18,000 deported from U.S. to El Salvador

In the past twelve months, the United States government has deported over 400,000 immigrants  back to their countries of origin, and according to a report by El Faro, 95% of the deportees were Latin American. The number of deportees has risen by 40,000 since 2008 when almost 350,000 people were deported from the U.S.

The vast majority (286,893) of the deportees were Mexican. The country with the second most deportees is Guatemala (33,324). Honduras is third (23,822) and El Salvador is fourth (18,870). Of those deported, 55% had been charged with some crime in the U.S.

President Obama ran on a platform that included immigration reform as one of his top priorities, but we have still seen no action other than a failed attempt at passing the Dream Act. Certainly much of the inaction on reform is attributable to the Tea Party Movement and the extreme positions taken by the Republican presidential candidates, who seem to stumble over each other to take the most extreme position possible on immigration enforcement.

According to the online journal Infowars, immigration enforcement has been a cash cow for private prisons. There are 2 million immigrants in private prisons in the United States. The government pays these prisons $45-130 per day for their detention.

Though the political climate is not favorable to immigration reform, our politicians need to at least keep trying and we have to keep this issue on the front on the front page of the papers.

Former Salvadoran General Faces Deportation from the US

General Eugenio Vides Casanova currently has been living as a legal resident in South Florida since 1989.  He moved to the United States after retiring honorably from his post as El Salvador’s minister of defense, a position he held for 6 years during El Salvador’s brutal civil war.  During this time, he was a close ally of the United States because of his intense efforts against the Marxist guerillas.

In a case that the New York Times calls “an about-face in American policy,” General Vides is now facing possible deportation following being charged with torture in a U.S. immigration court.   This is the first time the Department of Homeland Security has pursued immigration charges against a high-ranking foreign military official.

Both the prosecution and defense are expected to call former U.S. ambassadors to testify: Robert E. White for the prosecution and Edwin G. Corr for the defense.  Another witness is Juan Romagoza Arce, a Salvadoran doctor who was tortured by the National Guard in 1980.

General Vides has already faced legal trouble in the U.S. for his actions during El Salvador’s civil war.  He, along with General José Guillermo García, was accused and acquitted by a Florida jury in 2000 in a civil case for the killing of four American churchwomen who were murdered by Vides’ Salvadoran National Guard.  The same year, the justice center filed charges of torture against the two generals.  In 2002, they were found guilty of torture by a Florida jury and ordered to pay $54.6 million to three torture victims, a decision that was upheld by an appeals court in 2006.

This case is an example of the lingering effects of El Salvador’s civil war, effects that can even be seen in the United States.  No American officials have been held accountable for their part in human rights abuses in El Salvador during the war.  Even though more than 400 people have been deported from the US since 2003 for rights abuses, this is an important effort to hold Salvadoran allies of the US responsible for their actions in a war that often slips under Americans’ radars.

Those who fought on the other side in the war, the FMLN guerillas, have been at odds with U.S. officials since the war, first for their communist/Marxist ideals and later for actions taken during the war.  For example, US diplomats still refuse to meet with El Salvador’s Public Security Minister Manuel Melgar.  He was a guerilla during the war who is accused of killing 4 US Marines in 1985.  In a July 2009 cable released by the WikiLeaks website, American diplomats described seeing his appointment as the imposition of FMLN hardliners, despite President Funes’ pretty moderate political stance.

The case against General Vides is an important step in acknowledging the human rights abuses by both sides during the civil war, including those who the US government strongly supported.  The trial is expected to last a week, so it should be decided by the end of April, which could set a significant precedent for finally responding to El Salvador’s dirty war.

Immigration Reform Update

Just over a year ago, President Obama made many promises, one of which was to fix the broken immigration system.  While his administration has made significant steps in fulfilling promises such as closing Guantanamo Bay and health care reform, immigration reform has been put on the back burner.  Some fear that with the health care debate dragging on, the administration and Congressional leaders may not have the political stamina to push through another highly contentious issue before the 2010 elections.

Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill) is one of the few politicians who believe immigration to be a pressing issue, and in October 2009 he announced that he is planning to introduce his own immigration reform legislation.  In a press release, Rep. Gutierrez stated,

“[w]e simply cannot wait any longer for a bill that keeps our families together, protects our workers and allows a pathway to legalization for those who have earned it. It is time we had a workable plan making its way through Congress that recognizes the vast contributions of immigrants to this country and that honors the American Dream.  I am preparing such a plan, and will introduce it in the near future.”

If signed into law, Rep. Gutierrez’s bill would have a profound impact on undocumented Salvadorans living in the U.S.  It would, in part, provide a pathway for undocumented workers to earn to a visa or citizenship.  The bill would also make it easier for family members in El Salvador to join their relatives in the U.S. as well as expand the scope of labor rights to include undocumented workers. It would also strengthen the Dream Act so that the children of undocumented immigrants can more easily access public schools in the U.S.

On November 13, 2009, Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano voiced her support for immigration reform, and expressed confidence that it will happen in early 2010.  Speaking at the Center for American Progress, the former govenor of Arizona said that the current economic and political climate are more suitable for reform than in 2007, when the Bush Administration tried to get reform passed.  She cites reports that the flow of undocumented workers is half of what it was in 2007 due to the weakened economy, but warned that the flow is likely to resume as the economy rebounds.  She believes that reform is necessary now, so that the U.S. will be able to better manage the increase of immigrants that will likely follow the rising economy.  Secretary Napolitano also argues that the U.S. has achieved many of its goals in securing the border.  The 700-mile wall, which she opposed as the governor of Arizona, is almost complete; the Border Patrol now has over 20,000 officers securing the border area; and more than 167,000 employers at 639,000 work sites use the E-Verify System.  

In expressing her support, Secretary Napolitano said that reform had to be a “three-legged stool that includes a commitment to serious and effective enforcement, improved legal flows for families and workers, and a firm but fair way to deal with those already here.” Undocumented immigrants, she believes, ought to pay taxes, undergo criminal background checks, and learn to speak English.  Napolitano also echoed one of the common arguments for reform – that immigration is part of the American identity and that the current system is broken.  The status quo, she argues, only hurts American workers and weakens the U.S. economy.  It also encourages migrants to embark on dangerous journeys during which they intrust their lives to smugglers along the Mexico-U.S. border.  And without rights or access to the legal system, undocumented workers are often forced to work for lower wages, which in addition to not being just, adversely affects the wages of all workers. Secretary Napolitano also pointed out that the current visa requirements also harms those in the agricultural and service sectors, who are often unable to find enough workers.  

Richard Hobbs, an immigration lawyer and Associate Director of SIREN (Services, Immigrant, Rights, and Education Network) echoed the sentiments of Rep. Gutierrez and expressed many of the concerns raised by Secretary Napolitano.  Mr. Hobbs recently wrote, “as he holds forth the promise of remaking America, we must hold President Obama to his promise for just and humane immigration reform, with deliberation and due haste.” He goes on to argue tha the Obama Administration’s policies on job creation and health care reform are meaningless to the 12 million people living in the U.S. illegally.  Similar to Rep. Gutierrez and Secretary Napolitano, Mr. Hobbs favors creating a path towards legalization for immigrants who come to the U.S., and work and contribute to our economic development, noting that two-thirds of American voters agree on this point. He also states that 57% of voters support more comprehensive approach to legalization, as opposed to the 28% that would rather rely solely on law enforcement. Mr. Hobbs also adds that legalization would add 12 million new tax-payers to the system, which would increase government revenues.  On its website, SIREN states that they would welcome the reforms offered in Rep. Gutierrez’s bill.

With health care reform debate heading into what may be the final stretch, perhaps Secretary Napolitano’s optimism that immigration reform will happen in 2010 is justified.  It is unlikely that politicians will be willing to take on such a controversial topic too far into the 2010 election year, and the political landscape after November 2010 is more than uncertain.  The time for reform is now. 

Please get inolved in supporting immigration reform now.  Here are a couple links to organizations that are working on immigration reform and related issues:

Reform Immigration for America: http://reformimmigrationforamerica.org/

National Council of La Raza: http://www.nclr.org/content/topics/detail/500/

MALDEF: http://maldef.org/truthinimmigration/

BorderLinks: http://www.borderlinks.org/

SIREN: http://www.siren-bayarea.org/