Local-born aliens press naturalization bill approval

Ethnic Chinese- and Indian-Filipinos may soon gain the citizenship they have long desired if Congress passes a measure that would naturalize some 58,000 aliens who were born and have since resided in the country.

Dante Go, president of the 400-strong Chinese Filipino Business Club (CFBC), appealed to the Arroyo administration to push the administrative naturalization bill that was derailed last year when the Senate convened as an impeachment tribunal.

Go said House Bill No. 12228 had already been passed but the Senate shelved it due to the impeachment trial of jailed ex-President Joseph Estrada.

HB 12228, known as the administrative naturalization bill, was among the matters that Go and other Fil-Chinese businessmen discussed with President Arroyo when they invited her to make a historic first visit to Chinatown last month.

The CFBC organized the Binondo community to welcome and express support for Mrs. Arroyo who became the first incumbent President to set foot in the Binondo district and pledged her support for the Fil-Chinese community, especially on citizenship and criminality.

Under HB 12228, aliens who were born in the Philippines, mostly Chinese and Indian nationals, can now be naturalized and become productive members of mainstream society.

"Most of the aliens who are pushing for this bill were born here, live here, raised families here and would likely die here but have so far been deprived of citizenship," Go said.

There are numerous instances where aliens who were born in the country remain Chinese or Indian nationals although they no longer speak Chinese or Hindi, he said.

He also lamented the brain drain caused when Fil-Chinese or Fil-Indian professionals are forced to pursue their careers away from the land of their birth because only Filipino citizens are allowed to take the local professional board exams.

"Many Fil-Chi professionals were born and lived here but were forced to pursue their careers in Taiwan or China because they had been deprived of Filipino citizenship," he said.

After being briefed on the features of HB 12228, Mrs. Arroyo said she had no objection to the bill but asked the Department of Justice to render a legal opinion on the measure.

Justice Secretary Hernando Perez, for his part, fully recommended the enactment of the bill into law, citing the need to "revisit" the country’s "antiquated naturalization laws."

In a letter to Sen. Rene Cayetano, chairman of the Senate committee on justice, Perez said the existing naturalization law, Commonwealth Act No. 473, needs to be "re-examined as (it) is perceived to be no longer responsive to the increasing demands of the ever-changing international migration and domestic policies."

Under HB 12228, aliens who were born in the Philippines may be naturalized provided they satisfy standard citizenship requirements and pay a naturalization fee of P100,000 plus a P40,000 processing fee.

Considering that about 50,000 Fil-Chinese and 8,000 Fil-Indians are expected to avail of the law, an additional P8 billion will likely enter government coffers.

Go said this figure excludes the additional income the government would earn as naturalized alien businessmen start paying the correct income taxes.