Daily news updates from CIS

November 3, 2009 -- Click here for overseas news

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[For CISNEWS subscribers --

1. Gov't E-Verify requirement operating smoothly
2. H-1B program see lowest demand since 2003
3. Administration lifts HIV travel ban
4. Health care effort 'vexed' by issue (story, link)
5. SCOTUS may consider AZ sanctions law (story, 2 links)
6. SCOTUS orders review of AZ ESL ruling
7. Study finds no shortage of American engineers
8. Union report attacks workplace enforcement
9. NJ bill would grant illegals in-state tuition privilege
10. San Fran. mayor to forego sanctuary policy debate (story, link)
11. NC county resolution against illegals fails (story, 3 links)
12. TX border town fears increased crime with increased traffic
13. Sheriff Arpaio stumps for like-minded CA candidate
14. MO state troopers identify 500 illegals since 2007
15. CA college to testify in SCOTUS tuition suit
16. Advocates say UT foreign kids lagging
17. Amnesty activist eyes IL congressional seat
18. FL activists seek to mobilize immigrant vote
19. Border business leaders bemoan fence
20. Citizens increasingly compete for day labor spots
21. Feds settle case with SC poultry plant (story, link)
22. Harvard grad finds himself without status, employment
23. Iraqi man charged with 'honor killing’ of daughter
24. Pakistani man accused of immigration fraud (link)
25. Border Patrol nabs 20 illegals off FL coast (link)

Subscribe to CIS e-mail services here: http://cis.org/immigrationnews.html

-- Mark Krikorian]

1.
E-Verify working smoothly
By Perla Trevizo
The Chattanooga Times Free Press (TN), November 3, 2009
http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2009/nov/03/e-verify-working-smoothly/?business

Nearly two months after most federal contractors and subcontractors were required to use the government's employment verification program, local employers report things are running smoothly.

'We've been using E-Verify since the new rules went into effect Sept. 8, (and) so far we've not experienced any adverse financial or administrative issues using the system,' said BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee spokeswoman Mary Thompson. 'It's simply been another step in the hiring and employment verification process.'

Federal contractors with jobs over $100,000 and subcontractors with jobs over $3,000 have to verify that newly hired employees and existing employees assigned to a federal contract are eligible to work in the United States. Certain contracts, such as those less than 120 days, are exempted.

E-Verify is a free Web-based system operated by the Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration that compares information from the employment eligibility verification form, the I-9, against federal government databases to verify workers' employment eligibility.

As of Oct. 17, more than 160,000 employers used the system, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services officials.

More than 15 million queries have been run through the system since fiscal year 2008 and about 97 percent of them are now automatically confirmed as work-authorized within 24 hours or less, a news release stated.

But the program's susceptibility to fraud and the financial burdens that it can impose on employers remain a concern for several chambers of commerce, including Georgia's and Tennessee's.

'The Georgia Chamber and our members support reducing illegal immigration and have invested significant resources and energy in documenting and verifying our employees,' Georgia Chamber of Commerce President and CEO George Israel said in an e-mail.

'The E-Verify program holds promise and has been voluntarily adopted by many employers, but its reliance on outdated technology, its susceptibility to fraud, and the financial and administrative burdens it imposes must be addressed if it is ever to become an effective national verification system,' he added.

'Employers do want to do the right thing,' said Bradley Jackson, vice president for government affairs for the Tennessee Chamber of Commerce. 'They want to make sure the folks they are hiring are legitimate. We just want to make sure that the system that the federal government mandates us to use works.

'We don't think that's too much to ask. So as we continue to get confirmation that this is a good system, I think you'll get a lot more employers to use it and even rely on it,' he added.

Tera Lusk, manager of employment services with the Hamilton Health Care System, said the hospital enrolled in E-Verify in July and hasn't experienced any hitches or delays.

'We use it for every person we hire and over the last few months we've hired between 30-40 people,' she said.

In 2007 Georgia passed the Georgia Security/Immigration Compliance Act, which included a mandate for public employers to use E-Verify.

A three-year E-Verify funding extension was recently approved by Congress under the Homeland Security Department spending bill.

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2.
H-1B visa applications lowest since 2003
By John Boudreau
The Contra Costa Times (Walnut Creek, CA), November 2, 2009
http://www.contracostatimes.com/business/ci_13680374?source=rss

San Jose, CA -- More than six months after the federal government began accepting petitions for work visas popular with Silicon Valley companies, thousands of spots remain open, a reflection of the nation's high unemployment and the political pressure to hire citizens, experts say.

As of last week, 46,700 H-1B visa applications had been submitted, thousands less than the 65,000 allocated for fiscal year 2010 and the lowest number since 2003. The cap for 20,000 additional H-1B visas reserved for foreign graduates of U.S. colleges with at least a master's degree was met, though applications are still being accepted.

Tech industry insiders say the recession is primarily responsible for the dearth of applications. 'There is definitely a sense that there is a growing hostility toward some of the (visa) programs, but I don't think that is related to the downturn' in petitions, said Jenifer Verdery, Intel's director of work force policy. 'You are not going to see big ramp-ups in hiring during the downturn.'

But political pressure did affect hiring in other industries. The federal stimulus law includes provisions making it difficult for financial companies receiving money from the Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP, to hire H-1B workers. The requirement forced companies like Bank of America to rescind job offers to foreign professionals.

Julie Pearl, a San Francisco-based corporate immigration lawyer who works with valley companies, says her firm's caseload for visa work has been cut in half. 'In the financial industry, H-1B (applications) are down almost 75 percent,' she added.

Sen. Charles Grassley has criticized tech companies for not protecting jobs of U.S. citizens over those of foreigners as they lay off thousands of employees at a clip. The Iowa Republican and Sen. Richard Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, in April reintroduced a bill that would require companies to do everything they can to hire Americans before seeking H-1B visas.

One technology corporate client of Pearl's declined to file petitions out of a sense of patriotism. 'They felt, 'How do you hire a foreigner' with 12 percent unemployment in California', she said.

Samta Kapoor, who will complete her master's degree in engineering management at Duke University in December, said she and other foreign-born classmates have been told by prospective employers that they are not hiring international students this year. 'There are times when we are not even looked at. They say, 'We are not hiring international students this year. It's a companywide policy. Sorry,'' she said.

Silicon Valley companies, where immigrants have played prominent roles in creating startups and new technology inventions, view the H-1B visa program as a way to grab the best talent from around the world. 'For most of our clients, their mantra is: Hire the best person you can,' Pearl added.

Companies can spend thousands of dollars per applicant. 'It's such a hard process,' Verdery of Intel said. 'It's a laborious, difficult, expensive endeavor to bring someone on board.'

Despite the challenges, Intel has continued about the same level of H-1B hiring as in the past, she said.

In recent years, there has been some support from both parties in Congress for more H-1B visas and green cards for foreign professionals, a major goal of tech companies that has been caught up in the highly charged debate over immigration.

During the dot-com boom a decade ago, the H-1B visa cap was 195,000 a year, a reflection of the frenzied hiring of tech workers in Silicon Valley and elsewhere around the nation. That number dropped dramatically during the recession that followed.

Les French, president of WashTech, a Seattle-based union for tech professionals, which is critical of the visa program, predicts application levels will eventually rise again. 'Once the economy picks up, you'll see a pickup in the applications,' he said. 'I think it will be lock-step with the economy.'

Others, though, say the difficulties faced by foreign-born potential workers as well as the recession will deter some overseas professionals from pursuing careers here.

'The problem is, you lose the cream-of-the-crop,' said Vivek Wadhwa, a researcher on immigration and labor issues at the University of California-Berkeley. 'The cream of the crop can get jobs elsewhere. Before, they had to come here.'

Nonetheless, students such as Kapoor say the United States is still their first choice.

'There are a lot of things happening back home,' said Kapoor, who is from Mumbai, India. 'There would be no lack of opportunity for me if I went back. But I've been educated here. I want to give back to the United States.'

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3.
Obama lifts U.S. ban on foreign HIV-positive travelers
By Katherine Harmon
Scientific American, November 2, 2009
http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=obama-lifts-us-ban-on-foreign-hiv-p-2009-11-02

People with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) will no longer be prohibited from visiting or immigrating to the U.S., the White House announced Friday.

An entry ban, which went into effect 22 years ago when national fears over AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome) had reached a fevered pitch, prevented those with HIV from entering the country by adding the virus to a list of prohibited communicable diseases. The ban was strengthened in 1993 when it was written into immigration laws, which mandated HIV-testing for those seeking permission to immigrate here.

President Obama noted in his announcement that the ban had been 'rooted in fear rather than fact,' at a time when the mechanisms of HIV's spread were still misunderstood.

'If we want to be the global leader in combating HIV/AIDS, we need to act like it,' Obama said, the Los Angeles Times reported. Due to the ban, no major conferences on AIDS have been held in the U.S. since 1990. Only a dozen or so other countries have a similar ban, The New York Times reported.

Under the ban, people with HIV could apply for a waiver to visit or move to the U.S., but complicated and lengthy processes often discouraged many, especially short-term visitors, from bothering. Waivers for immigration were available for married heterosexual couples but not for homosexual couples. Such rules often meant visiting family and friends or seeking treatment in the U.S. was impossible and discouraged others from getting tested.

'Stigma and discrimination are huge [issues] for people living with HIV,' Lance Toma, executive director of the Asian and Pacific Islander Wellness Center in San Francisco, told the San Francisco Chronicle. 'The travel ban is one that is in our laws that legalizes the stigma.'

Those in the AIDS research community have applauded the removal of the ban, despite its long time in coming. 'The ban has been lifted based on science, reason and human rights,' Kevin Robert Frost, CEO of amfAR, an AIDS research organization, told The Washington Post. 'Our hope is that this decision reflects a commitment to adopting more evidence-based policies when confronting the AIDS epidemic.'

The changes are being published in the Federal Register today and will go into effect after a standard 60-day waiting period. The Bush Administration had begun the process of lifting the ban last year, repealing aspects of the law that had prohibited student and tourists with HIV from entering the U.S. without a waiver.

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4.
Flash Points Linger in Health Bill
Democrats Trying to Reach Final Deals on Handling of Abortions, Illegal Immigrants
By Janet Adamy
The Wall Street Journal, November 3, 2009
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125719816691823721.html?mod=rss_Today%27s_Most_Popular

Washington, DC -- House Democrats are wrestling with how their health-care bill will deal with abortion and immigration issues as they prepare to bring the bill to the floor as soon as Friday.

Democratic leaders in the House warned members that debate on the floor may stretch through the weekend and into next week so the House can vote on the bill before the Nov. 11 Veterans Day holiday. After critics attacked an earlier draft of the health bill during the August recess, Democrats are wary of letting it languish during a break.

House leaders unveiled their revised 1,990-page bill last week after months of negotiations. The $1.055 trillion measure would expand health insurance to 36 million Americans and create a new government health-insurance plan to compete with private insurers, among other things.

But Democrats are still trying to reach a final agreement on how the bill addresses funding for abortions and insurance coverage for immigrants.

Although the issues are small parts of the legislation, they have become flash points for Republicans and Democrats that could determine whether key lawmakers support the bill.

Some Democrats are concerned that the House bill would allow illegal immigrants to participate in new exchanges designed to help individuals and smaller employers buy insurance.

While those immigrants wouldn't have access to government subsidies to buy insurance, the bill leaves open the possibility that they could participate in the public health-insurance plan if they paid the premiums out of their own pockets.

It is one area where the House bill contrasts with what the White House is seeking in the health-care overhaul. President Barack Obama has pledged that the health overhaul won't apply to people who are in the U.S. illegally.

While the Senate has yet to unveil its most recent bill, the measure that passed through its Finance Committee last month prohibited illegal immigrants from participating in the insurance exchanges.

On abortion, the House bill prevents federal money from being used to pay for abortions through the insurance exchange, except in the case of rape, incest or when the mother's life is endangered. The bill says that, in each market, the insurance exchange should offer at least one insurance plan that covers abortion and one that doesn't.

But some House Democrats argue that such a structure effectively allows federal dollars to underwrite abortions, because the government would be subsidizing the insurance premiums for plans that cover the procedure. They are trying to tighten the language so the funding is more restricted and ban abortion services from the public option.

Supporters of the current proposal say it is consistent with how other laws treat abortion funding, and that it includes protections to separate out the federal subsidies so no premium subsidies go toward abortions.

Republicans are preparing to unveil their own health bill in the next few days. Minority Leader John Boehner (R., Ohio) said Monday that the plan wouldn't seek to prevent health-insurance companies from denying sick people insurance -- a key plank of the Democrats' legislation.

Instead, the bill would allow insurance firms to sell policies across state lines, permit small businesses to pool their risks to bring down costs, change medical-malpractice laws and give state governments more flexibility to pursue rule changes.

+++

Two Tough Health Care Issues Remain in the House
The Associated Press, October 3, 2009

Washington, DC (AP) -- Just a few unsolved problems -- and one final sales job -- stand between House Democratic leaders and a landmark vote on President Barack Obama's promised remake of the nation's health care system.

Unfortunately for the Democrats, the unresolved issues are among the most vexing out there: abortion and immigration.
. . .
On immigration, it's still not settled whether illegal immigrants would be allowed to shop for insurance within a new purchasing exchange. Some lawmakers say that even if they use their own money to buy private plans they would be getting a benefit from the federally established exchange. The White House does not want illegal immigrants to access the exchange, and the Senate bill would keep them out.
. . .
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/11/03/us/politics/AP-US-Health-Care-Overhaul.html

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5.
Justices may hear disputed Arizona law
High court seeks Obama input on migrant hiring
By Daniel González and Dan Nowicki
The Arizona Republic (Phoenix), November 3, 2009
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2009/11/03/20091103sanctionslaw1103.html

The U.S. Supreme Court has indicated it is interested in hearing an appeal from business groups that, for the past two years, have been trying to have Arizona's controversial employer-sanctions law thrown out.

The sanctions law, which punishes companies for hiring illegal immigrants and requires all Arizona employers to use a federal electronic system to verify the work status of employees, has been upheld by two lower courts.

But a coalition of business groups, immigrant-rights advocates and civil-liberties groups maintains that the 2007 law is unconstitutional because it infringes on the federal government's authority over immigration laws and mandates the use of the federal government's electronic-verification system, known as E-Verify, even though it is a voluntary program.

The Supreme Court on Monday asked the Obama administration to weigh in on the issue before deciding whether to take on the case.

The Obama administration is not a party in the case, but the case intersects with several federal issues, notably E-Verify and federal immigration policy.

Opponents of the law were encouraged by the Supreme Court's request. They say it shows that the court recognizes how the sanctions law, which has been imitated in several other states, has implications beyond Arizona. Several states have modeled legislation on Arizona's law, as state and local governments grapple with the complicated issue of immigration in the wake of Congress' failure to solve the problem.

'At the end of the day, we still feel that immigration lies at the federal level,' said Glenn Hamer, president of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry. 'We have this crazy quilt of state and local laws, and we believe this is better left to the federal government, and we certainly see this as an encouraging sign that the Supreme Court will consider the case and make it clear that immigration is a federal matter.'

Julie Pace, a Phoenix lawyer who represents the coalition of 10 Arizona business groups including the Arizona Chamber, the Arizona Contractors Association and the Arizona Landscapers Association, said the sanctions law affects companies nationwide that do business in Arizona. The coalition includes the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

'Companies are clearly overburdened with government regulation, and we need uniform and consistent immigration laws, and that is why this case is of national importance,' she said.

The Obama administration has postponed dealing with immigration reform until at least 2010 while it addresses its top domestic-policy issue: health-care reform.

A brief submitted by Arizona Solicitor General Mary O'Grady argues against the Supreme Court taking the case, saying not 'every dispute about a state or local measure regarding illegal immigrants merits this court's review.'

Through the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, Congress gave states permission to impose sanctions through 'licensing and similar laws,' O'Grady's brief says.

'Arizona's sanctions statute does not impose any new obligations on employers because IRCA's federal-law provisions already prohibit employers from knowingly employing unauthorized aliens,' O'Grady wrote. 'Arizona's law merely establishes state sanctions for that illegal conduct, as Congress specifically permits states to do. . . . In addition, Arizona's E-Verify provision simply requires Arizona employers to participate in a congressionally authorized federal program that is already available nationwide.'

The sanctions law allows the state's attorney general and county attorneys to file civil complaints against employers suspected of hiring illegal workers. Employers found to have 'knowingly or intentionally' hired illegal workers face having their business licenses suspended or revoked. In the nearly two years since the law took effect in January 2008, not a single complaint has been filed against an employer anywhere in the state. Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, however, has raided about two dozen businesses under the law, resulting in the arrests of scores of suspected illegal workers on identity-theft and fraud charges but no complaints against employers.

'(The law) reflects rising frustration with the United States Congress' failure to enact comprehensive immigration reform,' the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said in a ruling that upheld the law.

In a closed-door conference Friday, the outcome of which was released Monday, the justices agreed to ask Obama's solicitor general, Elena Kagan, to submit a brief outlining the administration's views. The justices will review the brief before deciding to take the case.

For the Obama administration, the legal challenge poses potentially thorny questions.

During last year's presidential campaign, then-candidate Barack Obama declared that the proliferation of state immigration laws 'underscores the need for comprehensive immigration reform so local communities do not continue to take matters into their own hands.'

