MIAMI HERALD May 20, 2006
Immigration bill needs tweaks, advocates say
A Senate compromise that would give undocumented immigrants the right to citizenship is a ''time bomb'' that would adversely affect millions of the nation's undocumented immigrants, especially Haitians, South Florida immigrant advocates said Friday. Members of a statewide network of 52 organizations concerned with the fair treatment of immigrants called on U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez, the Florida Republican and one of the bill's main sponsors, to fix the ''harsh enforcement provisions'' before the Senate vote. ''We want to urge him to address a few issues we think are time bombs and that break down the value and the impact of the legislation,'' said María Rodríguez of the Florida Immigrant Coalition.
UNINTENDED EFFECT Rodríguez and others commended Martinez for taking the lead in trying to get a sensible immigration package before Congress, but the advocates said his legislation would have many unintended consequences that would harm immigrants instead of help them. In the case of undocumented Haitians immigrants, an unknown number who are under a final deportation order to return to Haiti would be unable to adjust their legal status because of provisions in the bill, immigrant advocates say. Another worry is a measure that would penalize immigrants who continue to use false statements or documents to obtain employment. ''Haitians for many good reasons came forward early on in their visit to the U.S. and for their forthright efforts to fix their immigration status [have been] ordered removed and will not be allowed to avail themselves of this new law,'' said Randolph McGrorty, executive director of Catholic Charities Legal Services in Miami.
A FIRST STEP A spokesman for Martinez said the compromise measure is a first step in fixing a ''broken immigration system'' that has resulted in an estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants in the United States -- one million of them in Florida. The bill passed in the U.S. House seeks to crack down on illegal entry without providing any avenue for legalizing status. ''The senator is in favor of comprehensive reform and getting a bill through the Senate so that he can begin negotiations with the House of Representatives,'' said Martinez's spokesman Ken Lundberg. Steve Forester, an immigrant advocate with Haitian Women of Miami, said letters have been sent to Martinez's office, as well as others. 'What we are saying is, `Senator Martinez stand up, we know you want to do the right thing, but insist on the removal of some of the horrendous enforcement provisions and support the important amendments that would protect the rights,' '' Forester said during a Friday press conference.
PROVISIONS CITED Among the bill's provisions that immigrant advocates say should be fixed are proposals that would: • Prevent anyone who arrived in the United States after Jan. 7, 2004, from qualifying for legal status, which would affect an estimated 1.6 million. • Provide only a three-month window for those who have been here between two and five years to apply for legalization. More time is needed, immigrant advocates argue. • Require some applicants to give up their right to an appeal or leave the United States in order to appeal denial of legalization. • Bar anyone who tests positive for HIV from applying. • Require certain individuals, such as Cuban detainees and others who cannot be deported to their home countries, to be indefinitely detained in U.S. facilities. • Increase the types and number of individuals with civil immigration violations who would be included in the National Crime Information Center database. Immigrant groups say this could prevent many families from reporting crime in their neighborhoods for fear of being turned over to immigration authorities.
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