Shocked by what they saw on a visit to a New York immigrant detention centre, Christian and other religious officials have appealed to the US Congress to "correct" its immigration laws and to end policies that treat refugees like criminals.

"We are deeply troubled by the way our country is treating people who come to our shores fleeing persecution in their homelands," they said in the a statement submitted to the US Senate immigration subcommittee in May.

The text was submitted after a tour of Wackenhut detention centre near New York's JFK international airport. Detainees at Wackenhut have not been charged with any crime - in fact, they claim to have fled persecution in their home countries. But the tour participants said conditions at the centre were worse than those in prisons. They described a locked, windowless, airless, brick-and-concrete block building housing dormitories with between 12 and 40 beds, as well as solitary "segregation" cells.

"Imprisoned criminals have more freedom, access and opportunity," said Bob Edgar, general secretary of the National Council of Churches, who has served as a federal prison chaplain.

In 1996, under the influence of a strong anti-immigration sentiment, Congress passed a law allowing immigration and naturalization service officials to turn away asylum seekers at the airport. Before 1996, those who said they feared persecution were allowed to enter and given a chance to get a judgement on their claim.

Church groups fear that the new provision gives too much discretion to untrained INS officials.

According to the statement addressed to Congress by tour participants, asylum seekers may pass several months or even years in detention "with little access to legal, social, and spiritual care".

"Women, men and children who have suffered torture and imprisonment, witnessed the murder of their families and destruction of their homes, and endured long and dangerous journeys to reach freedom, find themselves behind bars," they stated.

During the Wackenhut tour one asylum-seeker held up a sign - making sure that officers couldn't see it - claiming that he had been held for more than four years.

"People fleeing wars and persecution to save their lives and freedom deserve respect and fair and humane treatment," the Washington representative of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees told the Senate hearing.

"These often traumatized individuals - many of whom may have suffered torture or other abuses in their home country, should not have to overcome unnecessary obstacles to tell their stories," Guenet Guebre-Christos added. "They should have access to legal help to navigate the complicated US asylum system and should not be locked up in jails like criminals."

"We strongly believe the 1996 immigration laws went too far and are inconsistent with the generous American tradition of hospitality and fair treatment of those fleeing persecution," she said. "The US is a country with strong refugee roots and long-standing humanitarian traditions which are not reflected in the 1996 laws."

WARC/ENI