On Friday April 15, Secretary Mayorkas in conjunction with the Department of Homeland Security announced that Cameroon was the latest country to be designated for Temporary Protected Status for 18 months. Cameroon now joins Afghanistan, and Ukraine as countries granted TPS by the Biden Administration in 2022. The Administration’s attention to the humanitarian crises abroad is a stark contrast to the Trump Administration who actively tried to wind down the TPS designation of nearly a dozen countries.
Recently, a report by Human Rights Watch, documented arrest and torture, at the hands of Cameroonian authorities, of asylum seekers who had been deported by the U.S. between 2019 and 2021. The report also estimates that more than 500,000 have been displaced by the ongoing conflict. As of the date of the designation, some 40,000 Cameroonian nationals have fled the violence in the country, and those present as of April 15th will now be able to remain safe from the ongoing violence, with the ability to work in the U.S.
Secretary Mayorkas, regarding the designation, “[t]he United States recognizes the ongoing armed conflict in Cameroon, and we will provide temporary protection to those in need.” Acknowledging the ongoing violence of the conflict in Cameroon, the recent designation provides protection and violence “perpetrated by government forces and armed separatists, and a rise in attacks led by Boko Haram.”
Should you have any questions about Temporary Protected Status, please contact Stephen Antwine, Esq. at santwine@gands-us.com or at (215) 395-8959.
