Secretary Chertoff of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security signed two new "material support of terrorism" waivers so that victims of designated terrorist organizations who provided support under duress are no longer barred from United States protection. Sarnata Reynolds, director of Amnesty International USAs Refugee Program, said, "Amnesty International applauds Secretary Chertoffs decision to issue two new duress waivers, but much more must be done to fix overly broad terrorism definitions. Many legitimate refugees and asylum seekers remain ineligible for protection, because theyre wrongly considered terrorists under current law.
"Current law bars child soldiers from protection, like the boys and girls abducted by the Lords Resistance Army and forced to fight against the Ugandan military. It even bars many of the Hmong soldiers who fought alongside the United States in the Vietnam War.
"Furthermore, the Bush administration has yet to demonstrate that a waiver system alone could fix these problems. Officials have yet to put in place any procedure to allow individuals to take advantage of existing waivers. While they dither, thousands of refugees -- victims of terrible human rights violations -- are stranded in refugee camps abroad and detention centers in the United States."
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