A United States federal court has invalidated the decision by President Donald Trump's administration to suspend the issuance of immigrant visas to citizens of 75 countries, with the court ruling that this step by the State Department was beyond its jurisdiction.
On Friday, August 21, Judge Jeannette Vargas of the Manhattan Federal Court in the Southern District of New York stated in her ruling that the Trump administration's visa suspension policy was clearly illegal. She noted that it runs counter to federal immigration law, which strictly prohibits the Secretary of State from interfering with the authority of consular officers to approve visas.
Judge Vargas further stated that directly suspending immigrant visas based on specific nationalities is a blatant violation of the country's core statutory framework. Prior to this, a lawsuit was filed in the court of this judge—who was appointed by former Democratic President Joe Biden—by two advocacy organizations, the Catholic Legal Immigration Network and African Communities Together, alongside visa applicants and their US citizen relatives.
Taking effect in January of this year, the decision directly impacted aspiring immigrants from Latin American nations such as Brazil, Colombia, and Uruguay; Balkan region countries like Albania and Bosnia; South Asian nations including Bangladesh and Pakistan; as well as extensive regions across Africa, the Middle East, and the Caribbean. The State Department had imposed this ban under the pretext that citizens of these countries were at risk of becoming excessively dependent on US government assistance.
Since taking office, President Donald Trump has implemented strict anti-immigrant measures under the rationale of strengthening internal security. This suspension was issued following a travel ban on 39 countries effective January 1 and the suspension of diversity visas in December.
According to civil rights organizations, this policy infringed upon freedom of expression and legal rights, although the State Department has not yet issued any response regarding the court's ruling.
Source: Al Jazeera
