The Militant - February 3, 2003 -- Washington expands registration list

Vol. 67/No. 4 February 3, 2003

Washington expands registration list

BY MICHAEL ITALIE
The U.S. government’s expansion of the list of countries covered by its immigration registration requirements has met with protests from several governments. Indonesian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Marty Natalegawa said, "We find it difficult to comprehend, and we deeply regret the decision as it is discriminatory.... And unacceptable." The Indonesian government has advised citizens not to travel to the United States.

Bangladesh, Egypt, Jordan, and Kuwait were added to the list, along with Indonesia, the world’s most populous majority-Muslim country, in a January 16 announcement by U.S. attorney general John Ashcroft. The move raised to 25 the number of countries whose male citizens 16 years of age and older are required to register at Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) offices, where they are to be fingerprinted, photographed, and interrogated. Washington set a March 28 deadline for the registration of individuals from the five additional countries.

To date nearly 24,000 immigrants have complied with the government registration order. The arrests of hundreds who have done so has sparked protests in Los Angeles--where rallies following the first deadline of December 16 involved thousands of people--New York, San Francisco, and other cities.

"Our effort is to get Pakistan out of the list," said Pakistani foreign minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri. He plans to protest his country’s inclusion when he travels to the United States in late January, he said. Pakistanis, who are required to register by February 21, comprise the largest number of Muslims visiting or temporarily residing in the United States.

Bangladesh’s foreign secretary, Shamser Mobin Chowdhury, said that including its citizens was an affront to the country’s "credentials as a moderate, Muslim democracy."

Meanwhile, the INS has extended the registration deadline for citizens of a number of countries until February 7. Acknowledging that significant numbers have been "frightened away" by the process, an official said, "Many people may have misunderstood or been misinformed" about the penalties for not registering.

Justice Department officials claim the program has "stopped and identified terrorists." Of the 1,169 men who were jailed while complying with the registration order, 164 remain behind bars, almost all for immigration violations. Commenting on the January 16 announcement, an INS representative said that by 2005 all immigrants will be incorporated. "Eventually, everyone will have to comply," he said.

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