(HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Ned Lamont released the following statement regarding today’s announcement that Rihan, a senior at Cheshire High School, will be released on bond from ICE detention. He has been detained since April 6. Rihan and his family have been pursuing a legal path to citizenship and entered the U.S. legally under a humanitarian visa, reflecting the service of his father, Zia, as a translator to U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
“I am relieved that Rihan is finally being reunited with his family, although it was categorically wrong that he was ever detained by ICE in the first place. Nor should his father, Zia, have been detained last year. Rihan and Zia are not people who slipped through a bureaucratic crack – they are here lawfully, and more than that, they are here because they risked their lives in Afghanistan to protect American soldiers. I ask ICE and DHS to immediately cease their cruel targeting of this family and to reinstate the humanitarian visa under which the family entered this country legally.
“I am deeply proud to stand alongside the other political leaders, advocates, and community members who refused to let this family be forgotten. But let us be clear: what was done to Rihan and Zia was wrong, and their case is not an exception. ICE’s pattern of reckless, inhumane detention has torn apart too many families and destroyed too many lives. That fight is far from over, and I will not stop fighting for justice.
“To Rihan, I say this: what you and your family have endured is not fair, and I am so sorry that you have not received the warm, grateful welcome and clear path to residency that the federal government promised your father. Connecticut is lucky to have you, and I have no doubt that one day, should you continue on your path to becoming a physician, patients will be lucky to have you too – steady hands, a bright mind, and a heart that already knows what it means to suffer and to persevere. Keep going. Your community is behind you, your future is waiting, and the best chapters of your story are still ahead.”