No fewer than 200 would-be immigrants from about 70 countries have filed a lawsuit against President Donald Trump.
This followed the executive order he signed suspending immigration until next year.
The plaintiffs are winners in the U.S. Diversity Visa lottery programme and relatives in America, Dpa reports.
Their lawyer, Curtis Lee Morrison, told el Nuevo Herald that they followed the rules, and did everything they were supposed to do.
“They had planned to build a new life in the United States of America”, he stressed.
The federal lawsuit was filed in the District of Columbia.
It accused the Trump administration of attacking the Diversity Visa program.
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Created by Congress in 1990, the program facilitates immigration from countries underrepresented in the demographics of the U.S.
Enacted in June, the executive order prevents the winners – more than 50,000 – from completing the process of their immigrant visa application.
The State Department says no exception for immigrants, who must complete their application before the end of September.
Countries with the highest winners of the DV in 2020 are Cuba and Venezuela, with 2,703 and 1,068 visas, respectively.
AFRICA TODAY NEWS, NEW YORK