The Arizona governor who signed the state law was Janet Napolitano, who now serves in the Obama administration as the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.

+++

Supreme Court seeks White House views on hiring illegal immigrants
The Austin American Statesman, November 3, 2009
http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/nation/2009/11/03/1103scotus.html

Supreme Court seeks White House views on hiring undocumented immigrants
By Michael Doyle
The Miami Herald, November 2, 2009
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/politics/AP/story/1312711.html

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6.
Immigrant Promotes Teaching English as Second Language
The Latin American Herald Tribune (Caracas), November 3, 2009
http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=346622&CategoryId=12394

Nogales, AZ -- Miriam Flores is a 42-year-old Mexican immigrant who has taken the cause of English as a second language to the nation’s highest courts.

This mother of three daughters, who has lived in the border town of Nogales for more than 20 years, is the woman behind the Flores vs. Arizona case, which demands additional funding for ESL programs.

In 1992, Flores and other Hispanic parents sued the Nogales Unified School District for allegedly violating the rights of students in ESL programs.

'My eldest daughter was a good student, by third grade she already knew the multiplication tables, she could add and subtract, something that I taught her in Spanish,' Flores, a native of the Mexican border state of Sonora, told Efe in an interview.

'She started having problems in third grade, she didn’t understand anything the teacher (who spoke only English) said, so she began to get poorer grades. She was afraid to go to school, she had nightmares, a situation that became very difficult for her and for me,' she said.

She added that the teacher thought her daughter Miriam had behavior problems, without understanding that the girl did not understand what they were asking her in the exams, and speaking with other parents she realized that her daughter’s case was by no means unique.

Flores felt very frustrated because the schools’ insufficient funding, the lack of bilingual teachers and of additional aid so that children could learn English was becoming an obstacle for Hispanic students.

When a group of attorneys contacted her about the possibility of taking legal action, Flores did not hesitate.

'I was surprised by the impact this case has had, and above all, the time it has lasted,' Flores, whose daughter, now 23, is studying nursing at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, said.

It was thanks to a great deal of dedication that her daughter could overcome the obstacles and go to college, something that few Hispanic students achieve because, according to Flores, they don’t have the right tools.

After almost two decades of struggle, the Supreme Court ruled in June that a federal district judge in Arizona needed to re-evaluate his decision to place the state’s ESL programs under judicial supervision.

Writing for the 5-4 majority, Justice Samuel Alito said the district judge acted without evidence that Arizona’s public schools were violating the Equal Educational Opportunities Act’s requirements for ESL programs.

'The Supreme Court’s decision was demoralizing, above all because there is still a great deficiency in the schools and our students are the ones paying the price,' Flores, who is still involved in her 5-year-old daughter Isabella’s school, said.

The Supreme Court’s ruling does not signify a rejection of the suit, but it could return to Arizona state legislators the power of determining how much money will be invested in ESL programs.

In 1988, the state gave schools an extra $164 for each ESL student, yet a survey found that the actual per-pupil cost of the additional language instruction was around $450.

At the time, 45,000 students were registered in ESL programs statewide.

When the lawsuit was filed in 1992, the number had increased to 75,000 students, while 143,000 Arizona students are currently enrolled in ESL programs.

'I believe that all Hispanic parents should be involved in our children’s schools and not keep quiet if there’s something we don’t like,' Flores says.

'This case has definitely not ended yet. I don’t know how many years it can last, but if it helps to benefit just one student, it’ll be worth it,' she said.

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7.
Study: no shortage of U.S. engineers
The burden now falls on employers for making jobs in the science and technology fields more attractive to graduates
By Moira Herbst
Business Week, October 28, 2009
http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/oct2009/db20091027_723059.htm

U.S. colleges and universities are graduating as many scientists and engineers as ever, according to a study released on Oct. 28 by a group of academics. But that finding comes with a big caveat: Many of the highest-performing students are choosing careers in other fields. The study by professors at Rutgers and Georgetown suggests that since the late 1990s, many of the top students have been lured to careers in finance and consulting.

'Despite decades of complaints that the United States does not have enough scientists and engineers, the data show our high schools and colleges are providing an ample supply of graduates,' said study co-author Hal Salzman, a public policy professor at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey. 'It is now up to science and technology firms to attract the best and the brightest graduates to come work for them.'

The onus for improving the stock of scientists and mathematicians thus falls more on employers than students, the report's authors say. 'If a 12th grader asks us for advice about whether to pursue a career in physics, math, or engineering, what would our advice be?' says co-author Lindsay Lowell, a professor at Georgetown University. 'It's difficult to say. There is such a surplus of talent.'

The study, entitled “Steady as She Goes? Three Generations of Students through the Science and Engineering Pipeline,” was conducted with funding from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, a New York-based nonprofit that focuses on science education. The report analyzes longitudinal data to examine the transition of American students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) from high school into the labor force.

Is It Just About Money?

The 1990s marked a turning point in longer-term trends for the best students in high school and college, according to the study. 'The top quintile SAT/ACT and GPA performers appear to have been dropping out of the STEM pipeline at a substantial rate, and this decline seems to have come on quite suddenly in the mid-to-late 1990s,' reads the report. The result has been a 'compositional shift to lower-performing students in the STEM pipeline.'

The researchers' conclusions suggest that making careers in STEM fields more attractive-through higher salaries, for example-could help employers solve recruiting problems for top talent. 'Highly qualified students may be choosing a non-STEM job because it pays better, offers a more stable professional career, and/or is perceived as less exposed to competition from low-wage economies,' reads the report.

Employers such as Microsoft (MSFT), however, argue that the problem of attracting talent would not be solved by raising pay but rather by adding more of the best candidates to the talent pipeline. Last March, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates testified before the House Committee on Science and Technology and said salaries are not the problem when his company tries to recruit top scientists and engineers. 'It's not an issue of raising wages. These jobs are very, very, very high-paying jobs,' he said.

Proposed H-1B Visa Exemptions

Gates argued that there is a decline in student interest in the sciences and that changes in immigration policy should be made to help fill gaps in the labor market. At the hearing, Gates advocated for a variety of changes to U.S. immigration policy, including extending the period foreign students can work in the U.S. after graduation, increasing the current cap on H-1B visas [for skilled workers], and significantly increasing the number of green cards issued annually. Tech companies such as Google (GOOG) and Oracle (ORCL) also advocate these policies as part of Compete America, the tech industry lobbying group.

While it's likely that immigration reform legislation will wait until after the health-care debate is completed, a number of bills are circulating in Congress to address employer concerns. Representatives Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) and Mike Quigley (D-Ill.) have this month been urging colleagues to co-sponsor H.R. 1791, the so-called 'STAPLE' Act of 2009. It would exempt foreign-born individuals who have earned an American PhD in STEM fields from annual limits on the number of employer-based green cards and H-1B visas awarded.

In a letter to the House of Representatives on Oct. 27, Flake and Quigley wrote that the STAPLE Act 'is the simplest, most commonsense step Congress can take to create jobs and ensure both American competitiveness in the global marketplace and increase the likelihood that future Nobel laureates will do their work inside the U.S.'

Computer Science Courses Dwindle

Tech companies aren't the only ones claiming the U.S. faces problems producing adequate numbers of students and job seekers interested in STEM. Industry associations in such fields as computer science say they also detect diminishing opportunities to pursue careers in this area. 'The trends in computer science aren't consistent with the broader trends [identified] in this data,' says Chris Stephenson, executive director of the Computer Science Teachers Assn., a New York-based professional organization of 7,400 high school-level teachers. 'It's safe to say that computer science is an outlier. We have severe problems in our pipeline at every step of the process.'

Stephenson says the number of computer science courses taught at the high school level has dropped for the past six years, especially at advanced levels. In 2005, 40% of U.S. high schools offered Advanced Placement courses in computer science; that number sank to 32% in 2007 and to 27% in 2009. 'It's clear that the number of students taking computer science is dropping,' she says.

Heads of other professional organizations also criticized the study for its lack of specificity among industries. The argument is that some STEM students and graduates may be worth cultivating more than others. The report's authors said it would have been too difficult and costly to perform a longitudinal data analysis by individual industry.

'There's a problem when you paint with a large brush and put all STEM fields together,' says Gordon Day, president of IEEE-USA, a professional group of engineers. 'We want to encourage the best and the brightest, smart and trained, entrepreneurial and energetic individuals to create jobs [in the U.S.]. Engineers create jobs. Scientists like marine biologists, particle physicists, and astronomers [typically] don't.'

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Rutgers report is available online at: http://www.heldrich.rutgers.edu/uploadedFiles/Publications/STEM_Paper_Final.pdf

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8.
Study: Immigration raids hurt workers' rights
AFL-CIO chastises federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
By Cindy Carcamo
The Orange County Register (Santa Ana, CA), November 3, 2009
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/enforcement-immigration-workers-2634189-illegal-report

Immigration officials and anti-illegal immigration activists are responding to a union labor coalition's report that criticized immigration workplace enforcement actions that took place during the last presidential administration.

The report issued by the AFL-CIO blasted Immigration and Customs Enforcement workplace raids, saying they undermined efforts to protect workers' rights and negatively affected immigrant and native-born workers. The AFL-CIO's report and other groups contend that the workplace raids mostly penalized workers and not the employers.

'ICED OUT: How Immigration Enforcement Has Interfered with Workers' Rights' states that there is a growing body of research that points to a decline in workplace protections. It details how the dramatic increase in immigration enforcement agents, arrests and prosecutions of immigrants in the U.S. has reportedly taken precedence over labor law enforcement.

In Orange County, the most recent and public workplace enforcement action took place in February 2007, netting about 20 workers in Anaheim, Orange and Irvine at places including ESPN Zone, House of Blues, La Brea Bakery, and Dave and Busters.

In response, federal immigration officials this week emphasized the new administration's shift, focusing more on the criminal prosecution of employers who knowingly hire people who are working illegally in the country.

'In April, updated worksite enforcement guidance was distributed to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which reflects a renewed Department-wide focus targeting criminal aliens and employers who cultivate illegal workplaces by breaking the country's laws and knowingly hiring illegal workers,' Department of Homeland Security spokesman Matthew Chandler said in a written statement.

'ICE focuses its resources in the worksite enforcement program on the criminal prosecution of employers who knowingly hire illegal workers in order to target the root cause of illegal immigration,'' he said.

The 2007 Orange County pre-dawn roundup was part of a national Immigration Customs Enforcement action at restaurants in 17 states. It resulted in the prosecution of executives at janitorial and grounds-keeping service Rosenbaum-Cunningham International (RCI), a Florida-based company that also operated in Michigan.

The prosecution of the employers was an anomaly compared to most cases, the AFL-CIO report contends.

'ICE's failure to uphold the firewall between enforcement of immigration laws and enforcement of labor laws has undercut both policies,' Rebecca Smith of the National Employment Law Project, co-author of the report, said in a written statement.

'Employers have been encouraged to violate wage and hour laws, OSHA requirements, and labor laws that protect collective bargaining rights,'' she said. 'All workers, both immigrant and native born, are suffering from depressed core labor standards as a result.'

Steve Camarota, director of research at the Center for Immigration Studies, contends that the immigration workplace enforcement actions have actually helped unions and native-born workers alike.

'There are clear cases where enforcement made life a lot better for native-born American and legal immigrants at work sites,' said Camarota, whose organization is an anti-illegal immigration think tank that favors enforcement of immigration law.

'If you don't' enforce the law you make illegal immigrants attractive to employers and that puts native workers and legal immigrants at a distinct disadvantage because illegal workers will work for less or unsafe, unpleasant conditions,'' he said.

In particular, Camarota cited one of his colleagues' studies, which states that the January 2007 immigration workplace enforcement raid of the Smithfield pork plant in Tar Heel, N.C. led to the hiring of native-born American workers and legal immigrants. In addition, the report contends the raid was a key factor in the later successful creation of a union at the facility.

Camarota contends that immigrant workers – in the country legally and illegally – undermine unions.

'If your concern is low unionization and lack of benefits, and working conditions, if these are your concerns, having a large supply of workers -- legal or not -- is going to undermine those efforts,' Camarota said. 'A tight labor market is the best friend a union can have or a worker could have.'

The AFL-CIO report highlighted case studies across the country -- in California, Texas, Kansas, Florida and Oregon -- examining a series of incidents between 2005 and 2008.

The report accuses Immigration and Customs Enforcement of the following:

*taking enforcement action at the behest of employers, their surrogates, and other police agencies;

*conducting immigration-focused surveillance in the midst of labor disputes;

*conducting enforcement action with full knowledge of an ongoing labor dispute;

*engaging in subterfuge to carry out enforcement actions; and

*directly interfering with the administration of justice by arresting workers on the courthouse steps.

Camarota said he agrees with the report on one point.

'It's fair to say that if you have selective enforcement of immigration laws it certainly can be problematic… in the context that if the law is not being applied uniformly then you open up the possibility that an employer will try to use enforcement against illegal immigrants who are attempting to organize and so forth,'' he said.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The AFL-CIO report is available at: http://www.americanrightsatwork.org/dmdocuments/ARAWReports/icedout_report.pdf

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9.
Bill to aid in-state immigrant students
By Greg Flynn
The Daily Targum (Rutgers University, NJ), October 2, 2009
http://www.dailytargum.com/news/bill-to-aid-in-state-immigrant-students-1.2047686

During a typical week, Douglass College senior Marisol Conde-Hernandez balances 50-60 hours working as a waitress with six credits of classes — and the possibility of being deported due to her undocumented immigrant status.

Conde-Hernandez said she advocates for granting in-state tuition to undocumented immigrants because she thinks these kinds of students will be able to achieve more when they graduate.

'Education has been the most important factor in my upbringing and in me being who I am,' said Conde-Hernandez, who has been paying her out-of-state tuition term bills by working. 'What’s great about Rutgers is that it’s pretty much all I’ve ever wanted in education. I always knew I wanted to go to college.'

The possibility of in-state tuition for undocumented immigrants has come into sight with the state bill S.1036, introduced in the 2008-2009 legislative session.

Dubbed the 'In-State Tuition Bill,' the legislation only exempts undocumented students from paying out-of-state tuition if they prove at least three years of continuous residency in the state before graduating from a New Jersey high school, according to the bill.

Students must also file an affidavit with the University stating they will file an application to legalize their immigration status as soon as they are eligible to do so, according to the bill.

It does not offer any preferential spots at any state university, nor does it make the undocumented students eligible for any financial assistance.

Ten states, including Texas, California and New York, have passed legislation to allow undocumented immigrants to qualify for in-state tuition at public colleges upon meeting certain criteria, according to the American Association of State Colleges and Universities.

Any bill granting in-state tuition to undocumented immigrants will not go into effect without the governor’s signature.

Gov. Jon S. Corzine mobilized the Blue Ribbon Advisory Panel on Immigrant Policy in 2007 to study immigration matters. In April 2009, the panel stated unanimous support for in-state tuition for undocumented immigrants, according to a report released by the state Department of the Public Advocate.

Corzine supported the findings of the report, according to an NJ.com article.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Chris Christie does not support the measure, stating that lawful taxpayers subsidize in-state institutions and are the only ones who deserve a tuition break, according to Philly.com.

Tom Johnson, the spokesman for Independent candidate Chris Daggett, declined discussing Daggett’s stance on present legislation.

'Chris does not believe in punishing the children of illegal immigrants for their situation,' Johnson said.

Director of University Media Relations Sandra Lanman said the University would continue to follow state law on this issue.

Conde-Hernandez dismissed the argument that undocumented immigrants displace citizens during the admissions process.

'Rutgers accepted me for a reason because I excel in school, I do well and I’m a positive member of the community,' she said. 'My application doesn’t list me as this poor, undocumented Mexican immigrant.'

She and her mother left Puebla, Mexico, in 1988 and entered the United States as undocumented immigrants. Conde-Hernandez moved around Central New Jersey throughout her childhood and graduated from South Brunswick High School.

'I graduated with a 3.5 [grade point average], I was president of the National French Honors Society, I was in the steering committee for the National Honor Society, I was president of the Latino Culture Club, I did HiTOPS, essentially a program that teaches sex-ed through workshops as a senior to the underclassmen, and I worked full-time senior year also,' she said.

Conde-Hernandez graduated from Middlesex Community College with honors in 2007, transferred into the University in spring 2008 and now lives in New Brunswick.

Under the Immigration and Naturalization Acts, a foreign person entering the United States must apply for a visa. After five consecutive years of permanent residency, the immigrant can apply for naturalization to become a U.S. citizen. A person is classified as undocumented when they enter the country without a visa or they enter with a visa and remain in the country past the allotted term.

Once Conde-Hernandez turned 18, any path that her parents chose to pursue citizenship or residency no longer affected her.

'My parents are in the process of attaining residency,' she said. 'I can no longer get residency under theirs because I am no longer a minor.'

Conde-Hernandez is faced with two options upon graduation. She said she can either stay in New Jersey and risk deportation while advocating for reform or return to Mexico to locate her birth certificate and passport, and try to get her documents in order.

'I don’t want to leave New Jersey. It’s all I know,' she said. 'Every recollection, every memory of me ever being conscious is in Jersey.'

Under the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, anyone who has stayed in the United States with undocumented status for more than year is subject to a 10-year bar from re-applying for entry into the United States.

