This is a translation from La Raza's newspaper.


Analyze rights of detained juveniles

Fabiola Pomareda | March 27, 2008

Next week will be offered for the first time in Chicago a conference on the legal rights of minors detained immigrants and their situation in the detention centres.

Few people know where the Detention Center for juveniles undocumented immigrants, located in the city of Chicago, for security reasons, but many agree that this is one of the most diverse in the country and those who receive a higher number of minors.

It is estimated that annually are detained in the United States about 8000 minors "without papers", either through raids or in the border areas, and the detention centre Chicago hosts regularly between 60 and 80 children and youth, as Figures from the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC).

However, last year the detention centre in Chicago came to have up to 250 children and had to open a temporary center because it gave slaughter. The reason was an increase in the raids and operations of Immigration and Customs Protection (ICE), and also a state of emergency for a hurricane in Texas, forcing a number of transfer of detained juveniles in the state.

Coming soon will be offered in the city the third conference on the rights of immigrants under 18 arrested by Immigration or living in the USA Without their parents. The conference "On their own: Protecting the rights of immigrant children" is organized by the NIJC, which for more than ten years represents all juveniles arrested by Immigration in the Chicago area.

Mony Ruiz-Velasco, director of legal services NIJC said La Raza that many juveniles detained at airports or in either of the two frontiers are often transferred to the detention centre here "because it is one of the best in the country" and of the "most diverse", with staff who speak several languages.

According to Ruiz-Velasco, the last year has seen more juveniles arrested in sweeps, for example, in Waukegan, which is a cause for concern.

The location of the detention center in Chicago could not be known, explained Ruiz -
Velasco, for security reasons, as there are children who are in danger, for example, victims of human trafficking.

"Many of the cases we see now are smaller Central American facing situations of persecution, are afraid to return to their country by gang problems," said the expert, and there are a large number of children from Mexico, India, China and countries of Africa.

"It is increasingly important to meet everyone who worked on such cases because the laws are always changing and there are things to explore. With children it is often more difficult to realize what they are fleeing or what are afraid to return, precisely because for them it is not always easy to explain the situation ", he elaborated counsel.

"Here in Chicago all children have access to lawyers is not the case in all states," he said.

The officials detain these minors are not the ICE, but the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) and are obliged to release those who have no criminal background, and let them leave with a relative or a friend with - Legal status-preferably. Then people who want to take responsibility for children must appear before a court of Immigration. Ruiz-Velasco said that much of the problem is that, when left to leave the center, many of these children end up going to places where there are no lawyers or do not have access to someone who can represent the low cost. © La Raza

To attend the conference
What: Conference "On their own: Protecting the rights of immigrant children"
When: 3, 4 and 5 April
Where: Chicago Bar Association (321 S. Plymouth Ct.), And John Marshall Law School (315 S. Plymouth Ct.), Chicago
More information: National Immigrant Justice Center, (312) 660-1358 http://www.immigrantjustice.org/childre ... e2008.html

http://www.laraza.com/2008/03/27/analiz ... detenidos/