News Bytes

The Executive Office for Immigration Review, part of the Department of Justice, has launched a webpage that links reports tracking the legal representation rates at EOIR Immigration Courts throughout the country. The reports are listed by city and include information regarding the custody status, nationalities, languages, and forms of relief requested by individuals in removal proceedings. The page was created for non-profit legal agencies and pro bono attorneys and can be found at http://www.usdoj.gov/eoir/reports/icrepsummary.htm

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The Government has released its semiannual regulatory agenda, which presents the various departments' Unified Regulatory Agenda for forthcoming proposed, interim and final regulations. The Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, the Department of State and the Department of Labor have each issued regulations dealing with immigration, and these can be found in the Tuesday, May 27, 2003 publication of the Federal Register Volume, 68, No. 01., online at http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fedreg/a030527c.html

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The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) issued a press release Tuesday calling for an Independent Immigration Court that would offer a "meaningful appellate review in immigration cases." Reacting to a Federal Court ruling of May 21, which denied a challenge to the Attorney General's decision to restructure the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), AILA said that the immigration appellate process had been gutted of any meaningful review.

Together with the Capital Area Immigrants' Rights Coalition, AILA challenged the BIA reform regulations, brining action under the federal Administrative Procedures Act (APA) that governs agency rulemaking. AILA argued that the government violated APA "because it had not engaged in reasoned decision-making prior to promulgating the final rule." The court disagreed.

The AG's BIA reforms went into effect on September 25, 2002. According to AILA, the new regulations increase the use of single BIA member decisions, reduce the number of BIA members to 11 from 23, and establish a six-month transition period for eliminating the case backlogs, which run into the tens of thousands.

"Given the life and death consequences of asylum cases, it is crucial that the BIA engage in a careful, individualized review of each case," AILA President Jack Pinnix said. "It is vitally important that immigration courts be independent, impartial and include meaningful checks and balances. Accordingly, AILA urges the creation of an independent immigration court system that can assure that each person has his or her day in court and review before an impartial administrative body."

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The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) recently discussed with the Immigration Services Division (ISD) problems concerning receipt notices that indicate a processing time of “969 to 999 days” on filings that should take considerably less time. The ISD stated that each service center individually controls the number of days. The service center can correct the issue if the problem is the use of a default in processing time. The ISD also assured AILA that Quality Control is presently investigating the issue.

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The Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCIS) is conducting a survey to determine the success of the new call system. As the agency continues to move more of its calls to a central 800 National Customer Service Center. The BCIS wants information from those who have used the new system in order to find out how the Center is handling inquiries and resolving problems. Access to the survey is available online to AILA members through the AILA Infonet http://www.aila.org/infonet/

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Amnesty International criticized the United States’ conduct in the organization’s human rights report for 2002, pointing to Washington’s actions in the war on terror as in defiance of international humanitarian law and mistreatment of imprisoned foreign nationals.

Amnesty stated that the United States is using legislation enacted after Sept. 11 in order to excuse detainment of terror suspects without a trial at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. While more than 1200 foreign nationals, mostly Muslim men of Arab or South Asian origin, were taken into custody following the Sept. 11 attacks and the war in Afghanistan, around 600 still remain in detention without being charged or access to legal assistance.

Amnesty also expressed concern for the situation in Iraq following the war, saying the lack of security poses a threat to human rights and development. The organization also discussed fear that Iraq would fall by the wayside, much like Afghanistan, if no genuine effort were made. More than 18 months after the war in Afghanistan, Amnesty states millions of Afghans are facing uncertain and insecure futures.

Amnesty’s secretary general, Irene Kahn, accused the United States of undermining international law by seeking bilateral agreements to exempt its citizens from charges of human rights abuses by the International Criminal Court.

The organization also pointed to the “hidden” crises in the Congo, Chechnya, and other areas around the globe.

Washington dismissed the report as “without merit.”

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The General Accounting Office has issued a report titled "Protecting Refugee Women and Girls Remains A Significant Challenge." The GAO said it commissioned the study in order to assess efforts by the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) to protect refugees and to determine what steps the UN and other organizations must take to prevent the sexual exploitation of refugee women by humanitarian workers. The report says the GAO found weaknesses in UNHCR's staffing process that limit the effectiveness of measures it has developed to protect refugees, and that UNHCR lacks a formal plan for providing practical training for most staff.

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During a recent State Department press briefing, DOS spokesman Richard Boucher responded to a question about possible plans to close embassies and consulates in the face of increased terrorism. Boucher said posts could close for a day or two while security checks are processed, or while additional security measures are installed. "That will continue to happen from time to time," he said, "but because those decisions are made fairly rapidly on the ground by the embassies themselves, I can't predict in advance."

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The Texas Service Center has established a new P.O. Box just for applicant and attorney address changes (below). AILA members should provide the applicants name, A# (if applicable), application type and SRC#, in addition to the old and new addresses.

Alien Address and Attorney Changes

US BCIS/TSC

PO Box 850891

Mesquite, TX 75185-0891

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Senator John McCain was recently quoted as saying he supports immigration reforms such as amnesty and a guest-worker program, ideas put on hold since 9-11, and that they must be made a priority when Congress reconvenes.

"I believe we can pursue the security programs and at the same time set up a system where people can come here and work on a temporary basis. I think we can set up a program where amnesty is extended to a certain number of people who are eligible and at the same time make sure that we have some control over people who come in and out of this country," he said.

McCain said amnesty would be vital to any immigration bill that includes a guest-worker program.

"How can we have a temporary worker program if we're not allowing people who have been here for 30 years to hold jobs here?"

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In a White House press briefing this week, Spokesman Ari Fleischer said the President would continue to push for 245(i).

"There continue to be ongoing conversations through the State Department. And we continue to press Congress to make advancements on issues such as 245(i), and of course, the Mexico trucking issue, if you remember, is something that the President worked to make progress on," Fleischer said.

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The National Lawyers Guild's Immigration Law Project has posted an international student advisory containing tips on processing F-1 visas at US consulates. The link is http://www.nationalimmigrationproject.org/sept11/IntlStudentTravelAdvisory.pdf.