The bar can be appealed, but Conde-Hernandez said she is wary of the process.

School of Engineering sophomore Andrej Mitev, a Macedonian immigrant who plans to achieve naturalized citizenship next year, said he understands the complications of immigration law but does not support in-state tuition for undocumented immigrants.

'At the end of the year, they don’t pay state taxes. They do pay sales taxes like everyone else, but that isn’t the same thing,' he said.

Mitev said he has a few undocumented immigrant friends who faced situations similar to those of Conde-Hernandez.

'First I want undocumented immigrants to get their documents in order. That’s how they will help themselves,' he said. 'Afterwards, they will have an easier life here.'

He said the federal government should address flaws in immigration policy before states go about creating new laws.

School of Arts and Sciences first-year student Damarys Romero said she supports in-state tuition because it does not give undocumented immigrants additional benefits, but instead levels the playing field.

'The whole reason they’re here is because of economic hardship,' Romero said. 'They should have the same opportunity as us.'

The Corzine and Christie campaigns could not be reached at press time.

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10.
Newsom Unlikely To Debate Supes On Sanctuary City
The KPIX News (San Francisco), November 2, 2009
http://cbs5.com/politics/sanctuary.city.debate.2.1287610.html

San Francisco -- San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom is unlikely to engage in a public debate with Supervisor David Campos over Campos' proposed change to the city's sanctuary ordinance, a mayor's spokesman said Monday.

Campos made the offer in a letter to Newsom earlier Monday, urging 'a public discussion' on Newsom's plan to defy legislation that would require undocumented youth accused of serious crimes to be referred by the city to federal immigration authorities only upon conviction. The city currently refers them when they are booked into custody.

'The Board and the people of San Francisco deserve to understand more fully why you intend to ignore this policy and the time honored democratic processes followed in enacting it,' Campos wrote.

'It is unlikely that the mayor will be accepting this offer,' Newsom spokesman Nathan Ballard later said.

San Francisco's sanctuary ordinance prohibits city employees from assisting federal immigration authorities, with exceptions for those booked for felony crimes.

The Board of Supervisors gave final approval to Campos' amendment last week, by a veto-proof 8-3 majority, prompting cheers from immigration advocates.

Days later, Newsom vetoed it, saying the current incarnation of the sanctuary ordinance 'struck the appropriate balance between offering a welcoming hand to the immigrant community and protecting the public safety of the city.'

'The mayor and the supervisor have already made their views known about the issue,' said Ballard, 'and now the mayor is moving forward with the only sensible course of action.'

'He has vetoed the bill,' Ballard said. 'If the supervisors override the veto, the mayor will ensure that our law enforcement officials are not placed in legal jeopardy by the supervisors' actions.'

In his veto, Newsom said sanctuary 'was never meant to serve as a shield for people accused of committing serious crimes in our city.'

He further quoted a memo from the city attorney's office, which approved Campos' legislation for submission but nevertheless warned about 'a serious risk that a court will find that federal law preempts the proposed Amendment, and possibly the entire Sanctuary City ordinance.'

Newsom contends the city is bound by federal law not to prohibit local law enforcement from reporting those booked for felonies and suspected of being in the country illegally, and that the courts have held the practice of reporting at the booking stage does not deny due process.

Campos argued in his letter that Newsom's veto raises more questions than it answers. He claimed federal law does not require the city to participate in immigration enforcement activities, and that the confidentiality of juvenile records is protected under state law.

Campos said his proposed amendment is 'legally tenable' and that the time at which youth are referred to federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement 'is ultimately not a legal decision but a policy decision.'

The Board of Supervisors is scheduled to vote on an overturn of Newsom's veto at its meeting on Nov. 10.

+++

Debate on sanctuary policy unlikely
By Joshua Sabatini
The San Francisco Examiner, November 2, 2009
http://www.sfexaminer.com/opinion/blogs/under-the-dome/Debate-on-sanctuary-city-unlikely-Newsom-says-68646217.html

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11.
Admission rule splits Wake commissioners
By Kristin Collins
The News Observer (Raleigh), October 3, 2009
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/local_state/story/172202.html

Raleigh -- Wake County commissioners deadlocked along party lines Monday on a resolution opposing the admission of illegal immigrants to community colleges.

The resolution objected to the State Board of Community Colleges' decision, in September, to allow illegal immigrants into degree programs at out-of-state tuition rates. It died after getting three of six votes needed.

Commissioner Paul Coble pushed the resolution, which would have been an entirely symbolic act. The board provides some funding to Wake Tech but has no authority over community college admissions.

Coble said the community college decision condones illegal immigration and misuses taxpayer resources. He said the colleges should focus their resources on serving legal residents.

'It makes no sense to me that we would actually train and educate people who cannot take the jobs that they would be trained for,' Coble said.

Fellow Republicans Joe Bryan and Tony Gurley voted with him. But Democrats Betty Lou Ward, Lindy Brown and Stan Norwalk opposed the resolution. Board Chairman Harold Webb, a Democrat, is recovering from a stroke and was not present.

'I am embarrassed that this would come before the board,' said Norwalk, who called the resolution an insult to Latinos.

Norwalk said that admitting illegal immigrants would have no effect on the community colleges' ability to serve legal residents.

The State Board of Community Colleges decided to admit illegal immigrants at all of the state's 58 campuses after months of controversy and public outcry. The board sought legal opinions, commissioned a study and debated the issue at length before finally deciding to allow them in, saying the decision would provide an opportunity for the most motivated students.

System officials have said that out-of-state tuition more than covers the cost of instruction, and legal residents will get priority when class seats are limited.

The new rule is now wending its way through a state administrative process and likely will take effect next academic year.

Ward said that many illegal immigrant students came here as children and are now doing their best to succeed.

'They may have come here as infants and lived here all their lives,' she said. 'Why would you not want to help these individuals get an education?'

Tony Asion, head of the statewide Latino advocacy group El Pueblo, said after the meeting Monday that Coble was trying to capitalize on anti-immigrant sentiment.

'It's a political thing,' Asion said. 'He wants to be able to say, at some point down the line, 'Vote for me. Look what I did.''

+++

Proposed resolution against illegals in community colleges fails
By Kristin Collins
The News Observer (Raleigh), November 2, 2009
http://www.newsobserver.com/politics/local/story/171778.html

Commissioners split on idea of illegal immigrants at Wake Tech
By Bruce Mildwurf
The WRAL News (Raleigh), November 2, 2009
http://www.wral.com/news/local/politics/story/6332323/

County Jumps Into Illegal Immigrant Debate
By Justin Moss
The NBC 17 News (Wake County, NC), November 2, 2009
http://wake.mync.com/site/wake/news|Sports|Lifestyles/story/43915/county-jumps-into-illegal-immigrant-debate

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12.
Worry grows with increase of migrants
Quiet town is now popular for crossings; residents fear that drug traffickers are next
By Alfredo Corchado
The Dallas Morning News, November 2, 2009
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/world/stories/110209dnintwesttexas.452233a.html

Ojinaga, Mexico -- José Spencer's small motel is bustling with business, and that makes him worried about the future.

His clients are men and women who dream of working in the United States. Until recently, border crossers were rare in this isolated, treacherous desert region near Big Bend National Park and Big Bend Ranch State Park. But not anymore, Spencer says.

'This is a tranquil place. That's why they're coming in bigger numbers now - no guns, no gangs, at least for now.'

But Spencer, whose Casa de Huéspedes motel holds 20 guests, is worried that his growing clientele will lure the men with guns who make it their business to control the illegal cross-border traffic in the region. He knows that popular human-smuggling routes attract the thugs who prey on illegal immigrants and the easy cash they represent.

Illegal crossings are down sharply along most of the 2,000-mile U.S.-Mexico border, based on the number of illegal immigrants caught trying to sneak into the U.S. The percentages are down by double digits in every region except San Diego and West Texas.

The Marfa sector, with 790 Border Patrol agents, shares 510 miles of border with Mexico. In this sector, apprehensions are expected to rise by about 1,000 - about a 20 percent increase - over the 5,391 crossers caught in 2008, the first increase in more than four years, said Bill Brooks, spokesman for the sector.

While the numbers may appear small when compared with those from other sectors, they represent a surprising rise in a region where the rough terrain has proved to be the biggest deterrent to illegal immigration.

The increase in human smuggling has residents bracing for the arrival of drug traffickers, particularly members of the paramilitary group known as the Zetas.

Once the enforcers of the Gulf cartel, the Zetas have expanded into a variety of other criminal activities, including taking over lucrative human-smuggling routes. Already, the Zetas control much of the Texas-Mexico border region, authorities say.

The state of Chihuahua is the only region of northeastern Mexico where the Zetas' presence is minimal, authorities say. But the longtime kingpin of Chihuahua, the Juárez cartel, is engaged in an intense turf war with the Sinaloa cartel over control of distribution routes, and their future is in doubt. This, U.S. law-enforcement officials say, provides an opening for the Zetas.

To those who control the smuggling routes, immigrants are often forced to pay exorbitant amounts of cash - or less, if they agree to smuggle drugs into the U.S.

'Coyotes,' or smugglers, charge about $1,500 to sneak clients from Ojinaga to Dallas. If illegal immigrants are caught, they are returned to Mexico, where they usually try again.

'They're a renewable commodity,' said a U.S. law-enforcement official, speaking on condition of anonymity. 'If the Ojinaga region continues to grow with smuggling activity, you can bet the Zetas will arrive, sooner rather than later. They have an uncanny ability to smell cash.'

Brooks, however, cautioned, 'We haven't seen those indicators yet.' He and other U.S. authorities credit tightened enforcement by Border Patrol agents as the key to the reduced crossings overall into Texas.

Still, enforcement is just part of the story.

Motel guests Jorge and his boyhood pal Juan, both 22 and from Tuxtla Gutiérrez in the southern state of Chiapas, were on their way to the Big Spring area to work in construction. They're both first-time crossers, they said.

Their hired coyote warned them that the steaming Arizona desert could become a premature grave. They were told that crossing through the region directly east of Ciudad Juárez, known as the Valley, was too dangerous because of the turf war between the Juárez and Sinaloa cartels, which has left more than 2,000 people dead this year. And South Texas? That's Zetas territory, they were told. So Ojinaga it was.

'The border is very dangerous,' Jorge said. 'This is the only area where things seem more calm, more safe. So we'll try our luck, and if we don't make it we'll return to Chiapas and work in the coffee fields.'

Juan had no comment. He was resting his head on a twin bed, watching soccer scores, waiting for a soap opera to begin, waiting for darkness, for midnight, to begin their trek north. They planned to walk over the moonlit Chihuahuan desert, which spills into picturesque Far West Texas.

For migrants, the goal is to reach one of the main highways, U.S. Highway 90 or Interstate 10, about 60 and 100 miles away, respectively.

The region is mountainous and laced with canyons and rivers. There are few towns. The sand dunes, studded with cactus and ocotillos, are treacherous to cross. More than 370 people have died attempting to cross the border this year, immigrant advocates say.

'It's a myth that's it's easier to cross,' Brooks said of the Ojinaga area. 'It's not.'

Despite the dangers, would-be migrants are coming in droves.

Alfredo Ronquillo, who heads the government-run shelter known as the DIF, shows off a log book he keeps of hundreds who cross the border through Ojinaga.

'Chiapas, Coahuila, Durango, Oaxaca, Chihuahua,' he says, rattling off names of the home states penned by the migrants. 'There are too many. And their numbers are growing.'

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13.
Arpaio to stump for sheriff's candidate
An ex-lieutenant allies himself with the famous opponent of illegal migration.
By Tony Saavedra
The Orange County Register (Santa Ana, CA), November 3, 2009
http://headlines.ocregister.com/news/arpaio-49098-hunt-county.html

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has hunted down illegal immigrants with such enthusiasm that federal government officials personally ordered him to stop.

He's made inmates sleep in tents, work on chain gangs and wear pink underwear.

And he is the sheriff after whom Orange County sheriff's candidate Bill Hunt is modeling himself.

Arpaio will be in the county Thursday to stump for Hunt, a former lieutenant who is making his second run at the office. Hunt has stepped up his campaign to unseat Sheriff Sandra Hutchens.

He makes no apologies for aligning himself with Arpaio, the subject of a Pulitzer Prize-winning exposé by the East Valley Tribune in Mesa, Ariz. (owned by Freedom Communications, owner of The Orange County Register). Reporters described how Arpaio's illegal-immigration patrols resulted in slower response times in other areas.

The paper also said the department came under federal investigation on suspicion of racial profiling and of improper stops and search and seizures.

Last month the U.S. Department of Homeland Security ended a partnership with Arpaio to arrest illegal immigrants solely on their immigration status. Arpaio said he will keep doing it anyway.

Hunt makes no apologies for calling him a mentor.

'I'm not saying everything Arpaio has done is applicable to Orange County,' Hunt said. 'But what I'm saying is when I'm sheriff we're going to think outside the box and make changes (like Arpaio).'

On illegal immigration, Hunt said: 'Is the guy perfect? No. But what should we do: Stick our heads in the sand and let our system collapse?'

Hunt said he would create a panel with activists from both sides of the issue to discuss strategies to address the illegal immigration problem.

Meanwhile, he is counting on Arpaio's reputation to play well in Orange County. Reservations for an Anaheim fundraiser cost $99 to $1,000, depending on whether guests want their pictures taken with Arpaio.

In any case, Hunt says he's not considering making Orange County inmates wear pink underwear.

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14.
Elite MO unit arrests nearly 500 illegal immigrants
By Theo Keith
The KMOX News (St. Louis), November 3, 2009
http://www.kmox.com/Elite-MO-unit-arrests-nearly-500-illegal-immigrant/5587337

Jefferson City, MO -- An elite group of Missouri troopers has turned over nearly 500 illegal immigrants to the federal government since 2007.

The federal government is allowing 18 Missouri troopers to do their work for them: catch illegal immigrants and turn them over. A Missouri State Highway Patrol spokesperson says troopers have caught 474 people in the country illegally since 2007.

That was the year former Gov. Matt Blunt ordered troopers to do an immigration check on everyone they arrested. The order has since become state law. Last month the highway patrol signed new, so-called 287(g) agreements with the Department of Homeland Security to continue the process.

The troopers receive special training as immigration officers. After making an arrest and finding a person is here illegally, troopers refer the case to the feds. But the Eastern Missouri ACLU says the program is dangerous, saying it takes local law enforcement away from the job it's already supposed to be doing. Program Director John Chasnoff says he also fears troopers will engage in racial profiling.'There are natural stereotypes that are going to come to his mind as he's envisioning how to enforce that law.'

Missouri State Highway Patrol Lieutenant John Hotz says there's a system in place to prevent this: 'We actually fill out information and it is submitted as part of the Highway Patrol's racial profiling statistics.'

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15.
San Jose college district to file brief in Supreme Court case
By David Goll
The San Jose Business Journal (CA), November 2, 2009
http://sanjose.bizjournals.com/sanjose/stories/2009/11/02/daily24.html

San Jose/Evergreen Community College District officials announced Monday they will file an amicus curiae (friend of the court) brief in a case challenging a state law that allows undocumented immigrant students to avoid paying nonresident college fees.

The case challenging the law, Martinez v. Regents of the University of California, will be reviewed by the state Supreme Court. AB 540, a bill approved by state legislators in 2001, exempts non-citizen students who had attended at least three years of high school and earned a diploma from paying nonresident fees and tuition at campuses in the California Community College, California State University and University of California systems.

Monica Gomez, spokeswoman for the San Jose/Evergreen college district, said there's a huge gap between what a resident and nonresident student pays: $26 per unit versus $191 per unit, respectively. She said the district has a large population of undocumented immigrant students, though it's impossible to compile exact numbers because many students in this group are hesitant to draw attention to themselves.

Not all of these students, take advantage of the law, she said.

'We are pleased that the Supreme Court will consider our compelling public policy issues when making its decision,' Randy Okamura, president of the district's board of trustees, said in a statement. 'We are inspired by the hardworking and high achieving student leaders who attend our college campuses because of AB 540. Continuing access to college for thousands of our students who have attended public schools for most of their lives and who want to contribute and succeed is critical to our mission and critical to California’s future.'

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16.
Immigrant kids under cloud
Report says many suffer financially and from continuing ill will
By James Thalman
The Deseret News (Salt Lake City), November 2, 2009
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/print/705341673/Immigrant-kids-under-cloud.html

Immigrant children in Utah are growing in number, but fewer than some people think are here with undocumented parents. And many are suffering financially and have less opportunity because of continuing ill will toward Mexican immigrants, legal or not.

Those are a few of the conclusions of a recent report by Voices for Utah Children, the child policy and advocacy group. Although immigration seems to be on everyone's mind these days, children's issues are usually well in the background in newspapers and other public accounts, said report author Terry Haven.

The report looks at all types of demographic data and the implications on government policy the findings might have. It also reviews the impact of Utah's new immigration reform law and the effect on children of recent roundups of illegal immigrants at area businesses.

'We don't have a clear picture at all for what life is like for these kids, so we decided to find out,' Haven said.

Since 2003, the number of immigrant families has risen to 132,000 from 93,000, or to 16 percent of the total Utah population from 13 percent, a Voices for Utah Children survey of immigrant families shows.

