Index of Monthly Archives of Immigration Headlines: January - February 2003

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USA

New York Times readers: Iranian Cyclist Detained at Border Wins Political Asylum 02/28/03 - free registration required/fee for archives: An Iranian cyclist who has been touring the world on a peace mission has been arrested for entering the USA illegally.

See also: Detained Iranian Granted Asylum in U.S. Associated Free Press

 

Homeland Defenders Cite Burnout Dangers 02/26/03

Federal employees guarding the Michigan border are demanding arbitration on a list of issues that have made their workload unbearable and therefore weakened their ability to effectively fight terrorism. From the Detroit Free Press.

 

New York Times readers:U.S. Crackdown Sets Off Unusual Rush to Canada 02/25/03 - free registration required/fee for archives: Canada is flooded by Pakistanis who are fleeing the US in order to avoid the special registration, a program that requires all illegal immigrants from certain Middle Eastern countries to register with the INS.

 

Some Trade Center Families Face Deportation 02/24/03

Some family members of victims who died in the 9/11 World Trade Center attack are facing deportation based on their temporary status. From the The Bergen Record.

 

Protesters Rally Against INS Rules 02/21/03

The special registration program for men from Middle Eastern and other Muslim countries is decried as racial profiling by some Japanese-Americans who compare the current policy to the US campaign during WWII, when Japanese-American men were detained in camps as a reaction to the attack on Pearl Harbor. From the Boston Globe.

 

INS Gives Extension for Saudis and Pakistanis 02/20/03

The new INS program that requires temporary male visitors from several Middle Eastern countries to be photographed and fingerprinted has extended its deadline to March 21th for men from Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. From the San Francisco Chronicle.

 

Immigrant-Control Groups Assail Popular ID Cards 02/19/03

The increasingly popular ID cards issued by the Mexican government and other Latin American countries to their citizens are being criticized by US immigration control groups. Mark Krikorian, head of the Center for Immigration Studies, says that ""Anything that makes it easier for immigrants to live here makes enforcement of immigration law more difficult." From the Sacramento Bee.

 

Visa Deadline Leaves Immigrants Out in the Cold 02/18/03

Many Middle Eastern immigrants are driven away by the registration deadline, escaping to Canada and applying for asylum. From the Financial Times.

 

Muslims: INS Policy is Biased 02/17/03

The new policy that requires men from certain countries, mainly Middle Eastern countries, to register and to be fingerprinted is called racial profiling by some advocates of Arab-American groups. From NY Daily News.

 

Foreign Student Reaction to Tough INS Rule Mixed 02/13/03

The deadline for US schools and colleges to install a system that monitors foreign students runs out on February 15, 2003. From the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

 

Canadian Border Crossings Delayed by 'Code Orange' 02/08/03

With the country under code orange, more trucks at the American-Canadian border will be inspected, causing delays. From CBC.

 

Some U.S. representatives abroad have developed a new pastime: selling visas to the folks of their host country. Learn more about it here:

U.S. Official Illegally Sold Visas Abroad 02/08/03 - Washington Post

U.S. Visas Said Sold on Mexican Street for $1,500 02/06/03 - Reuters

 

Tyson Immigrant Smuggling Trial Begins 02/05/03

Food giant Tyson Foods is accused of knowingly hiring illegal immigrants to keep their facilities running. The plot has been going on since 1994, when the company was in desperate need of low wage workers. From the Associated Press.

See also: Prosecutors Call Tyson Smuggling Trial a Case of 'Corporate Greed' NY Times (registration required)

 

Pakistan Expects Changes to U.S. Security Laws 02/04/03

The new law that requires male Pakistanis and other nationals to register with US authorities have angered and intimidated many Pakistanis living in the US. After a recent trip to the US, the Pakistani foreign minister assured that the new law will be handled reasonably, without any mass deportations. From Reuters.

 

Doctor's Visa Waivers Reconsidered 02/02/03

Due to a shortage of physicians in rural areas, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson recently announced that his agency will begin to process requests for visa waivers that enable foreign doctors to work in those areas. From the Abilene Reporter-News.

 

INS: 7 Million Illegal Immigrants in U.S. 01/31/03

According to the Census and INS statistics, roughly 7 million illegal immigrants live in the US, as per January 2000. This is an increase of over 1 million compared to the count of 5.8 million illegals in October 1996. From the Associated Press.

 

Two INS Workers Accused of Shredding 01/31/03

Two INS workers took the easy way out: swamped with tens of thousands of documents that included asylum-, citizenship- and other applications, they fed the papers to the shredder. The workers have been indicted by a federal grand jury. From the Associated Press.

 

INS Extends Foreign Student Data Deadline 01/31/03

The deadline for U.S. schools to submit data about their foreign students to the INS has been delayed, due to difficulties in transferring the data to INS computers. From the Associated Press.

