on freedom of expression and expose media companies to abusive lawsuits, chilling scrutiny of those in power.
“We urge (them) to clearly reaffirm that the law would target only a tiny portion (of content) that’s ‘false or fabricated information’ and to carefully review the bill to eliminate any potential infringement on freedom of the press and of expression,” the group said in a statement. “We call on them to carefully define the law’s scope when drafting (the law’s) enforcement ordinance.”
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