Turns out they are more likely to live in two-parent households than other kids, the survey said. They also are less likely to live in mother-only households, their mother is likely to work outside the home, and they don't tend to be enrolled in formal pre-school programs.

Despite stereotypes that their parents only speak Spanish, more than half — 57 percent — of children in immigrant families speak English exclusively or very well, according to the report.

English fluency has widespread effects on the lives of kids and their potential in the future, Haven said. The more fluent a parent is, the more wages they earn, the report states, noting that a person's level of English fluency has a direct connection to how engaged a family is in its wider community.

Those who aren't fluent are more likely to avoid contact with their wider community in a number of ways, believing that the less they have to do with the outside, the less hassle they will have from government agencies.

Fluency has implications in very real ways, Haven said. 'The concern today is that this anti-immigration sentiment keeps children who are born here at a distance and at a disadvantage simply because their parents are immigrants.'

Any interaction with public and private agencies, such as insurance companies and banks, is pretty much avoided, Haven said. Hence, almost two-thirds of immigrant families do not have employer-provided medical insurance.

And almost 70 percent said they are concerned that immigration officials will raid their workplace at any time, according to the report.

'This all takes a toll on immigrant children,' Haven said, noting that the immigrants surveyed came to the United States for many of the same reasons that refugees come here — economic conditions, fear that their family was not safe, education — and yet the societal response to each group is different.

'We welcome the refugees, help them get settled, help them navigate the government systems and help them adapt to a new culture and geography. We find them work and more,' she said. 'The immigrant, however, is regarded as an interloper taking our jobs, threatening national security and even our way of life.'

The fact is the anti-immigration mind-set is as American as apple pie, said Charles Hirschman, a sociology professor at the University of Washington. Each wave of immigrants to come ashore since the 1750s was said to bode all kinds of ill.

People here already have been quick to label those coming behind them as illiterates, paupers, criminal and crazy, Hirschman said.

There has always been a faction of anti-immigration, he said. The current one is probably more widespread in its fervor, and it is particularly hampering a generation of children's capacity of pursuing a decent future.

For example, many illegal immigrants whose children are citizens don't get them benefits or enroll them in government help agencies to which they are entitled because they have learned that any government attention is likely to turn into something that will abruptly dismantle their families.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Voices for Utah Children report is available online at: http://www.utahchildren.org/documents/APictureofImmigrantChildreninUtahIssueBrief10-20-09.pdf

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17.
Mexican-Born Activist Wants to Represent Immigrants in Congress
The Latin American Herald Tribune (Caracas), November 3, 2009
http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=346618&CategoryId=12394

Chicago -- Mexican-born immigrant rights activist Jorge Mujica plans to challenge incumbent Rep. Dan Lipinski in next year’s Democratic primary for Illinois’ 3rd congressional district.

Mujica, 54, is currently an advisor to the Institute for Mexicans Abroad and is an immigrant candidate who wants to take the struggle for immigration reform 'to the next level.'

A resident of Chicago for 22 years, Mujica gained notoriety as coordinator of the March 10 Movement and organizer of the historic immigrant marches of 2006 in this city.

'At that time, we were fighting against the appalling proposal (of Republican lawmaker James) Sensenbrenner, who wanted to penalize those who helped undocumented people,' he recalled in an interview with Efe.

'We said then that first people had to march and then to vote. Well, the time has come to give battle in the elections with our candidate. We don’t want to give anyone a hard time, but rather be responsible for our own problems and participate in their solution,' he said.

Before coming to Chicago, Mujica worked in California in workplace health and safety programs, and in Mexico he was involved in struggles in different social sectors ranging from students to peasants and indigenous peoples.

Mujica on Monday in Springfield, the state capital, presented 2,000 signatures – 1,200 more than required – in support of his candidacy in the 2010 vote.

His aim is to challenge Dan Lipinski in the primary, a lawmaker who in 2004 succeeded his father as the representative from District 3, where there are 75,000 immigrants who are registered to vote, including Mexicans, Chinese, Arabs and Lithuanians.

Lipinski, 43, inherited the Democratic nomination that year without a contest, but did overcome primary challenges in 2006 and 2008.

Mujica says that Lipinski 'never represented us or responded to the needs of the district.'

Despite being a Democrat, Lipinski 'is one of those who vote against (President Barack) Obama on important issues such as health care reform,' Mujica said, and has been involved in past activities that he considers to be 'anti-immigrant, anti-civil rights, anti-gay rights, anti-lesbian, etc.'

'There are people who say that you have to get the congressman to change his opinion, but I say that what we have to change is Lipinski and that’s it. That’s how we’ll solve the problem,' Mujica said.

Because of his past as a union organizer and community activist, Mujica gained the support of several unions in Chicago and pro-immigrant organizations in Illinois.

He said that his campaign will be a grassroots affair, with a $10 ceiling on contributions and a series of fundraising events, as well as efforts to distribute flyers on the streets and get the support of volunteers to go door to door to convince voters.

Mujica admitted that in District 3, despite the large Hispanic population, there is a lack of pro-immigrant Latino organizations, a situation that will force him to create a structure to urge Latinos to vote.

Another obstacle is the possibility that Chicago’s powerful Democratic mayor, Richard M. Daley, will throw his political weight behind an ally to help Lipinski win the primary, a move that would convert the district contest into a struggle of two non-Hispanics against a Mexican.

Mujica said that he will campaign in favor of legalizing all undocumented people 'because they are people who came to work, pay taxes and that’s not recognized.'

Also, he wants the federal government to 'guarantee the right to work' and he demands universal health care and freedom for workers to form unions.

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18.
Immigrant advocates work to boost vote today
By Victor Manuel Ramos
The Orlando Sentinel, November 3, 2009
http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/news_hispanicaffairs/2009/11/farmworkers-group-including-civic-participation-in-rural-areas.html

Immigrant activists have been organizing their communities to vote in today's elections around the state.

Tirso Moreno, president of the Apopka-based Farmworker Association of Florida, said his group has been knocking on doors and making phone calls to households in Mascotte and Homestead -- two Florida cities where many immigrants live.

Mascotte, where 44 percent of the population was Hispanic the last time the census count took place in 2000, is the only Central Florida municipality with a Hispanic mayor.

Feliciano 'Félix' Ramírez, a pastor and school administrator, has been in office since 2007, when he became the first Latino elected city mayor in the region. He is facing a challenge from former Mayor Jeff Krull.

The farmworkers group does not endorse political candidates, Moreno said. Instead, it is making sure that many of the children of immigrants and naturalized immigrants are engaged in local matters.

'There are many small towns in Florida where the Mexican-American population in particular could have more influence, but they have not been voting as they could,' Moreno said.

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19.
Leaders blame lost business deals on border fence
By Rafael Carranza
The KGBT News (Harlingen, TX), November 2, 2009
http://www.valleycentral.com/news/story.aspx?id=371266

Brownsville, TX -- The controversy over the erection of a border fence continues with business groups saying it has a negative impact, while Border Patrol insists it is vital for security.

Border Patrol said the fence is near completion in the Rio Grande Valley. So far, 45 miles out of the planned 52.12 miles have been completed.

However, city and economic development groups said the wall is breaking some business deals for the area.

'This wall killed a multi million dollar development, residential development and commercial development because the land is now inside the wall which makes it worthless,' said Brownsville Mayor Pat Ahumada.

He added that the fence goes 'against the principles established by NAFTA.'

One Brownsville resident with the Brownsville Economic Development Council is also blaming the face for the loss of another multi-million dollar project.

'It was a project in the retail sector, they were planning to build some stores along the river levee, incorporate the river with that one project,' Salinas said.

The Brownsville business expert said the retail project would have been substantial for the city.

He was unable to provide numbers, but he said it was comparable to a mall.

'It could be several million dollars in sales tax revenue that the City of Brownsville will not be getting, pretty much because of the border wall,' he said.

But the Border Patrol said the fence is extremely important for the region's safety.

Regional Border Patrol Spokesman Juan Lopez said the fence is already bringing benefits.

He said Border Patrol agents are already seeing a 21 percent decrease in apprehensions so far, compared to this same time last year.

Meanwhile, Salinas said the business in the region will adapt to the fence.

'We're just going to have to learn to live with this wall that we have here on the border,' he said.

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20.
The new faces of day labor
U.S. citizens are joining immigrants in store parking lots
By Timothy Pratt
The Las Vegas Sun, November 2, 2009
http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/nov/02/new-faces-day-labor/

It sounds like a George Lopez joke.

'Times are so bad that I saw an Anglo day laborer standing outside Home Depot the other day.'

Except it’s true.

In the latest sign of the Las Vegas Valley’s economic free fall, U.S. citizens are starting to show up in the early mornings outside home improvement stores and plant nurseries across the Las Vegas Valley, jostling with illegal immigrants for a shot at a few hours of work.

Experts say the slow-starting but seemingly inexorable trend is occurring nationwide.

'It’s the equivalent of selling apples in the Great Depression,' said Harley Shaiken, chairman of the Center for Latin American studies at the University of California, Berkeley.

But it is not only a sign of the times, they add. If the numbers of citizens among the day laborers in cities across the country continue to grow, it’s likely to increase the ire of followers of TV host Lou Dobbs and others who will see illegal immigrants as stealing food off the tables of the nation’s native-born or naturalized poor.

Or, it may flip certain canards upside down in the immigration debate, easing tensions in some communities.

In the Las Vegas Valley, where the most recent unemployment rate was 13.9 percent, one face of this phenomenon is Ken Buchanan. The 50-year-old describes himself as a 'food and beverage' guy, most recently working for four years at Renata’s Sunset Lanes casino and, before that, 30 years in a string of restaurants, hotels and casinos here and in his birthplace, Chicago.

But in 2006 Renata’s closed for remodeling. When the casino reopened as Wildfire, the management did not rehire Buchanan, he said.

In the months that followed, Buchanan discovered the difficulty of seeking work in his fifth decade, eventually winding up at Green Valley Car Wash, where he stayed for about two years, he said.

The banks foreclosed on the house he was renting. In the attempt to grab his things two steps ahead of the constable, he wound up missing work. He lost his job. He became homeless.

A Hispanic man Buchanan met in Renata’s sports book told him he had picked up work standing outside the Home Depot on Pecos Road at Patrick Lane. One July day, Buchanan gave it a try. At first, he got nothing but sunburn. But then he started to get work. Now he’s at the Home Depot six days most weeks.

Pablo Alvarado, executive director of the Los Angeles-based National Day Laborer Organizing Network, said he has been seeing the same thing elsewhere. 'It’s happening, though still not in massive numbers,' Alvarado said. In the past six months or so, he has heard of 'americanos' on the street corners and parking lots of Silver Spring, Md., Long Island, N.Y., and Southern California locations.

'It’s just beginning,' he said. 'But I think it’s only going to increase.'

A recent morning’s swing through the valley produced reports of the same phenomenon. At Star Nursery on Cheyenne Road west of Tenaya Way, Nicolas stood shivering under a hooded sweatshirt, hoping a car or pickup would stop. The Mexican immigrant said he had seen a couple of 'white guys' showing up recently, though not on the blustery cold days last week.

At Home Depot on Decatur Boulevard north of Tropicana Avenue, Jose said the same thing, adding that 'it’s never more than three or four, but they’re coming out.'

Farther south, in front of Moon Valley Nursery on Eastern Avenue, Israel said a couple of 'americanos' — white and black, he added — have come out for work in recent months. 'But they tend to stay only a few days.'

As a salesman at Moon Valley, Mike Fugitt’s job includes making sure the laborers don’t come into the nursery’s parking lot, because their presence draws complaints from some customers. In the past three months or so, he said, more of those laborers have been telling him, 'But I’m an American.' That includes some Hispanics, he added. 'But I treat them all the same; they can’t be trespassing,' he said.

Workers at all the sites said the presence of the americanos hasn’t made work scarcer or produced any conflict. Some suggested that people hiring day laborers prefer Hispanics anyway, because of their reputation as hard workers.

Shaiken said shaking up the mix at day labor sites may eventually produce conflict in the greater society. 'It essentially shreds the argument that Americans don’t want certain jobs,' he said.

In the current economy, he added, 'we’re almost sure to see die-hard opponents of illegal immigrants seize on the fact that we have legal workers in day labor markets,' heating an already-inflamed debate.

In the longer term, it may also lead to a more rigorous analysis of future labor markets, including revised estimates of how many immigrants would be needed under a guest worker program, as proposed in recent congressional bills.

At the same time, Shaiken said, the issue won’t become central to the debate before Congress over what is known as comprehensive reform, including a pathway for legalizing millions of workers. 'The point is, do we really want a labor market with day labor work as a career path? It’s more a commentary on the economy right now,' he said.

Although Alvarado allowed that the change in day labor sites was an undeniable sign of the withering economy, he also sees a 'beautiful irony' in U.S. citizens seeking work as day laborers.

That’s because his organization has defended the free-speech rights of day laborers in at least 10 court cases over more than a decade. Up to now, courts have ruled in favor of the laborers.

'We always knew (these cases) would be useful not only for immigrants, but also for U.S. citizens,' Alvarado said. 'We knew there would be a time when the economy would reach this point, and they also would be looking for work this way.'

Buchanan likes to wear a Cubs or White Sox cap as a sign of his Chicago heritage when he stands with one or two Hispanic laborers about 20 yards south of a larger crowd. He said he has gone through an education of sorts in the past four months. He has always worked around Hispanics in restaurants, hotels and casinos, but now he understands the issue of immigration from up close.

His sojourn got off to a rocky start. On one of his first days on the street outside Home Depot, another laborer told him he should move along because too many people were at the spot.

'I told him, ‘I’m an American citizen and you’re trying to push me off American soil?’?' The man walked away, and Buchanan says he hasn’t had another problem with his competitors since.

Instead, Buchanan has found himself defending the rights of his fellow laborers on more than one occasion. One day, a man tried to hire a bunch of them for $5 an hour. Again, Buchanan pulled out the 'citizen card.' But this time, he was telling the other person that he, a U.S. citizen, knew about minimum wage laws, and was going to make sure those laws were followed. 'I said, ‘You want me to write down your license plate number?’?' Buchanan recalled. The guy drove away.

Now, he said, 'I get along with everybody here.'

He stands in a smaller group because he thinks that helps to get work. He reads the daily tea leaves of the trade, like the end of the month being a good time for moving jobs, because many people are moving in or out. His best week so far: $140. His longest stint without work: the first two weeks, 'until I learned to be more aggressive.'

Antonio Bernabe, day labor organizer for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, said the appearance of more and more U.S. citizens seeking day labor work on corners and in parking lots poses new challenges for organizations such as his. In recent months, he said, he has found himself explaining to a whole new group the legal rights of workers, as well as approaching local authorities to discuss the entry of new people into what he called 'the world of day labor.' That group includes blacks and Asians, he said.

Another difference is that now he’s giving those explanations to laborers in English.

Bernabe said organizers came across one case where a local sheriff had been sending officers to answer complaints about day laborers and then found one day that the sheriff’s neighbor, a citizen, was among them. Police in that area have been less likely to harass laborers since then, he said. These events will occur more, changing people’s attitudes in the process, he said.

'For a long time, people have looked at day laborers and said, ‘The problem is the immigrants.’ Now the economy is changing. Now people may see it’s a problem of the labor market, of the rights of workers,' Bernabe said.

Buchanan, meanwhile, looks forward to a future that includes a steady job and an apartment. 'I’m trying to dig my way out of this,' he said. When he does, however, he sees himself as a changed man.

'Before, I was part of the majority. Now I’m part of the minority ... I’m not going to forget this. I’m not going to forget any of this.'

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21.
Raided SC poultry plant mends hiring, avoids trial
By Meg Kinnard
The Associated Press, November 3, 2009
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ggS3ZUYR-mZSes6PJKLftCJ389MgD9BO5N300

Columbia, SC (AP) -- A South Carolina poultry plant raided by immigration agents last year has agreed to change its hiring practices under supervision to avoid federal charges of knowingly employing illegal immigrants, federal prosecutors said Tuesday.

Under the agreement filed in federal court in South Carolina, Columbia Farms, Inc., will also pay the government $1.5 million to settle pending claims of immigration violations against the company. Two accused management employees will be allowed to enter a supervised program aimed at clearing them of charges.

Federal agents rounded up hundreds of suspected illegal immigrants during a massive raid on the Greenville plant in October 2008. Most of the workers were deported, while several dozen others are serving prison time for using illegal documents and false Social Security numbers or for re-entering the country illegally.

U.S. Attorney Walt Wilkins said the deal, reached as attorneys prepared to take the case to trial next month, showed that the company is serious about reforming its behavior.

'Columbia Farms and its affiliates have clearly demonstrated their acceptance of responsibility by making corporate decisions to overhaul their hiring practices,' Wilkins said. 'I've been impressed with the steps they have taken so far.'

House of Raeford, Columbia Farms' North Carolina-based parent company, processes chickens and turkeys in eight plants in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Louisiana and Michigan.

An attorney for the company deferred comment to a House of Raeford spokesman, who said the company would have a statement later Tuesday.

Under the agreement, Columbia Farms has two years to get in line with federal hiring practices.

It must use E-Verify — an Internet-based system that employers use to check on the immigration status of new hires — and regularly train employees on hiring practices. The company must also hire a compliance officer to monitor the company, as well as an external auditor to conduct annual reviews of employment forms.

