Amnesty International USA welcomes Venezuela TPS Announcement and calls for Biden to take action for Cameroon and other countries

Amnesty International USA welcomes the Biden Administration’s announcement to extend and redesignate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for over 470,000 Venezuelans currently in the United States. Over 7 million Venezuelans have fled Venezuela due to the complex humanitarian emergency and widespread human rights violations being committed in the country. This announcement is a critical recognition of the protection needs of Venezuelans, to ensure they have the ability to work and build lives in the United States without fear of deportation.

The Biden Administration’s move is an important victory for the Venezuelan community as well as organizers and state and local officials who have been welcoming high numbers of Venezuelans into their communities. Around the country, people are mobilizing to welcome asylum seekers with dignity, but they can’t do it alone. TPS for Venezuela is a critical relief that will ease the pressure on local cities to provide for a new population of Venezuelans seeking safety and security, but were left without the ability to work and build lives for themselves.

While we celebrate these important protections for Venezuelans, the Biden Administration must act to extend protections for nationals from other countries, including Cameroon and Central American countries who are facing conditions warranting protection. In particular, Cameroon is dealing with three concurrent crises in the country, marked by political instability, multiple armed conflicts, and unrest. The humanitarian and human rights situation in Cameroon has only worsened since it was initially designated for TPS. The current designation for Cameroon will expire on December 7th of this year, and the Administration must act by October 8th to extend and redesignate TPS for Cameroon.