The Center for Victims of Torture has urged Iraqi refugees not to watch war coverage. Officials said they know Iraqis in the United States are desperate to hear news from back home, but they fear the media coverage could traumatize some. Many counselors say their clients worry about relatives living in Iraq because phone and email connections have been poor. Center spokeswoman Rachel Tschida said victims who suffered at the hands of Saddam Hussein need to limit how much war coverage they read and watch because the images could trigger flashbacks and bring old fears to the surface.

***

On Monday Secretary of State Colin Powell held a press briefing on the release of the State Department's 2002 Annual Report on Human Rights, along with Lorne Craner, Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor.

Powell said, "The Bush Administration is strongly committed to working with government leaders, nongovernmental organizations, free trade unions and individuals across the globe to improve compliance with international human rights standards. We are working to foster accountable governance and spur political, legal and economic reforms. We are channeling development assistance and other resources towards nations that govern justly, that invest in their people, and that embrace economic freedoms."

Craner said that Iraq was the year's primary offender when it came to human rights. The report also chronicles violations throughout the Middle East.

"The region's democratic experiments, along with the experience of millions of Muslims living in established democracies, offer hope that working towards democracy in this region, while not an overnight process, is an achievable goal," Craner said.

The report also focuses on human rights abuses in China, "from systematic abuses of political and religious freedom to the jailing of dissidents."

The report is often cited in asylum petitions to document whether an applicant is likely to face persecution in his or her home country. The full report can be found online at: http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2002/

***

The Social Security Administration published a notice of intent to change its record system, allowing for information maintained by the SSA to be provided to the Department of Homeland Security upon request in order to identify and locate aliens in the United States.

You can view this notice in the Federal Register using this link: http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/14mar20010800/
edocket.access.gpo.gov/2003/03-7755.htm

***

Despite the political climate surrounding the Iraq war and terrorism, a coalition of Hispanic religious leaders is pushing for amnesty for undocumented immigrants in the United States. Members of the coalition, which represents 2,500 churches in 17 states, have met with members of Congress, including Majority Leader Bill Frist, to lobby for an amnesty bill. U.S. Census estimates place the number of undocumented aliens living in the United States at eight million.

***

A vote last week in the Arizona State Senate killed a proposal to remove the requirement that people show they are citizens or in the U.S. legally in order to get a driver's license. The measure failed by a vote of 12 to11 following days of demonstrations at the State Capitol building. Advocates of the bill say that those without a license cannot get insurance and are more likely to flee the scene of an accident.

***

Jon Kyl, Arizona's junior senator, said the government should crack down on employers who hire undocumented workers, in a discussion of terrorism and domestic security recorded by the Arizona Daily Star.

"There are elements of business who rely upon labor that is, to a large extent, we believe, here in the United States illegally," Kyl said. "It is horribly hypocritical and inconsistent for us to be expending so much in the way of resources to be protecting the border... and yet not seem to care very much about the employment, illegally, of people who came here illegally."

Farrell Quinlan, a lobbyist for the Arizona Chamber of Commerce, disagreed, saying, "punishing business for our failed border policy is short sighted. The problem is that the United States is the beacon of the world."

Quinlan said a crackdown on companies that hire undocumented workers would result in "a lot of disruption."

"What things won't get done in this country without that workforce?" Quinlan asked.

Kyl countered by saying the nation should either enforce its laws or change them, and that federal agents would go after "the worst abuses."

***

The Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services held its first citizen swearing-in ceremonies over the past week in Miami-Dade County Auditorium and in a sports arena turned federal court in Los Angeles. Thousands of immigrants, including members of the U.S. Armed Forces, took the oath of citizenship. In both cases, the new citizens carried small American flags and received applause from the crowd. The BCIS is part of the Department of Homeland Security and has taken over many of the services formerly maintained by the INS.

***

The BCIS' Immigrant Services Division made several announcements during its recent regular meeting with the American Immigration Lawyers Association. One issue discussed was how to obtain refunds if you filed an application with the normal fee early this year during the period of time when the fees were temporarily lowered. For applications received before February 27th with the old fees, the ISD will identify cases due a refund and send the information electronically to the Department of Treasury. The Treasury Department expects that refund checks will be issued within three to four months of that.

The ISD also noted that BCIS service centers have been advised that they cannot backdate employment authorization documents in order to prevent gaps when EAD renewal applications are sent to close to the expiration date of the first EAD card.

BCIS official Bill Yates also told AILA's Board of Governors in a separate meeting that the BCIS intends to continue the premium processing program and the program will be expanded. The BCIS intends to eventually phase out premium processing and have timely processing of all applications. However, special registration and background checking are delaying that plan.

The Labor Department is also telling AILA that PERM regulations are due out in July with an October expected implementation date. Cases filed before PERM regulations become effective will be adjudicated under the rules in effect at the time the application was filed unless they are upgraded. Upgrading will require a showing that the advertising meets the standards in the PERM regulation. The priority date will not be affected.