If the company doesn't comply, prosecutors could still pursue their case.

Jury selection had been set to begin for a trial against Columbia Farms on charges the company and two of its managers knowingly hired illegal immigrants. Prosecutors said plant manager Barry Cronic began hiring illegal immigrants in 2000 and accused personnel manager Elaine Crump of lying on employment forms.

Both had pleaded not guilty. Now, attorneys for both managers say their clients will likely return to work at the plant and are gratified with the deal.

'We are pleased with the results, and Mr. Cronic is glad to be able to put this behind him and move on with his life,' Bart Daniel, Cronic's attorney, said Tuesday.

+++

Crux of immigration case: Did bosses know?
Federal trial of Columbia Farms poultry plant managers is scheduled to start today in S.C.
By Ames Alexander and Franco Ordoñez
The Charlotte Observer (NC), November 3, 2009
http://www.charlotteobserver.com/local/story/1034311.html

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22.
A dream achieved, a dream out of reach
By Andrea Woodhouse
The Daily Breeze (Torrance, CA), November 2, 2009
http://www.dailybreeze.com/news/ci_13684854

When her 8-year-old son declared that one day he would attend Harvard, Sylvia replied simply that his was an impossible dream.

But a precocious Alan, the child of Mexican immigrants eking by in an urban South Bay city, leveled with his mother: It was Harvard or a job at McDonald's, Sylvia recalled.

Nearly 15 years later, Alan has achieved the goal that his mother once believed unattainable, earning this past June a degree from the prestigious university.

And now McDonald's is unattainable. Though he has a Harvard diploma with ornate script printed across thick parchment, the degree is not among the papers he needs most now.

Smuggled over the border as a toddler nestled in the arms of an uncle one dark night nearly 20 years ago, Alan is an illegal immigrant. And now, no company can legally hire the 22-year-old, Ivy League degree or not.

'I don't feel like a success, not yet,' said Alan, slight in build, his baby face toughened by a black goatee. 'I'm still at home four out of five days a week, twiddling my thumbs.'

Alan, who spoke with the Daily Breeze on the condition that his last name not be published, is one of thousands of undocumented students to enroll nationwide in college - thanks to generous private academic institutions, and the guarantee in some states of resident tuition fees at public universities - only to graduate with no domestic job prospects.

'These are people who have managed through great feats to graduate but are still in limbo because they can't do anything with their college degree,' said William Perez, a scholar who researched young people like Alan for his book, 'We ARE Americans: Undocumented Students Pursuing the American Dream.'

Schools don't keep count

Exact statistics regarding the number of undocumented students enrolled at local colleges and universities are hard to come by, especially from private universities.

Neither Loyola Marymount University nor Pepperdine University inquire about applicants' immigration status, and USC officials would not comment for this story.

Accounting for undocumented students at public colleges is only slightly less difficult.

Though spokesman Ricardo Vazquez said the University of California system does not inquire about immigration status, statistics indicate the system had 271 to 433 undocumented students enrolled in the 2006-07 school year, the most recent figures available.

The California State University system asks about applicants' country of citizenship, but it does not track their immigration status, said spokeswoman Clara Potes-Fellow.

That policy, she said, deliberately follows the essence of Assembly Bill 540, California legislation passed in 2001 that allows certain students, including those who are undocumented, to pay the same tuition fees at public colleges and universities as any other California resident, so long as they meet certain requirements.

'Initially, when AB 540 was adopted, the intent of the Legislature of the time was to make it confidential, that the student data is safeguarded,' Potes-Fellow said. 'In order to comply with the spirit of the law, the CSU doesn't track that data.'

California State University, Dominguez Hills, spokeswoman Amy Bentley-Smith said 159 such students attend classes at the Carson campus, though she estimated that fewer than 100 are likely undocumented given the legislation assists students with a variety of residency complications.

Still, the fee waiver does not provide undocumented students access to state or financial aid - a hurdle that led Alan to Harvard in the first place.

He excelled at his South Bay high school, earning superior grades in advanced placement classes. Modest and soft-spoken, Alan attributed his academic achievements to a good memory.

'I've been lucky,' he said. 'Things just kind of clicked.'

Alan also had support from a teacher who helped him apply for early acceptance to the Massachusetts university, which granted him a hefty scholarship.

Unlike public schools, private institutions can provide financial aid to whomever they choose - a practice that has garnered a range of criticism.

Opponents on one side say it's unfair to provide students with a world-class education but no chance of employment after graduation. Others argue that any funding for illegal immigrants takes away money for students living in the United States legally.

'It's a crime against American youth,' said Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, a Republican whose 46th Congressional District includes the Palos Verdes Peninsula.

'For every person who is in this country illegally and consumed education dollars and health-care dollars, they are preventing those dollars from going to our own young people,' he said. 'We should not feel guilty to say those limited resources should be kept for people who are here legally.'

Teen remained modest

Alan told only a few people about his acceptance, but the word quickly spread around the neighborhood. In his inland South Bay city, all shades of gray from cement, chain-link fences and cars crowded along his narrow street, Alan was a shining star with a new nickname: Harvard.

These days, some of his neighborhood friends are having their second baby, another is fighting a child custody battle, a few are in jail, and many are in gangs.

'The only reason I'm not in a gang is because I'm a coward and I'm skinny,' Alan joked.

His sometimes abusive father is long gone, and mother Sylvia works as a nanny for two Manhattan Beach families - but Alan is reluctant to exploit any underprivileged upbringing.

'I don't have a story that could move people to tears,' he continued. 'My mother made sure we had things. I never had the freshest Nikes, but it's not like I needed much.'

After enjoying a last Southern California meal of In-N-Out Burger, Alan headed east in 2005 - marking just the second time in his life he'd left the state.

'I was happy to see something new,' he said. 'The East Coast was exciting.'

At a campus orientation, Alan got a bit of attention when someone recognized his name from his application essay. In the paper, he'd detailed a time when a drive-by shooting interrupted a pick-up neighborhood soccer game with friends.

Some students knew he had a different background, but Alan still kept his immigration status largely a secret from peers.

He wasn't embarrassed or afraid, but mostly he didn't want sympathy, which often seemed patronizing or obligatory.

'I didn't feel comfortable telling people,' he explained. 'You don't have to say you're sorry. It just gets old after awhile.'

At CSUDH, Alan could have found understanding and camaraderie at Esp ritu de Nuestro Futuro.

Though open to anyone, the club, whose name roughly translates to the Spirit of Our Future, caters to AB 540 students, and probably half of its 20 members are undocumented, adviser Brian Cruz said.

'We tell them it's family here,' he said. 'We want them to feel comfortable with the organization itself. We're not all undocumented but most of us come from the same background.'

Founded in 2002 as the first club of its kind in public California universities, Esp ritu also provides more tangible support for members - conducting fundraisers to help students make up tuition gaps left without access to financial aid, Cruz said.

While at Harvard, Alan worked odd jobs under the table to earn money, but he didn't fully realize how his immigration status would affect his future until his junior or senior years in school, he said.

When friends asked why Alan missed job fairs, didn't apply for internships or wasn't planning to study abroad, he played the perfect flake - saying he slept through his alarm, missed deadlines or didn't want to leave Cambridge.

Had he considered earlier the implications of his immigration status, Alan would have started making contacts earlier, and possibly chosen a major a bit more concrete than psychology, he said.

But when he started school four years ago, Alan figured that federal legislation known as the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act - which would have provided a path to citizenship for certain students and military personnel - would have passed by the time he graduated.

The legislation stalled in Congress in 2007, and though a new version was introduced this past March, with Reps. Jane Harman and Maxine Waters among its co-sponsors, it's unlikely the legislation will accelerate for a while now that the national health care debate intensifies.

'That's what I tell (students) right now,' Cruz said. 'There's still hope, but right now, with the health care issue and Obama being attacked, it's going to take time before he even goes to this.'

The future's a question

Now, months after graduation, Alan is back at his childhood South Bay home, the back three-bedroom unit of a duplex protected by a sturdy motorized gate and an aggressive dog.

But inside, the home is immaculate and serene. Golden oldies pipe from speakers anchored to the ceiling. Clear plastic slip-covers protect matching couches and armchairs.

Photographs of Alan grinning in his graduation cap and gown, his sister wearing a pristine white dress on her quincea era, and his brothers' confirmations cover the tops of a large wooden entertainment center and coordinating coffee table.

Alan's diploma is tucked away for safekeeping, rather than framed and hanging prominently on the wall.

'Frames cost money,' Alan said with a laugh.

Alan returned home to sort out his future, but he's hit a deadin the United States like many others.

'We have this ideal in American society that if you work hard enough, you will reap the rewards of that effort,' said Perez, the scholar. 'They're inundated with that from elementary school but unfortunately some students have said, 'I've grown up here hearing that, but now I realize that's just true for some. The American Dream is only for some.''

Many students in Alan's situation up prolonging their education, often pursuing multiple graduate degrees in anticipation of the Dream Act passing.

Many undocumented CSUDH graduates go on to attend law school, Cruz said. In fact, Esp ritu works to identify scholarships available to all students, in hopes of preparing undocumented students for graduate studies rather than a hopeless job search, he said.

A college environment can also be a haven for illegal immigrants for practical reasons, like providing access to health care and university-issued identification, Alan said.

'School is the best place for people in my situation,' Alan said. 'You can hide in the folds in college.'

Alan might have been one of those students had he gotten to work earlier on the process, he said. At this point, he'd wait months for the fall semester to start, and he needs money now.

Though Alan is plainly aware of the irony of his situation, he doesn't dwell on it. Thinking too much about it is tiresome and unproductive, he said.

Instead, he's expanded his job search internationally, and is in the final stages of pursuing a job in Singapore.

Alan knows full well that if he leaves the country to attain the American Dream, he won't be able to return home anytime soon - if ever.

'To some extent, I still feel conflicted,' he said. 'But the feeling of not doing anything here overpowers that.'

Sylvia, his mother, is heartbroken.

'I'm happy because it was his dream to have a Harvard diploma, but I'm sad because now what?' Sylvia said. 'He has no money, no papers so he can go to work.'

Formal job hunting has been a new experience for Alan, who, given a short, sporadic and unofficial work history, had never participated in a professional employment interview.

And when prospective employers have asked about his hopes, dreams and wants for the future, Alan has found himself stumped.

'I never had to worry about what I want,' Alan said. 'It was about what I could get.'

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23.
'Westernized' Daughter Dies After Being Run Over by Father
Charges Against Faleh Hassan Almaleki Expected to Be Upgraded Today
By Sarah Netter
The ABC News, November 3, 2009
http://abcnews.go.com/WN/US/westernized-muslim-daughter-dies-run-father/Story?id=8983198&page=1

An Arizona woman allegedly run over by her Muslim father for becoming 'too Westernized' has died.

Police in Peoria, Ariz., expect to upgrade the charges against the woman's father, Faleh Hassan Almaleki, currently being held on two counts of aggravated assault after a 10-day manhunt ended Friday in London.

Noor Faleh Almaleki, 20, clung to life for nearly two weeks after being run down by her father's car. Her boyfriend's mother, 43-year-old Amal Edan Khalaf, was also injured in the attack and remains hospitalized with serious, but non-life threatening injuries.

'It occurred because her not following traditional family values. We've been told that by everybody,' Peoria Police spokesman Mike Tellef told ABCNews.com last month. 'He felt she was becoming too westernized and he didn't like that.'

Faleh Hassan Almaleki, 48, was arrested by U.S. Marshals in Atlanta after he arrived at the airport there, having been sent back to the country from London.

Tellef said that Faleh Hassan Almaleki fled to Mexico after the incident and abandoned the Jeep Cherokee in Nogales, where police there eventually found and seized it, according to Peoria police.

Almaleki made his way to Mexico City, where he boarded a plane to London, but U.K. authorities refused to allow him into the country, and after U.S. officials were contacted, he was put on a plane back to the United States, the Peoria police said.

Honor Killings and Islam

Noor Almaleki had backed out of an arranged marriage about a year ago, police learned, and had been living with Khalaf and her son in a nearby town.

Tellef said the young woman dressed in American clothing and was wearing typical Western attire when she was struck.

The family were all American citizens, though Tellef said he believes the parents were born in Iraq.

He said it was unclear if Faleh Almaleki intended to kill his daughter, but 'it was definitely intentional that he ran them down.'

While Tellef had heard of so-called 'honor killings' in other parts of the United States, this was the first such crime in Peoria.

The notion of an honor killing -- Muslim men murdering female relatives for dishonoring the family by violating Islamic tenets -- made the news over the summer when 17-year-old Rifqa Bary ran away from her parents in Ohio and turned up in the Florida home of Christian pastors Blake and Beverly Lorenz. Rafqa Barry claimed that her Muslim father had threatened to kill her for converting to Christianity.

Rifqa made tearful television appearance, crying on the Lorenzes shoulders, describing how she had to sneak around to attend church.

'They have to kill me because I'm a Christian. It's an honor [killing]. If they love me more than God, then they have to kill me,' she told ABC's Orlando affiliate WFTV last month.

Blake Lorenz pointed to other honor killings, including the January 2008 murders of two Texas sisters who were believed to have been murdered by their Muslim father in a religion-fueled rage.

But Rifqa's father, Mohamed Bary, denied the accusation and said that while he preferred his daughter be a Muslim, she was free to practice whatever religion she chose.

'I don't believe my daughter would say this,' Bary told 'Good Morning America.' 'She's completely being coached -- I mean trained, influenced by these people. It's so sad.'

A Florida judge this month said he planned to send Rifqa back to Ohio after determining there was no evidence that her life was in danger.

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24.
Pakistani man pleads guilty to filing false immigration applications
The WMBF News, November 2, 2009

Florence, SC -- A Pakistani man residing in Florence has pleaded guilty to filing false statements to gain entry and citizenship into the U.S., according to U.S. Attorney W. Walter Wilkins.

An investigation revealed in June 2008, an individual alerted local authorities after finding two Pakistani passports bearing the same picture and two different names.

Authorities say Sohail Feroz Ali Dossani, also known as Sohail Muhammad Jamal, was a Pakistani citizen when he entered the U.S. under the assumed name of 'Sohail Jamal.' Upon obtaining his permanent residency in the states, he used a false name when filing out immigration applications to Citizenship and Immigration Services.
. . .
http://www.wmbfnews.com/Global/story.asp?S=11429099

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25.
Border Patrol nabs 20 more suspected illegals
The SDNN News (San Diego), November 3, 2009

Border Patrol agents arrested 20 suspected illegal immigrants today after the boat they were on came ashore in Beacon’s Beach in Leucadia, a sheriff’s lieutenant said.
. . .
http://www.sdnn.com/sandiego/2009-11-03/local-county-news/border-patrol-nabs-20-more-suspected-illegals

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Overseas News

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[For CISNEWS subscribers --

1. Canada: Gov't under pressure to end immigrant loan program
2. Canada: Successful asylum bids plunge under conservatives
3. Canada: Report blasts Kenyan visa branch
4. Canada: Explosive residue found on Sri Lankan ship
5. E.U.: Libyan talks fail to yield progress on enforcement
6. U.K.: Home Secretary admits Labour mishandled immigration (story, 2 links)
7. U.K.: New regulations to relax rules for Sudanese refugees
8. U.K.: Gov't warned checks against 'bogus' students are ineffective
9. U.K.: Brits pay child support for over 50,000 kids abroad
10. U.K.: 1,300 children detained during five year period
11. U.K.: Study claims refugees more qualified than Welsh natives
12. Denmark: U.S. offers help against foreign gangs
13. Germany: Critics worry child-care subsidy a threat to integration
14. Greece: Gov't to shutter controversial detention center
15. Malta: Gov't seeks to host E.U. asylum agency (story, link)
16. Malta: Italy accused of attempting to dump illegals on island
17. Israel: American immigrant arrested over 'terror' campaign (link)
18. Bangladesh: Remittance flows exceed expected levels
19. S. Korea: Law would require fingerprinting of foreign visitors (story, 2 links)
20. Australia: Gov't to expand Christmas Island detention center
21. Australia: At least three dead after boat capsizes

Subscribe to CIS e-mail services here: http://cis.org/immigrationnews.html

-- Mark Krikorian]


1.
Ottawa urged to scrap refugee loan program
The CBC News (Canada), November 3, 2009
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/nova-scotia/story/2009/11/03/ns-refugee-transportation.html

An immigrant support group in Halifax is pressing Ottawa to end a loan program that left a family from Colombia with a $4,600 bill.

Mario Lopez and his family must reimburse the federal government for airfare and medical exams. It's a big bill for the former security guard, who fled Colombia with his family in July 2008 for the safety of Nova Scotia.

Claudette Legault, with the Metropolitan Immigrant Settlement Association in Halifax, considers it a burden.

'The debt for each family, it's formidable,' she told CBC News. 'The total income for the country is negligible.'

Lopez and his family lived in Palmira, a city southwest of Bogota along a drug route. He said his job made him a target for drug dealers and someone tried to kill him in 2005.

'I was threatened quite a bit, there was an attempt on my life. Therefore, I had to ask for political asylum so I can come to Canada and live here,' he said through an interpreter.

Lopez is grateful that he, his wife and their two children are now safe in Dartmouth. He once worked as a welder, but with little English, he's looking for janitorial work. The family is getting by with income support.

