Christie Nomm, the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security who oversees American immigration policy, referred to the term "deportation" when discussing those detained during an immigration raid in Georgia. This contrasts with the South Korean government's statement that those involved would be allowed to leave voluntarily rather than being deported.
According to the Associated Press on September 8 (local time), Secretary Nomm was asked about the South Koreans detained in Georgia during a meeting of the "Five Eyes" (the intelligence alliance of the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada) homeland security ministers in London. She responded, "People who are in this country (the United States) illegally need to know today that they have a chance to go home before they are detained."
She continued, "So, with respect to many of the individuals detained in that operation in Georgia, we are proceeding according to the law. They will be deported," adding, "A few have engaged in criminal activity beyond simply remaining here (in the United States) past their final removal order deadline, and they will be held accountable for that."
The South Korean government has stated that it has reached a broad agreement with U.S. immigration authorities for the release of South Korean corporate employees in the form of voluntary departure rather than deportation. This is at odds with Secretary Nomm's remarks. Unlike voluntary departure, deportation carries significant disadvantages, such as restrictions on re-entering the United States.
However, it remains unclear whether Secretary Nomm's mention of deportation means that voluntary departure is not being considered, or whether she was using "deportation" as a general term that also includes voluntary departure. Since there were other nationalities among the 475 people arrested during the operation-about 300 of whom were South Korean-it is also possible that Secretary Nomm was not specifically referring to South Koreans.
Secretary Nomm stated, "This is a great opportunity to make sure every company coming to the United States clearly understands the rules of the game," and expressed her belief that this incident would not discourage investment in the United States.
She also said, "We encourage every company that wants to come to the United States and contribute to our economy and hire people to employ U.S. citizens, comply with U.S. law, and bring in people who want to work here in the right way."
Defending the recent measures by stating that the U.S. government is following the law, she argued, "The stronger the actions we take, the more publicizing and sharing them can inspire other countries to do the same."
Regarding speculation that the expansion of immigration raids and the deployment of the National Guard in Chicago had been put on hold due to opposition from local authorities, she replied, "Nothing has been suspended. Everything is proceeding at full speed," adding, "We can conduct operations as needed every day for the safety of the United States."
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