Statue of Liberty, New York Photo by Laslovarga via Wikimedia Commons
Nearly 200 American rights and interfaith organizations have called for dismantling the framework behind a post-9/11 registry system, saying it targeted immigrants based on religion, ethnicity and national origin.
The debate on the controversial program has been revived following suggestions by some close aides of President-elect Donal Trump about restoration of the registration and surveillance program.
In a letter addressed to President Barack Obama, civil and human rights, civil liberties, education, social justice, and interfaith organizations have asked him to “take immediate action to rescind the regulatory framework behind the National Security Exit-Entry Registration System (NSEERS).”
“The NSEERS program has been found to be ineffective as a counter-terrorism tool, has resulted in tremendous harm for individuals who were directly affected, and has disrupted relationships with immigrant communities,” the letter, supported by several Church and American Muslim organizations and sent to Department of Homeland Security, says.
The Obama Administration gradually ended implementation of NSEERS in 2011 but, rights groups say, the framework behind it remains in place, and needs to be removed.
NSEERS was practiced in the wake of September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and sought to register foreign nationals from 25 countries based on religion, ethnicity, and national origin.
“NSEERS was a discriminatory policy that ran counter to the fundamental American values of fairness and equal protection. Rescinding the regulatory framework of the program will ensure that our nation does not target communities based on national origin and faith in the future,” the letter, released by the American-Arab Discrimination Committee, says.
Recently, leaders of several American Christian and Jewish organizations have expressed their opposition to any registry plan for Muslims, and said if such a program is reintroduced, they will also register as Muslims.
Foreign nationals from the following countries were subject to NSEERS : Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Egypt, Eritrea, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, North Korea, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.
