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Democratic governments seem to using border security as a loophole in civil rights. It happens in the U.S. and U.K. - and also Canada? - where immigration cases
by forapurpose 8y ago
Democratic governments seem to using border security as a loophole in civil rights. It happens in the U.S. and U.K. - and also Canada? - where immigration cases are not heard in judicial courts, where rights are protected and the burden of proof is on the government (i.e., innocent until proven guilty) but in 'administrative courts', which are not courts at all but an agency of the same immigration department (or at least the same executive branch) that is prosecuting the defendant, and where the burden of proof is often on the defendant to 'prove' they are not guilty of immigration crimes by proving their citizenship.
The abuse goes further. Both the U.K. (where it's explicit) and U.S. actively try to terrorize immigrants and create "hostile" environments for them. Terror cannot be a tool used by law enforcement for any reason (for one thing, it is "cruel", as in "cruel and unusual"), and it's also punishment without conviction.
Finally, these agencies' power is expanding. The DHS surveillance of all citizens was in HN recently, and I read another article where they claimed jurisdiction over all 'movement of goods' in the U.S. Note also that the expansion of DHS power coincides with the denigration the FBI, an agency rooted in the judicial process and rule of law (for example, they are part of and overseen by the Department of Justice).
The use of these agencies fits both the nationalism (hatred of immigrants) and authoritarianism of the right-wing parties.
- Fjolsvith 8y agoActually, us right-wing party people hate the _illegal_ type of immigrants. The legal ones are cool.