With his fixed income, Lopez said he can't afford to reimburse the federal government $4,600 for four plane tickets, medical exams and a settlement payment.

'You feel the pressure,' he said. 'What I'd like to happen is to reduce everything until I can pay everything off. That way I get ahead for my family.'

The federal government has been charging refugees transportation costs since the 1950s.

Refugees like Lopez are required to start repaying the loan three months after they arrive. They have three years to repay it, or the federal government starts charging them almost four per cent interest, compounded daily.

Canada is one of the few countries to charge refugees for their airfare, and the only one to tack on interest, said Legault, with MISA.

Legault said it doesn't make sense that the government gives sponsored refugees one year's assistance for food and housing, and then charges them for the cost of the flight that brought them to Canada.

That only slows their integration and adds stress, and increases the chances they will have to go on social assistance after their year-long refugee assistance dries up, she said.

John Stone, spokesman for Citizenship and Immigration Canada, said the country's program is unique.

'You get things like health care, for example, provided through our overall safety net. That might be something they'd have to pay for in another country,' he said.

More than 90 per cent of refugees manage to pay back the loan, Stone added, and the federal government is lenient when someone says they're having trouble coming up with the money.

Because of his circumstances, Lopez's monthly payment has been reduced to $50.

But Legault wants the loan policy scrapped. She believes the fact that the default rate is low speaks more to the refugees' integrity, not their ability to pay.

Immigrant advocates across the country have been fighting this federal policy.

In B.C., the city of Surrey passed a motion calling on the federal government to end transportation loans. A similar motion was presented at the Union of B.C. Municipalities conference this fall.

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2.
Asylum seekers' success rate plunges under Tory government
By Bill Curry
The Globe and Mail (Canada), November 2, 2009
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/asylum-seekers-success-rate-plunges-under-tory-government/article1348953/

Ottawa -- From Tuesday's Globe and Mail Published on Monday, Nov. 02, 2009 9:24PM EST Last updated on Tuesday, Nov. 03, 2009 4:16AM EST

The number of refugees gaining asylum in Canada has dropped dramatically under the Conservatives as new figures reveal the impact of the government's efforts to transform this country's immigration system.

New statistics released by the government show the number of successful claims by refugees living in Canada fell to less than half of what it was when the Conservatives came to office.

The final immigration numbers for 2008 – as well as future projections – come as Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney is promising to refocus Canada's refugee system on what the government calls 'real victims' rather than migrants seeking to abuse the process.

During the summer, the government imposed visa restrictions on Czechs and Mexicans as part of a broader attempt to block bogus refugee claims filed from within Canada. A spokesman for Mr. Kenney noted Monday that Mexico was the top source of asylum claims in 2008, yet the Immigration and Refugee Board rejected those claims at a rate of 90 per cent.

Spokesman Alykhan Velshi said the department expects that in 2010, Canada will resettle 3,900 refugees from Iraq, 2,900 Karen refugees from Burma and 2,500 Bhutanese refugees.

Critics say the numbers show a lack of compassion and a potential disregard of the government's obligations under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms to provide people with a fair hearing before deciding whether to deport them. They say lower targets will mean thousands of refugee claimants living in Canada will face further delays in hearings, and more will be deported to a very uncertain future.

'If we deport the wrong person because we denied their claims, some of them suffer torture, beatings, occasional death … drastic consequences,' NDP MP Olivia Chow said. She pointed to a report last month that a 24-year-old woman who was murdered in Mexico had made two failed refugee claims in Canada.

Citizenship and Immigration's annual report, released on Friday afternoon, revealed that the number of refugees approved after applying in Canada dropped by 56 per cent from 2005 to 2008.

The report also shows the projected number of refugees who will be accepted from within Canada – known as 'inland protected persons' – will remain near the lower 2008 levels both this year and next.

The lower numbers reflect the fallout of a refugee determination system that slowed to a crawl in the first two years after the Conservative defeat of the Paul Martin Liberal government in 2006.

The Conservatives vowed to overhaul the Immigration and Refugee Board – the panel that rules on refugee claims – saying it had become a haven for Liberal political appointees.

But in the move to a new system, many board positions were vacant for months, swelling the case backlog and limiting the number of hearings. There is now an 18-month delay between a refugee claim in Canada and an IRB hearing.

According to the minister's spokesman, the time it took to change the IRB appointments process is the main reason for the drop in the 2008 numbers. But now that almost all of the board positions have been filled, he said, the numbers will climb again in the short term.

However, Mr. Velshi said the report's projections do not take into account the minister's plans for a new system that will weed out 'bogus' claims made in Canada more quickly while still respecting the Charter.

'Clearly our system is being abused,' Mr. Velshi said. '[The minister] plans to reform our asylum system to give a faster decision to real asylum claimants.'

Janet Dench, the executive director of the Montreal-based Canadian Council for Refugees, said the report's numbers show a clear change in Canada's approach to refugees.

'Canada is becoming dramatically less welcoming toward refugees,' said Ms. Dench, who takes issue with the government's assertions that it is showing an openness to refugee applications from abroad. 'It's a very bleak, bleak picture for refugees and for Canadians that care about refugees.'

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3.
Canadian visa office in Nairobi worst in terms of wait times: report
By Jessica Murphy
The Canadian Press, November 2, 2009
http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5hv8C_BCKTsD_QvoM6jq9Fd0kTh1A

Montreal (CP) -- When Kabanga Gaspard applied for a visa for his Congolese wife last January, he thought she would be living with him within a year.

At the time, the processing time for family class applications through Canada's visa office in Nairobi ranged from six to 11 months. But when Gaspard, an accountant with the provincial government in Yellowknife, checked the wait times again in March, delays had spiked from 11 to 23 months.

'My wife will wait another one year, two years before coming home,' he told The Canadian Press.

According to a report released by the Canadian Council for Refugees on Monday, Gaspard's experience is not unique.

The office in the Kenyan capital, which serves some of the most vulnerable refugee populations in the world, is severely bogged down by extended processing delays.

Refugee and immigration claims at the service centre creep through the system at a snail's pace. One in five cases takes 35 months the report says.

Some family reunification cases linger for five years, waiting for hearings, appeals and final decisions - often bouncing back-and-forth between countries.

It's part of a system even Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney has deemed 'broken.'

But the report suggests the Nairobi office, which serves 18 countries in eastern and central Africa - including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Rwanda and Somalia - has some of the slowest processing times of all Canadian visa offices.

According to the report, half the cases for the dependants of refugees take more than 23 months to process in Nairobi compared with 14 months globally. Privately sponsored refugees can wait more than 42 months compared with 19 months globally.

Pending cases are also disproportionately represented in the Kenya-based office.

They account for 24 per cent of unsettled cases involving dependants of refugees worldwide and 30 per cent of pending privately sponsored refugee cases.

And wait times are only getting longer.

Since 2006, processing times at the Nairobi office for family class applications for spouses and partners increased 92 per cent -from 13 months to 25 months - and 73 per cent for dependant children-from 19 months to 33.

Gaspard doesn't understand why services for some of the world's poorest countries are centralized in Nairobi.

'I think they're neglecting the region,' he said.

But Kenney's spokesman, Alykhan Velshi, says the Nairobi office is fully staffed and doing its best in a challenging territory.

'The processing times aren't because of a lack of manpower but because of the sheer difficulty of operating in the region,' he wrote in an email to The Canadian Press.

He notes poor communications systems and non-existent or crumbling infrastructure often hamper the application process. Conducting interviews in remote rural regions and the dangers of travelling in some of the countries also slow the work.

The bureau also has a higher than average rate of no-shows for interviews.

'In some cases, in order to get to a particular country you have to go through three airports,' he wrote.

'In some cases you cannot use the mail or courier services, because they don't exist. In many countries it's unlawful to use the mail to transfer passports over international borders.'

Immigration Canada sent extra staff to the region between 2006 and 2008, but civil unrest in Kenya created a backlog and resulted in the cancellation of two temporary positions for workers slated to conduct refugee interviews.

Six more staff were sent to Nairobi in 2008 to help chip away at the accumulated cases.

Velshi also says the work is hobbled by elevated incidences of immigration fraud.

'It is extremely time-consuming to process refugee applications in that part of the world and to ensure we're not allowing our refugee system to be abused by human smugglers,' he said.

But Liberal MP Jim Karygiannis, who's been studying wait times in Canadian visa offices in Africa and the Caribbean, says problems aren't limited to the Nairobi office.

'What's changed in Jamaica, what's changed in Accra, what's changed in Kingston?' he said.

Government statistics suggest processing times for family reunification claims in Africa and the Caribbean are longer than in other regions and have increased almost across the board.

'The minister has to decide where his staff goes,' he said. 'The numbers tell the story.'

And while he admits there are difficulties related to operating in those regions, he says they don't fully explain the lengthening processing times.

'Has fraud gone up since 2006?' he said. 'Or have we just discovered it?'

Still, Canada is seeking to streamline the refugee system.

The Conservative government is preparing legislation to help get rid of the massive backlog of 61,000 refugee claims and speed processing times.

Velshi noted the Tories have also increased targets for refugee resettlement, particularly among privately sponsored refugees and in the Middle East.

Meanwhile, Gaspard, who came to Canada in 1997 from the Congo, makes a point of speaking to his wife on the phone every day. His relationship is strong enough to weather the distance, he says, but others may not be so lucky.

'Lots of people will see their marriage harmed because of these wait times,' he said.

'What's happening in Nairobi has serious consequences.'

EDITOR'S NOTE: The CCR report is available online at: http://ccrweb.ca/en/bulletin/09/11/02

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4.
Trace explosives found on Tamils' ship, clothing, affidavits say
By Josh Wingrove
The Globe and Mail (Canada), November 2, 2009
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/trace-explosives-found-on-tamils-ship-clothing-affidavits-allege/article1349033/

Globe and Mail Update Published on Monday, Nov. 02, 2009 11:57PM EST Last updated on Tuesday, Nov. 03, 2009 12:34AM EST

Canadian officials allege trace amounts of explosives were found in a cargo ship that carried 76 Tamil migrants to Canada's West Coast last month, defence attorneys for migrants say.

In affidavits filed last week, the Canadian Border Services Agency makes the allegations of the find in the Ocean Lady, and on the clothes of some of the men inside. Two defence lawyers characterize it as an attempt to secure the extended detention of the men while government officials investigate alleged ties to the Tamil Tigers.

Government officials were initially able to hold the 76 men in custody after they arrived on Oct. 17 because their identities hadn't been confirmed, defence lawyers say.

As some of the identities have begun to be confirmed, the CBSA will now rely on the allegation that the men were Tigers, considered by Canada as a terrorist organization.

'The affidavits make allegations that there are small amounts of explosives, some residue. The affidavits don't specify how much, and on whose clothes. Obviously I have concerns about these affidavits and their reliability,' lawyer Lorne Waldman, representing one migrant, said in an interview.

'As people make it with hurdle number one [identification], they're now confronted with hurdle number two.'

He said the information in the documents is 'bare-minimum and very vague,' and that defence attorneys for the men are seeking a more detailed explanation of the allegations.

Fellow defence lawyer Hadayt Nazami said the CBSA is also alleging that the Ocean Lady was once used as a gun-running ship for the Tigers.

'Well, if that's the case, if traces of explosives are found, it's hardly surprising. That shouldn't have any bearing on the claimants,' Mr. Nazami said in an interview. 'We have a lot of questions about this so-called evidence.'

The Sri Lankan migrants arrived after a gruelling, lengthy voyage, in which they had only minimal supplies and skeleton facilities. They are said to have paid $45,000 each to a smuggler to come to Canada, only to be kept in the bottom of the Ocean Lady with little sense of time, other than the voyage seemed to last for weeks.

The men are claiming asylum as refugees, though Canada has signalled it intends to fight the claims. Despite pleas for compassion from Canada's large Tamil community, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said last month 'we need to do a much better job of shutting the back door of immigration for those who seek to abuse that asylum system.'

Mr. Waldman urged CBSA officials to specify its allegations.

'The vast majority of young Tamil males who come to Canada are genuine refugees,' he argued.

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5.
Very little concrete progress in illegal migration talks between EU, Libya
By Ivan Camilleri
The Times of Malta, October 31, 2009
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20091031/local/very-little-concrete-progress-in-illegal-migration-talks-between-eu-libya

A year of technical negotiations between the EU and Libya on illegal migration has seen little concrete progress and Tripoli still keeps Brussels guessing on what it wants to achieve and when.

External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero Waldner this week admitted that talks between the two sides were still ongoing and there was no idea when the discussions could be wrapped up.

'The fifth round of negotiations is due to take place in early November 2009 in Brussels. At this stage, all the chapters have been addressed and several articles have already been agreed. However, it is yet too early to foresee the end of the negotiations,' she said.

She was answering a question by Nationalist MEP Simon Busuttil on the status of negotiations.

In the summer of 2008, the EU was given a mandate by member states to start negotiations with Muammar Gaddafi's government in a bid to reach a framework cooperation agreement on various issues including migration.

Libya is the only north African country still without this kind of agreement with the EU.

Before talks started, Brussels had also announced it was prepared to offer financial assistance to Tripoli to facilitate more cooperation. Despite this offer, Libya is still dragging its feet to make progress.

Ms Ferrero Waldner told Dr Busuttil that Brussels even suggested ad hoc cooperation for the short term, so there would be no need to wait for the final general agreement to move things ahead but there had been no response so far.

'The Commission is ready to assist the Libyan authorities to enhance their capacities in order to prevent the entry into, and exit from, their territory of irregular migrants as well as improving the treatment of migrants in the respect of human rights and international law and to facilitate the identification of and assistance to migrants in need of international protection.'

Despite this extended offer, the EU is still awaiting a reply from Tripoli four months down the line.

'The letter to Libya was sent by Commissioner (Jacques) Barrot and the Swedish Presidency but we are still awaiting a reaction,' Ms Ferrero Waldner said.

Despite various attempts by the EU to cooperate with Libya on illegal migration in the past years, Tripoli has been reluctant to join these efforts. Libya has so far refused offers by the EU's border control agency Frontex to take part in joint anti-migration patrols in the Mediteraranean together with Malta and other member states.

The North African country is considered to be the main source of illegal immigrants crossing the Mediterranen towards Europe. Almost all the illegal immigrants landing on Malta's shores depart on boats from Libyan ports.

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6.
Johnson admits migration mistakes
The BBC News (U.K.), November 2, 2009
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/8338276.stm

Home Secretary Alan Johnson has admitted that the government has made mistakes in handling immigration.

Labour and Conservative administrations had been 'maladroit' in dealing with the issue, he said in a speech.

Mr Johnson said parts of the UK had been 'disproportionately' affected by immigration, with some areas seeing a 'strain' on jobs and public services.

But the UK was now 'more successful' at tackling migration than most countries in Europe and North America, he added.

'Ignored too long'

The Home Office said last week that up to 40,000 immigrants who should have left more than six years ago could still be in Britain.

The government introduced a points-based system last year to control the entry of non-EU citizens to the UK.

But the government has been repeatedly criticised by opponents, who say it has failed to stem the increase in immigration since 1997.

Mr Johnson told an audience at the Royal Society for the Arts in central London: 'Whilst I accept that governments of both persuasions, including this one, have been maladroit in their handling of this issue, I do believe that the UK is now far more successful at tackling migration than most of its European and North American neighbours.'

He added: 'The legacy problems with unreturned foreign national prisoners and asylum seekers may have accumulated under previous administrations, but they continued to be ignored for far too long on our watch.'

Learn language

Mr Johnson rejected 'fashionable' criticisms that mainstream politicians 'shied away' from talking about immigration.

He said: 'I want to talk about immigration today, tomorrow, next week and on any occasion I can.'

The 'moderate majority' had not had their views heard on the issue, he said.

At the same time as accepting genuine refugees, they wanted Britain to return home illegal immigrants, failed asylum seekers and foreign national prisoners.

Mr Johnson said there was 'no sensible argument' for immigration to cease altogether.

But people who come to live in the UK should learn the language, obey the laws and pay tax, he added.

+++

Government 'maladroit' on immigration, says Home Secretary
By Tom Whitehead
The Telegraph (U.K.), November 2, 2009
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/lawandorder/6486629/Government-maladroit-on-immigration-says-Home-Secretary.html

Alan Johnson gets pat on the back for ‘honest appraisal’ of immigration
By Richard Ford and Suzy Jagger
The Times (London), November 3, 2009
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article6900552.ece

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7.
Darfur survivors to get UK asylum
The BBC News (U.K.), November 3, 2009
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8340518.stm

Survivors of the Darfur crisis who sought refuge in the UK are to be granted asylum under new rules.

Non-Arab Darfuris will no longer be deported back to Sudan after updated Home Office guidelines warned they faced a 'real risk of persecution'.

The UK Border Agency (UKBA) said it would grant protection where needed but still consider applications on merit.

Campaign group Darfur Union said it was 'great news' and meant its members could finally 'start living again'.

General secretary Khatir Kayabil, an asylum seeker himself, said: 'This is great news. So many of our members have been living in limbo for years. Now, we can start to rebuild our lives here.'

'Long time coming'

The latest Home Office figures show that 50 Darfuris were repatriated between April and June this year.

