US President Donald Trump has asked his administration to publish a weekly list of crimes committed by immigrants.
According to a report in The Independent, Trump’s new executive order on immigration includes a paragraph mandating the Secretary for Homeland Security to "make public a comprehensive list of criminal actions committed by aliens" in the US.
The list will also include details of so-called "sanctuary cities" that refuse to hand over immigrant residents for deportation.
"To better inform the public regarding the public safety threats associated with sanctuary jurisdictions, the Secretary shall utilise the Declined Detainer Outcome Report or its equivalent and, on a weekly basis, make public a comprehensive list of criminal actions committed by aliens and any jurisdiction that ignored or otherwise failed to honour any detainers with respect to such aliens," the order said.
However, it does not specify that only crimes committed by illegal immigrants should be included -- raising the prospect of offences committed by any immigrant being published even if the person is living in the US legally.
In an executive order titled "Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements", Trump signed into law many of the pledges he made during his election campaign, the Independent reported.
These include building a wall along the US-Mexico border, deporting illegal immigrants, establishing new immigration detention centres and hiring 5,000 more Border Patrol agents.
According to official records, there are an estimated 820,000 undocumented migrants with criminal records in the US.
(With IANS inputs)
