Article

America's modern day internment camps : the law of war and the refugees of Central America's drug conflict

by Daniel Hatoum

• Texas journal on civil liberties and civil rights, Vol. 21, no. 1, Fall 2015, p 61-87

English

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In this article, the author argues that the United States’ current practice of detaining asylum seekers who are fleeing Central America’s drug conflict violates the protections conferred to civilians under Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions. The purpose of this note is to highlight those rights and indicate specifically how the Geneva Conventions apply to immigration detention. To that end, the first part of this note describes the practice of and problems with immigration detention in the United States. The second part of this note articulates why the law of war (also known as international humanitarian law) should be applied in this refugee context. The third section of this note argues that the treatment and detention of asylum seekers from Central America’s drug war violates the Geneva Conventions because these detainees are fleeing a non-international armed conflict (NIAC), and the United States is a co-belligerent in that conflict. Fourth and finally, this note articulates the enforcement that can be used to bring the United States in compliance with U.S.-ratified Common Article 3.

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