The new guidance states: 'All non-Arab Darfuris, regardless of their political or other affiliations, are at real risk of persecution in Darfur and internal relocation elsewhere in Sudan is not currently to be relied upon.

'Claimants... who do not fall within the exclusion clauses will therefore qualify for asylum.'

Human rights group the Aegis Trust said it had uncovered evidence asylum seekers from Darfur had been tortured after being deported back to the Sudanese capital Khartoum from the UK.

It said it had corroborated claims by five Darfuris who had had asylum applications rejected by the UK, and welcomed the change of policy.

Chief executive Dr James Smith said: 'It's been a long time coming, but we're delighted the Home Office made the right decision.'

The six-year ethnic and tribal conflict in Darfur effectively ended in August, according to the United Nation's (UN) outgoing military commander Gerneral Martin Agwai.

The UN estimates that the war has killed about 300,000 people and forced an estimated 2.7m to flee their homes.

Grant protection

Ahmed Dilli Osman, whose wife and baby son were shot dead by Janjaweed militia in 2003, has been seeking asylum in the UK for the past five years.

He said: 'I can't believe this has finally happened... I know when my case comes back to court I will get asylum. I will be able to start living again.'

Matthew Coats, head of the UKBA's immigration group, said the situation in Sudan would be carefully monitored and reviewed.

He said: 'The British government takes its international responsibilities seriously and we will grant protection to those Sudanese nationals that need it.

'We will continue to consider each application for protection on its individual merits. We will always seek to remove from the UK those who do not need our protection and who have no right to remain here.'

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8.
Bogus student checks 'don't work'
By Phil Kemp
The BBC News (U.K.), November 1, 2009
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8332314.stm

A lengthy queue of students waiting to clear immigration at Heathrow

Immigration officers have warned bosses that new rules designed to stop bogus students entering the UK are not working, the BBC has learned.

Non-EU students are supposed to apply to registered institutions, and must prove they can support themselves.

But claims are now verified in the students' home countries, and UK staff say they have limited ability to challenge those they suspect.

The UK Border Agency insists all entrants must meet immigration rules.

Pressure

One Heathrow Airport immigration officer - speaking on condition of anonymity - told BBC Radio 5 live's Donal MacIntyre programme that UK staff were overwhelmed by the volume of student arrivals.

'Student season has extended now to virtually the whole year,' he said.

'We are looking at upwards of 500 to 1,000 stuck in the hall, queues stretching for hundreds of yards down the terminal.

'On occasions we've had to shut the hall as we couldn't cope.

'That has led to planes being backed up... to not allow them to proceed into Heathrow until we could clear what we've got.'

Many of these students are entirely legitimate, but he said he and his colleagues are almost powerless to challenge those whom they suspect are not.

'If someone presents a case like that to a chief immigration officer, they take a look at the size and the number of people in the hall, and they turn around and say, 'Look, because of the pressure of work, they've got a visa, get them into the country'.

'It would take two officers off the desk for hours just to present a case to send them to a detention centre.'

And he believes this means people who have been denied entry to the UK on other grounds are able to enter the UK on bogus student visas.

'We have an awful lot of students who have been refused five, six, even up to nine visas to come here to this country, whether it be for working holidays or student applications,' he said. 'And they're now coming here.'

Proof

Under the new system, colleges which offer courses to students from outside the European Economic Area must be accredited by the Home Office.

But the Heathrow immigration officer alleges that the list of approved institutions contains colleges which he and his colleagues know to have a history of awarding fake qualifications.

'It beggars belief that these places can be graded the way they are, when we know for a fact that we've proved and got signatures from the passengers that they paid for their certificates,' he said.

The immigration officer told BBC Radio 5 live about a recent case of an Indian woman in her 50s who presented herself as a student enrolling on an advanced course, despite the fact that she could barely speak English.

'She was going to do an ACCA accounting course, of which when asked in Hindi what ACCA meant, she didn't have a clue,' he said.

'She wasn't even able to say in her own language what the course was going to entail.'

'Tightened controls'

These concerns are echoed on an internal UK Border Agency online message board, seen by the BBC.

One officer wrote: 'I can no longer feel proud of my role, given that I am forced on a daily basis to allow entry to passengers who clearly hold no ability or intention to follow any course of study in the United Kingdom'.

Another commented: 'The introduction of the appallingly thought-out points-based system for students has, in one fell swoop, failed the UK taxpayer who expects us to do a good job in tackling illegal immigration.'

The website quotes an acknowledgement from chief executive Lin Homer that the Border Agency had 'not got it right' on student visas.

But Jeremy Oppenheim, head of the points-based system at the UK Border Agency, insisted that the rules were working.

'The points-based system means that only those colleges and schools who provide quality education and take responsibility for their students will be licensed to bring in foreign students,' he told Radio 5 live.

'Schools and colleges are inspected by accreditation bodies and the UK Border Agency to ensure they are genuine. Before we tightened controls, around 4,000 UK institutions were bringing in international students. This currently stands at around 2,000.

'Anyone coming in to the UK must satisfy the border force officer that they meet the immigration rules and will comply with any conditions attached to their visa. If they cannot, the officer can and will refuse entry.'

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9.
Britain pays child benefit for more than 50,000 children living abroad
British taxpayers are funding child benefit payments for 37,900 children who live in Poland, Treasury figures show.
By Rebecca Lefort
The Telegraph (U.K.), October 31, 2009
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/majornews/6475165/Britain-pays-child-benefit-for-more-than-50000-children-living-abroad.html

The money is going to support children who have remained behind in their homeland while one or both of their parents lives and works in the UK. The cost is estimated at more than £20 million a year.

The number of claims has risen by 20 per cent in the past year, despite a slowing in the overall rate of immigration from eastern Europe.

The figures, released to Parliament, reveal the impact of European Union rules which allow migrant workers who pay taxes in their host country to claim benefits there, even if they have left their families behind.

The findings come as an ICM opinion poll for The Sunday Telegraph today shows that two thirds of voters – 66 per cent – believe that the number of immigrants currently in Britain is too high.

Poles make up the majority of 51,000 children, from more than 30,000 families, living outside the UK who are supported with child benefit payments from British taxpayers.

The payouts come despite assurances given by ministers, when the decision was taken to allow citizens of new EU member states including Poland to live and work freely in the UK, that new migrants would not immediately be eligible for most benefits.

Because British handouts are much higher than many other countries' payments – particularly in eastern Europe, where the cost of living is lower – the benefits appear huge to many migrants.

In some cases the overseas claimants receive the full UK rate of benefit – £20 a week for the first child and £13.20 for others. In other cases, they receive benefit from their homeland's government plus a 'top-up' payment from the UK government to raise the total to UK levels. In Poland, the equivalent of child benefit is around £5 a week or less.

The Treasury has refused to put a figure on the total cost of supporting youngsters abroad. Even if most of the Polish claimants are not getting the full rate from Britain, the total cost of the payouts to Polish families is estimated at more than £24 million a year.

Between March 2008 and October 2009 the number of children living in Poland but supported by British handouts jumped from 31,400 to 37,900.

Children supported in other countries include 2,500 in Slovakia, 2,300 in French and 1,800 in Ireland. Only 500 received the support in Germany, and only four in Iceland.

Philip Hammond, the Conservative Treasury spokesman, said: 'With Britain facing a debt crisis and the Government's child poverty strategy in tatters, it beggars belief that Gordon Brown is continuing to send millions of pounds of taxpayers' money to children who don't even live in this country.

'It's yet more evidence that he is completely out of touch with the concerns of ordinary families struggling to make ends meet in these difficult times.'

Ania Heasley, who runs the Ania's Poland website, which helps Poles settle in Britain, said the payments were a big incentive to people considering moving to Britain to work.

'The typical scenario is that the father comes to the UK and works here, and if he is the main breadwinner or declares himself financially responsible then even if his child lives in Poland he can claim child benefit and will get the full amount,' she said.

'It is much much less in Poland, which is why they apply here.

'There was an outcry before about children who have never set foot in Britain getting these benefits and the reaction was that it couldn't be true, but it is true and thousands of people do it.

'They feel it is their right, they are taking advantage of the rules that are there. They are not doing anything illegal; this is there for the taking.

'Originally people were surprised and said 'This is great,' but now there is so much information in Poland about the benefits that they all know about it.

'In Poland the benefits are getting less and less, but the advice when coming over to Britain is that you can add that to your salary. They are so happy about the welfare system.'

If a worker from an EU country pays tax in Britain the UK takes responsibility for paying the full amount of child benefit to children they have left behind unless another parent is working and claiming in the home country. However, even if another country is paying some benefits, Britain must add extra if the child's native country's benefit rate is lower than the UK's.

A spokesman for HM Revenue and Customs said the payments to foreigners accounted for a only 'tiny fraction' of the 7.5 million total child benefit payments.

He added: 'The main purpose of child benefit is to support families living in the UK, and so the general rules for this benefit mean it is not paid to children who live outside the UK.

'However, under EU rules, which have been in place since the United Kingdom joined the European Economic Community in 1973 and which are applied by all Member States, a European Economic Area national working and paying compulsory social security contributions in one EEA country can claim family benefits for their family resident in another EEA country.

'The purpose of these rules is to help guarantee rights of free movement for workers throughout the EEA.'

According to the ICM poll for this newspaper, despite the widespread view that there are too many immigrants in Britain, voters are deeply divided on what ought to be done. Asked which party had the best approach to approach immigration, 27 per cent backed the Tories, followed by Labour (18 per cent), the Liberal Democrats (16 per cent) and the British National Party (11 per cent).

However, when participants in the survey were asked about specific policies without being told which party backed which policy, a clear majority – 54 per cent – supported the Government's current regime of a points-based system to restrict numbers from outside the European Union.

This was comfortably ahead of the Conservatives' policy of setting an annual cap on immigrant numbers (28 per cent) as well as the BNP's demand for a total ban on immigration (15 per cent).

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10.
UK detained 1,300 child migrants
The BBC News (U.K.), November 1, 2009
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8335602.stm

More than 1,300 children were held at UK immigration removal centres during a 15-month period, the government says.

The figures were revealed in a letter from Immigration Minister Phil Woolas to Pete Wishart MP, the Scottish National Party home affairs spokesman.

The letter also revealed that 889 children from 488 families had been detained for more than 28 days between April 2004 and September 2009.

Mr Wishart said detaining children in adult centres was 'simply wrong'.

The letter also said the figures were not subject to the 'detailed checks' that usually apply to official statistics, and added that individual children may have been counted more than once, as they could have been transferred from one centre to another.

According to the government's figures:

* There were 884 children held at Yarl's Wood immigration removal centre in Bedfordshire between July 2008 and July 2009

* Tinsley House, near Gatwick Airport, held 328 children between 1 September 2008 and 31 August 2009

* One hundred and three children were held at the Dungavel centre in South Lanarkshire between October 2008 and 18 September 2009.

Mr Wishart said: 'Whatever the position of the parents, children should not be detained behind barbed wire.

'That 103 children have been held in Scotland, where the Scottish government is firmly against child detention, is deeply disturbing. It's time for the UK government to end this practice.

'These figures show nearly 200 children a year are being held for more than four weeks.

'Regardless of what provision is made for children in these centres, that they are being held behind bars is unacceptable.

'I will be pursuing this issue with the UK government. Children's welfare is not well served by the UK's actions and regardless of their parents' immigration status children should not have to pay this price.'

'Duty of care'

He accused the government of 'detaining the equivalent of a high school every year across the UK'.

Mr Wishart also claimed it was the first time statistics on the number of children held in such centres had been released.

Mr Woolas said in his letter that 'the welfare of children is an issue which I take very seriously'.

He added: 'The UK Border Agency is introducing the duty of care to children through the Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Bill.

'In addition a programme to improve statistics on people held in detention is under way. This will result in more statistics published, subject to data quality, in 2009. The programme of work will give a particular focus to detained children.'

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11.
Refugees 'better qualified' claim
The BBC News (U.K.), November 2, 2009
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/wales/8336813.stm

Refugees living in Wales are more highly qualified than people born in the country, a new report has claimed.

The Centre for Migration Policy Research at Swansea University found at least a quarter of refugees had a degree gained in their own country.

However the group as a whole still experienced high levels of unemployment and under-employment, the report said.

The study pointed to an increasingly diverse Wales, but found there were fewer refugees than in other UK areas.

The researchers interviewed 123 refugees living in Wales on their skills, qualifications and language abilities, as well as access to housing, education and the labour market.

It also asked for their experiences in the communities they live in now.

Although nearly two-thirds were employed in their country of origin, often in highly-skilled professional jobs, fewer than a third had been able to find work in Wales and most were employed in administrative or clerical positions, cleaning or factory work.

Half the survey group said they had experienced negative public attitudes, discrimination and racism.

Many had been physically and verbally abused, often by teenagers and youths, and had suffered damage to property.

One in five said they may leave Wales, but those who wanted to stay said neighbours and community were the single most important reason for their decision.

The numbers of refugees and asylum seekers in Wales rose from 2001 when Wales became a designated dispersal area.

The report is being officially launched at the Senedd.

Social Justice Minister Brian Gibbons said: 'Although immigration is not devolved, there are huge implications for the Welsh Assembly Government.

'We have a clear responsibility to provide services and set a strategic agenda around the issue of refugees and asylum seekers.

'I welcome the findings of this report which, for the first time, gives us real evidence of the experiences of refugees in Wales over recent years and the barriers they have faced.'

Professor Heaven Crawley, director of the Centre for Migration Policy Research at Swansea University, hopes the survey will be repeated on a regular basis.

She said: 'This is an important survey because it represents the first systematic attempt to understand the experiences of refugees who have been granted status and have made Wales their home.

'This information is crucial for ensuring that the Welsh Assembly Government and other statutory and voluntary service providers take the particular experiences and backgrounds of refugees into account when planning services and when implementing policies for social and community cohesion.'

EDITOR'S NOTE: The Centre for Migration Policy Research can be found online at: http://www.swansea.ac.uk/cmpr/

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12.
US offers to help Denmark fight gang war
Agence France Presse, November 3, 2009
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iAjLymy9TDTyYtcpYFK64FPQJUwg

Copenhagen (AFP) -- The United States offered Tuesday to help Denmark put an end to a gang war that has raged in Copenhagen for more than a year and has left seven dead and dozens of innocent bystanders injured.

'We have some expertise in the area of gangs ... And if we can offer some assistance or training that would be beneficial, we would be happy to do that,' US Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano told reporters after meeting with Danish Justice Minister Brian Mikkelsen.

Among other things, the two ministers discussed the Danish gang war that has pitted motorcycle gangs against youths of immigrant origin in a battle over the drugs market since the summer of 2008.

Mikkelsen said he would welcome any assistance from the United States.

'We are going to have a series of meetings with the Americans to take advantage of their advice and we plan to carry out a research project to find out why some urban neighbourhoods are more affected than others by gang crime,' he said.

Denmark also hopes to learn from the US' experience in fighting youth criminality.

Napolitano's visit to Copenhagen was part of a European tour aimed at combatting human trafficking.

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13.
German child-care subsidy sparks nursery spat
By Mathilde Richter
Agence France Presse, November 2, 2009
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5g-F94XOXE35HTM0LOJawj9oqYxtA

Berlin (AFP) -- Proposed German subsidies for parents who keep young children at home rather than put them in a creche have prompted furious reactions from experts who fear immigrant youngsters will suffer.

Chancellor Angela Merkel's new coalition government, sworn in Wednesday, has vowed to introduce from 2013 a subsidy of 150 euros (225 dollars) per month to parents who keep their children under three out of public day care.

Dubbed the 'stove premium' or 'mother hen subsidy' by feminists who say it encourages women to stay home to look after the kids, the plan has also been slammed by critics who fear immigrant children will lose a valuable chance to be integrated early into society.

The subsidy has unleashed a fierce debate in a country where statistics show that parents do not appear to need further incentives to stay at home, with only 18 percent of children under three cared for by a third party.

'Lower-class Germans will drink it away and lower-class immigrants will bring over Granny to do the day care,' said Heinz Buschkowsky, mayor of the Neukoelln area in Berlin, which has a large Turkish community.

Day care is crucial for immigrant children as they learn to speak German from an early age, he added in an interview with the Tagesspiegel daily.

'It should be as early as possible, because the younger the children are, the easier it is to grow up bilingual,' he added.

'If children with almost no or broken German go to school, they are often trapped for the rest of their education,' said Buschkowsky, a member of the centre-left Social Democrats.

Anette Stein, an expert in child education at Germany's Bertelsmann Foundation, said the new 150-euro subsidy was 'the wrong policy' to help families, immigrant or otherwise.

'The goal has to be to encourage parents to send their children to the creche,' especially parents from the lower social classes, Stein said.

'It is precisely these children' who benefit from an early introduction into the education system, she said.

For children of immigrants or the working class, a stint at a creche in the early years hugely increases the changes of a long and more successful academic career, a 2008 Bertelsmann Foundation study found.

Furthermore, the subsidy 'is expensive and we need that money to develop quality education for our small children', Stein said.

The subsidy was a key demand of the Christian Social Union (CSU), Merkel's conservative sister party from Bavaria in the south of the country.

They argued that parents who save the state money by not requiring a creche place should get this cash back -- in the shape of this subsidy.

