Trump team eyes huge facilities to hold tens of thousands of migrants — WP
Photo: Trump wants to build large centers to hold tens of thousands of migrants (Getty Images)
The administration of US President Donald Trump plans to build seven centers to hold up to 80,000 detained migrants, according to the Washington Post.
To implement this plan, the authorities are looking for contractors to help upgrade the country's immigration detention system. According to the tender documentation, industrial facilities capable of accommodating over 80,000 people at a time are to be converted.
First, detainees will be registered at special processing centers for several weeks, after which they will be transferred to one of seven large complexes. Each of them will be designed for 5,000-10,000 people, where migrants will be prepared for deportation.
The converted centers are planned to be located near key logistics hubs in the states of Virginia, Texas, Louisiana, Arizona, Georgia, and Missouri. In addition, there are plans to create 16 more facilities, each of which will be able to accommodate up to 1,500 people.
The agency notes that the implementation of this plan will be the next stage of Trump's policy of mass detention and deportation of immigrants.
The tender announcement emphasizes that the new facilities should improve the efficiency of the system, reduce costs, shorten the time required for processing documents and detention, and speed up deportation processes, while ensuring respect for the rights of detainees.
The buildings are planned to be equipped with living quarters with bathrooms, kitchens, dining rooms, medical wards, recreation areas, legal libraries, and administrative offices. Some of the centers will be adapted for holding families.
Background
US President Donald Trump announced plans to introduce new immigration restrictions and said that the administration would soon expand the list of countries whose citizens would be banned from entering the United States.
Following the tragic shooting at Brown University, where a 48-year-old immigrant who arrived in the US under the green card program killed two and wounded nine students, the US authorities decided to suspend the issuance of green cards.
The US authorities are stepping up measures to reduce the number of illegal immigrants by offering financial incentives to those who agree to leave the country voluntarily by the end of the year.