 

Immigration Status: City Employees Cannot Ask 01/28/03

The Seattle city council decided that law enforcement officials are not allowed to ask immigrants about their immigration status when coming in contact with them. From the Seattle Times.

 

Senate Votes to Halt INS Registration Program 01/25/03

A bill approved by the Senate last Thursday would cut the funding for the special registration program, which required men from Muslim countries to be photographed and fingerprinted. However, the House is unlikely to accept the bill, according to the Washington Post.

 

U.S. Rethinks Use of ID Card From Mexico 01/24/03

Government agencies including the FBI are taking a closer look at ID cards issued by the Mexican government for Mexican nationals living in the US. From the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

 

INS Work on Asylum Bids To Continue 01/24/03

Applications for asylum and refugee status will be processed for a lower fee, says the INS. From the Washington Post.

 

INS Designates New Countries for Special Registration 01/17/03

Others have had their deadlines extended. From Visalaw.com. See also:

 

U.S. Mulls More Visitor Registrations AP

U.S. Expands List of Nations Whose Visitors Must Register NY Times

 

INS Says Halt Lifted on Approvals of Adjustments/Naturalizations 01/15/03

Courtesy of Greg Siskind, Esq. as posted on AILA InfoNet at Doc. No. 03011070, 01/10/03.

Memo: INS Headquarters has advised AILA that the problems with the FBI checks have been resolved, and that approvals of adjustment of status and naturalization applications are proceeding. Note from your editors: other recent delays, e.g. for temporary visa applications, also seem to be resolving, according to reports from the field.

 

Hundreds Rally in Seattle Over Mandatory Registration  01/14/03

Objecting to the mass registration required of individuals fitting certain criteria, hundreds come out to protest, as reported in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

 

Court to Clarify the Rights of Noncitizens  01/14/03

The immigration laws passed in 1996 require that "any non-US citizen who commits an aggravated felony must be deported. It further requires that so-called 'criminal aliens' be held without bond pending their removal from the US," explains the Christian Science Monitor.

 

New York Times readers: Complying, Anxiously, With an I.N.S. Roundup 01/13/03 - free registration required/fee for archives:Those required to register may do so, and seem to be for the most part, but not without much trepidation, even when they know they are guilty of nothing.

 

U.S. Border Crossings Spark Civilian Patrols  01/12/03

"It's the Wild West all over again," says one Arizona resident, referring to immigrant crossings and the vigilantes who feel they must patrol areas that the government isn't. Details from the Washington Post.

 

Lining Up to Register 01/11/03

"Immigration officials had said earlier that about 7,200 men and boys 16 and older from 13 countries were expected to be photographed, fingerprinted and interviewed by the end of the day at Immigration and Naturalization Service offices nationwide." AP/Yahoo.

 

INS Deadline Arrives  01/10/03

"Fear and confusion reign today in many of the city's immigrant communities as a second deadline hits requiring an additional 13 groups to register with immigration officials." Newsday has this story.  See also: INS Registration Deadline Provokes Fear from Click2Houston.com.

 

LA Times Readers: 'Monitors' Target INS Registration  01/09/03: free registration required/fee for archives: A vigilante group of human rights advocates plan to keep an eye on INS conduct. "They will watch outside offices, saying abuses mark effort to keep tabs on Middle Eastern men."

 

Special Registration: An Office-by-Office Update 01/09/03

A summary of how call-in registration is being handled, from the Law Offices of Carl Shusterman.

 

Two Iraqi Immigrants Plead Innocent in Money Laundering Case 01/09/03

"Two Iraqi immigrants pleaded innocent to charges they participated in a scheme to illegally send $12 million in cash and goods to Iraq." From CNN.

 

Was it a Hoax?  01/06/03

"Some FBI officials now believe an account of five men infiltrating the United States from Canada -- leading to a nationwide manhunt for the men for questioning -- was fabricated, sources inside the FBI said Monday." says CNN.

 

LA Times Readers: Speedier Rate of Deportation Rulings Assailed  01/05/03: free registration required/fee for archives: Speedier deportations mean that deportees don't have to languish endlessly in jails for the simple crime of being out of immigration status.

 

See also Immigration Board Reportedly Speeding Deportation from Reuters/Yahoo.

 

NY Times Readers: U.S. to Make Airlines Give Data on Americans Going Overseas   01/04/03: free registration required/fee for archives: Even American citizens "traveling abroad would have to give the government detailed personal information before leaving or returning under an antiterrorism rule that the Immigration and Naturalization Service proposed today."

 

U.S. Proposes Visitor Tracking System  01/03/03

"Millions of travelers arriving and departing the United States will have to submit detailed personal information this year under rules proposed by the federal government Friday as part of the war on terrorism." From AP/Yahoo.

 

Search Expands to 19 in Possible Illegal US Entry  01/03/03

As many as 19 terrorist cell members may have illegally crossed into the United States. This from the Boston Globe.

 

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