The Honorable Doris Meissner
Commissioner
Immigration and Naturalization Service
425 I Street, NW
Washington, DC 20536

Dear Ms. Meissner:

I am writing to express my concern about apparent inconsistencies in your agency's treatment of detainees who have been granted asylum in the United States. I am particularly troubled about the case of Sai Qing Jiang (INS file number A76 217 248).

Sai Qing Jiang is a Chinese woman who arrived in the U.S. in March 1997 without proper documents. She applied for asylum based on allegations of religious persecution and fear that Chinese authorities would punish her for a relative's gambling debt. In an oral decision, an immigration judge granted her political asylum following a hearing in August. However, the INS subsequently appealed her grant of asylum and refuses to release her, pending a decision on the appeal, a process that could take months or years. So Sai Qing Jiang remains behind bars in a jail near Bakersfield, California, her home since her arrival in the U.S.

It is my understanding that INS guidelines allow the parole of asylum seekers who have established credible claims. Sai Qing Jiang not only established a credible claim – she was legally granted asylum! Her continued detention – despite a reported offer of bond and a relative's reported willingness to care for her – appears to violate accepted standards of humane treatment and makes absolutely no sense. This case seems to be just one more example of the confusion and inconsistency that exist within the INS detention system. In almost all cases, the immigration service fails to distinguish asylum seekers from other detained aliens.

I believe that Sai Qing Jiang should be released from detention and so respectfully request your intervention in her case. I also believe that you, as the Commissioner of the INS, need to address the extraordinary inconsistency in parole policy from location to location within your organization. I strongly urge you to clarify the INS policy on the status of detainees who have been granted asylum. And, because the prospect of spending months in prison could easily cause asylum seekers to abandon their claims and risk returning home to face possible human rights violations, I also strongly urge you to issue a directive instructing all INS offices to release persons who have been granted asylum, even if the immigration service appeals their cases. I believe we must do all we can, whenever possible, to prevent human rights violations from being committed at all.

Respectfully yours,