CSU politician Johannes Singhammer, a spokesman on family policy, said it offered families more choice and was 'an important signal from society to recognise parents that stay at home and look after their children themselves'.

However, weekly newspaper Die Zeit wrote this was more a nod towards the rural, Catholic and conservative CSU electorate for whom 'those who leave their children to the care of the state are basically outcasts'.

Under the banner of freedom of choice, the subsidy cements a very traditional way of life where women stay at home and look after the children, the paper said.

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14.
Migrant center on Lesvos shut down
Kathimerini (Greece), November 3, 2009
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_politics_100010_03/11/2009_112081

As an international conference on migration opened near Athens yesterday, the government said that an overcrowded and much-criticized reception center for illegal immigrants on Lesvos would be replaced by a military unit on the eastern Aegean island.

According to sources, the military unit to start operating on Lesvos will be one of several that Deputy Citizens’ Protection Minister Spyros Vougias and Defense Minister Evangelos Venizelos are to agree on.

Addressing the Global Forum on Migration and Development, which concludes today in the coastal suburb of Vouliagmeni, Vougias said that the rights of migrants would be respected, heralding the creation of Muslim cemeteries and prayer sites. He added that the ministry would set up committees of experts to examine migrants’ claims for asylum.

As for some 900 migrants released from the center on Lesvos, some were reportedly given ferry tickets to Piraeus while others are expected to be transferred to reception centers on other islands, many of which are also overcrowded.

The UN refugee agency UNHCR, one of several nongovernmental organizations that had lobbied for the center’s closure, welcomed the decision but said that new centers had to be built to accommodate a surging influx of immigrants that continue to enter Greece from Turkey.

In a related development in the central Athens district of Aghios Panteleimonas yesterday, riot police clashed with local residents and suspected members of far-right organizations who had gathered to protest against a scheduled rally in the area by members of anti-racist and human rights groups. There were no reports of any injuries in the area which has seen a spike in tensions over the past few months as residents protested the burgeoning presence of destitute illegal immigrants in their neighborhood.

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15.
Spain non-committal on Malta’s bid to host asylum agency
By Kurt Sansone
The Times of Malta, November 3, 2009
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20091103/local/spain-non-committal-on-malta-s-bid-to-host-asylum-agency

Madrid -- The Spanish Prime Minister remained non-committal on Malta’s bid to host the EU Asylum Support Agency during talks with Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi in Madrid, yesterday.

The issue was raised by Dr Gonzi in a 45-minute meeting with his Spanish counterpart José Luis Zapatero, within the context of a wider debate on immigration.

Addressing the press after the meeting, Dr Gonzi said most countries, including Spain, were reserving their decision on who should host the agency for the December summit. Poland and Italy have publicly endorsed Malta’s bid.

The agency will be a new institution intended to streamline the differing immigration policies of individual member states. Malta’s offer to host the agency faces stiff competition from Bulgaria.

Mr Zapatero listened with sympathy and understood Malta’s arguments for hosting the agency, Dr Gonzi said, adding he was talking to somebody who immediately understood the dimension of the problem and was particularly sensitive to the human tragedy that accompanied it.

Dr Gonzi was on his first official visit to Spain. The working visit lasted just a couple of hours and was intended as an exchange of views before Spain takes over the EU presidency in January next year.

Earlier, before the talks, Mr Zapatero listed immigration as a priority for the Spanish presidency.

Immigration is a 'collective challenge' Mr Zapatero said, adding it was a priority for the Mediterranean region and the way it should be tackled was through the 'unity of the EU'.

Mr Zapatero, who faces an unemployment rate of almost 20 per cent in Spain, said economic recovery was also another priority for his EU presidency.

In light of this, both prime ministers agreed talks on institutional reform brought about by the Lisbon Treaty had to be concluded this year.

Dr Gonzi said they did not discuss any names for the posts of EU President and Foreign High Representative, although he added a special summit to iron out the issues would probably be held later this month.

Getting institutional reform out of the way would enable the Spanish presidency to focus its efforts on European job creation, economic recovery and stricter regulations on the financial sector to prevent a recurrence of last year’s crash, which sent the world into its worst recession in 80 years. Climate change was also on the agenda, with Dr Gonzi explaining a one-size-fits-all approach was not suitable for a small country like Malta.

During the press conference Dr Gonzi hinted Malta might have difficulty reaching the EU’s target to have 20 per cent of its energy needs coming from renewable sources.

He said the limited land area and the depth of the sea posed particular difficulties to build wind turbines and erect photovoltaic cells.

'I explained these difficulties but assured Mr Zapatero the government was doing its utmost to reach the EU targets,' Dr Gonzi said.

His words came a day after Resoucres Minister George Pullicino cautioned that if the offshore reef off Mellieħa was not adequate for a wind farm, Malta would be 'stuck' and would probably have to ask the EU to reconsider its expectations.

Mr Pullicino was speaking at the launch of an 80-metre-high wind monitoring mast in Mellieħa on Sunday, where the government plans to erect some 18 and 20 turbines offshore at Sikka l-Bajda.

During the meeting they also discussed the upcoming visit of King Juan Carlos of Spain on November 26, during which a number of bilateral agreements are expected to be signed.

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Italy supporting Malta's bid for asylum office
The Times of Malta, October 31, 2009
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20091031/local/italy-supporting-maltas-bid-for-asylum-office

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16.
AFM suspect migrant rescue attempt in Malta’s region
By Cynthia Busuttil
The Times of Malta, November 3, 2009
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20091103/local/afm-suspect-migrant-rescue-attempt-in-malta-s-region

This picture, released by the AFM, shows the damaged bow of the boat with 207 migrants, which arrived in Sicily on Monday. The AFM says an earlier photo shows the boat undamaged.

Malta would have had to take responsibility for the 207 immigrants who arrived in Italy last week had a suspected rescue attempt been successful, The Times has learnt.

The Armed Forces of Malta strongly suspect that the Italy-flagged tanker Antignano tried to rescue the migrants when they were already in Malta’s search and rescue region (SRR).

According to the AFM, the boat was some 112 miles off Libya and 240 miles south of Malta – still 60 miles from the island’s SRR – when Rome’s coordination centre was alerted to its whereabouts.

Italy then instructed the tanker to meet the migrants and the tanker accompanied the boat northwards, providing it with shelter in the rough sea, even though the weather conditions were deteriorating.

Although a Libyan navy vessel was expected to go and pick up the migrants, it never turned up.

The AFM’s suspicion of an attempted rescue, raised by army commander Brig. Carmel Vassallo during a press conference on Friday, stemmed from two photos of the fishing vessel that the migrants were travelling in, taken from the Antignano.

The first image, taken at around midday on October 25, when the boat was well within Malta’s search and rescue area, shows the vessel undamaged. But another undated photo shows damage to the front of the boat.

'We think there were attempts to rescue the migrants but they failed,' Brig. Vassallo said, adding that the bad weather would have made the rescue very difficult.

Although the AFM was coordinating the operation at the time, it was never informed of any rescue attempts.

'At no time was RCC Malta informed that any rescue attempt was being made or had already been made,' the army said in reply to questions by The Times.

The AFM said although not all actions were subject to prior approval by the local rescue coordination centre, it was normal practice to keep it 'closely informed' of all occurrences.

At the time the suspected rescue took place, the AFM patrol boat had not yet arrived on the scene. The army explained that the P61 reached the Antignano at around 7.30 p.m. on October 25 and started searching for the boat since the tanker had lost sight of it. The boat was spotted more than two hours later.

'Therefore, there was a substantial period in which the Antignano and the migrants’ boat navigated together in Malta’s search and rescue area before the P61 reached them and found the boat,' the AFM said.

Local authorities had every interest in knowing about any rescue attempts since Malta was highly likely to be the closest port of call at the time and would have been obliged to take the migrants.

The case has put Malta at the centre of harsh criticism by the Italian media, which suggested the island had abdicated its duties. This was strongly rebutted by the authorities.

'Malta took its responsibility seriously and was there to give assistance to the migrants,' Justice Minister Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici insisted.

Brig. Vassallo said an AFM patrol boat was dispatched to monitor the migrants as they continued to sail northwards under shelter provided by the Antignano. Because of the bad weather, the patrol boat continued to provide escort after they left Malta’s search and rescue area and entered Italy’s.

'We were more humanitarian than they tried to depict us,' Brig. Vassallo said, adding that the Italians only went out to collect the migrants at the last moment.

This contrasted with a comment made by Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini, who was quoted saying Italy had abided by its duty and did not turn its back on the migrants.

Dr Mifsud Bonnici would not comment on his counterpart’s remark, simply saying he did not want to enter into any 'polemics'.

Brig. Vassallo insisted the migrants refused to be rescued by the AFM, something that was corroborated by Antignano captain Mariano Adragna who told Italian media the migrants wanted to reach Italy.

'The migrants refused to go aboard the Maltese patrol boat. They did not want Malta’s help but wanted to reach Italy,' Capt. Adragna told L’Occidentale.

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17.
Israeli settler held over attacks
The BBC News (U.K.), November 1, 2009

Israeli police have arrested a Jewish settler who they say has confessed to a string of high-profile hate attacks.

These allegedly include the killing of two Palestinians 12 years ago, and the bombing last year of the home of the Israeli academic, Zeev Sternhell.

Yaakov Teitel, a 37-year-old American immigrant who lives in the West Bank, was detained last month after handing out leaflets condemning homosexuals.
. . .
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8337150.stm

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18.
Remittance growth beats bleak forecast
By Rejaul Karim Byron
The Daily Star (Bangladesh), November 4, 2009
http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=112608

Remittance growth stood at 21.23 percent in the first four months of the current fiscal year, despite bleak forecasts by the World Bank.

The July to October period measured the remittance inflow at $3.61 billion, which was $2.98 billion in the same period last year.

Bangladesh recorded $911.20 million in remittance in October, up from $887.92 million a month ago, according to central bank data. Remittance crossed the $900 million mark for the third time in 2009. The figure was $935.15 million in August and $919.10 million in June.

Due to the large remittance inflow, the foreign currency reserve is increasing. It was recorded at $9.56 billion yesterday.

The foreign exchange reserve that was $5.82 billion in June rose to $7.74 billion in July. In August, the reserve crossed $9 billion.

The WB projected Bangladesh will record remittance growth at 12.3 percent at best and the least at 8.4 percent for the current fiscal year.

The WB also said the outflow of migrant workers in Bangladesh has slowed significantly. In July, the migrant outflow dropped by 57 percent compared to the same month last year. The impact of global recession became evident in the second half of fiscal 2009, when the outflow of migrant workers declined by 47 percent.

The number of migrant workers finding employment abroad has declined by 33 percent in fiscal 2009 -- a total of 650,000 migrant workers got a job abroad this year, compared to 969,000 last year.

The report also said the economic outlook in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries will be decisive for Bangladesh. The GCC countries together accounted for 63 percent of total flows in fiscal 2009. Saudi Arabia was by far the largest source of remittance ($2.9 billion), followed by UAE ($1.8 billion).

The outflow of Bangladeshi workers to GCC member countries was affected by the global economic crisis. In fiscal 2009, about 4,61,000 workers immigrated to the gulf, compared to 6,57,000 in the last year -- recording a 30 percent drop.

However, the report added the recent increase in oil prices to around $70 a barrel should reduce the risk of a fall in remittance from Bangladeshi workers in GCC countries.

The WB report said a regression exercise revealed the key determinants of changes in the level of remittance inflow are the number of workers finding employment abroad every year, the oil price, the exchange rate and the GDP growth rate.

The results show: an additional migrant worker brings in $816 in remittances annually, a dollar increase in oil prices increases annual remittances by nearly $15 million, depreciation of the exchange rate by one taka increases annual remittance by $18 million and remittances are higher in times of low economic growth.

A Bangladesh Bank official said the number of outbound migrant workers dropped in the current fiscal year but a large number of poor expatriate Bangladeshis are still staying abroad and sending remittance home.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The World Bank's data on Bangladesh is available online at: http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/SOUTHASIAEXT/BANGLADESHEXTN/0,,menuPK:295765~pagePK:141159~piPK:141110~theSitePK:295760,00.html

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19.
Korea Plans to Fingerprint, Photograph Foreign Visitors
By Lee Tae-hoon
The Korea Times, November 3, 2009
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2009/11/116_54804.html

The Cabinet approved a revision bill Tuesday that would make it mandatory for foreigners entering Korea to be fingerprinted and photographed from 2012.

Under the measure, all foreigners over the age of 17, excluding diplomats and those traveling on official duty, must have their fingerprints scanned and be photographed upon entry.

Currently, Koreans are required to register their fingerprint information and photos at the age of 17.

The bill will be put to a vote this month at the National Assembly and, if approved, will take effect from the second half of 2012, said Ahn Kyu-suk, spokesman of the Immigration Service.

Those who enter the country before the measure comes into force will be obliged to visit one of the 37 immigration offices nationwide to register their fingerprint and facial data.

The bill was drawn up last April in response to a growing number of crimes committed by foreign nationals and difficulties in identifying forged passports.

The number of overstays increased from 209,841 in 2004 to 223,464 in 2007, and that of crimes committed by foreigners soared from 9,103 to 14,524 during the same period, according to the National Police Agency

More than 2,000 foreigners, who have been deported or refused entry, have attempted to come back to Korea with a forged passport or under a different name, according to the Ministry of Justice.

'Collecting biometric information will not only deter crimes committed by foreigners but also reduce the number of people coming here with fraudulent documents,' Ahn said. 'Unlike names and dates of birth, which can be changed, biometric data are unique and almost impossible to forge.'

Ahn said the new system will help protect the identity of foreigners if they lose their passports.

The spokesman also refuted the claim that the biometric verification system would discourage tourists from coming to Korea.

'When Japan introduced a biometric immigration control system, many people expected the number of tourists to drop sharply,' Ahn said. 'But the number of tourists has increased since its introduction.'

Japan adopted the new immigrant management system in November 2007, which is similar to the system introduced in the United States after the Sept. 11 attacks in 2001.

Ahn said the government will discuss the sharing of a database on terrorists, criminals and illegal immigrants with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in November.

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Foreigners to have photos, fingerprints taken on entry
By Bae Hyun-jung
The Korea Herald, November 3, 2009
http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/NEWKHSITE/data/html_dir/2009/11/04/200911040040.asp

Foreign visitors to be fingerprinted
United Press International, November 3, 2009
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/International/2009/11/03/Foreign-visitors-to-be-fingerprinted/UPI-88771257251157/

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20.
Australia to expand asylum centre
By Nick Bryant
The BBC News (U.K.), October 31, 2009
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8335253.stm

Sydney -- The Australian government has announced plans to significantly expand a detention centre on Christmas Island to cope with the influx of asylum seekers.

The capacity will be increased to more than 2000 beds from the original level of 1200.

The government said it was in response to a surge in arrivals, particularly from Sri Lanka.

But the opposition in Australia says it showed that the government's immigration policies had failed.

Critics argue that asylum seekers are held at Christmas Island for processing, rather than allowing them to step foot on the Australian mainland.

The Australian government has been struggling to cope with a surge in asylum seekers, there's been more than a tenfold increase on last year's figure of 161.

In what has become an increasingly acrimonious political debate, the Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has claimed that the increase is explained by 'push factors' - namely the situation in Sri Lanka and the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan.

But the opposition argues that the rise in asylum seekers has more to do with pull factors.

It singles out the Rudd's government's decision early in its term to relax some of the more severe immigration policies brought in by the former Prime Minister John Howard.

So the decision to expand the capacity of the Christmas Island detention centre in the Indian Ocean, where asylum seekers arriving by boat, are processed is hugely contentious.

The number of beds will be increased by almost 50% - a necessary move according to the government, to cope with the increased numbers.

But the opposition claims the expansion of the detention centre is an admission of policy failure - and that the best way to deter boat people from setting sail for Australia is to strengthen the country's immigration laws.

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21.
At least 3 die when boat capsized
United Press International, November 3, 2009
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/International/2009/11/03/At-least-3-die-when-boat-capsized/UPI-77501257262883/

Sydney (UPI) -- At least three people died after a boatload of asylum-seekers sank in the Indian Ocean northwest of Australia, Australian officials said.

Officials said all survivors -- 27 men believed to be from Sri Lanka -- will be taken to Christmas Island, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported Tuesday.

Officials said they believe 39 people were aboard the boat when it sank 350 nautical miles off the Cocos Islands Sunday.

Saradha Nathan, head of the Australian Tamil Congress's internally displaced people crisis team, said a group of men recently left eastern Sri Lanka in a boat. She told the Australian broadcaster several families have contacted her, saying they haven't heard from their male relatives since they left several weeks ago.

'That was not the only boat that has left Sri Lanka so they are fearful at the moment,' Nathan said. 'They're not sure so they're very anxious to find out if their relatives are okay.'

Opposition leader Tony Abbott tied the boat sinking to the government's border protection policies, calling Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's policy a failure.

'You've got to say that this is a comprehensive failure and it's all the prime minister's fault,' Abbott said. 'He was the person who advertised that we changed our policy. He broadcast to the people smugglers that we were now going to be much more humane, which is code for the welcome mat is out.'

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Center for Immigration Studies
1522 K St. NW, Suite 820
Washington, DC 20005
(202) 466-8185 fax: (202) 466-8076
center@cis.org www.cis.org
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