US policy on migrant kids ‘unconscionable,’ says UN rights chief

In this June 1, 2018 file photo, children hold signs during a demonstration in front of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement offices in Miramar, Florida. AP

GENEVA — The UN human rights chief is urging the Trump administration to end new policies separating migrant children from their parents after entering the United States from Mexico, saying they’ve affected nearly 2,000 kids in the last six weeks.

Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein says it’s “unconscionable” that any country would seek to deter parents from migrating “by inflicting such abuse on children.”

He spoke at Monday’s opening of a regular Human Rights Council session, his last before his term ends in August.
Zeid, a Jordanian prince, also decried concerns about countries including Syria, Myanmar, Hungary, Nicaragua, Israel, North Korea, and India- and Pakistan-controlled parts of Kashmir.

He denounced the lack of access provided by UN member states to rights investigators, noting China has accumulated 15 pending requests in the last five years.