US House won’t ban ‘petitions’

WASHINGTON — Under pressure from ethnic groups, an American lawmaker has withdrawn his measure to prevent US citizens from petitioning their siblings to join them in the United States.

Arizona Republican J.D. Hayworth filed the measure on Thursday as a last-minute amendment to House Bill 4437 entitled "Border Protection, Anti-terrorism and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005."

But in the face of a strong campaign by ethnic communities to defeat the measure, Hayworth recalled the contentious amendment.

"I am happy to report that Rep. Hayworth withdrew his amendment to eliminate the brothers/sisters of US citizens’ category from the family-based immigration system. I want to thank everyone who contacted their representatives on this important issue," said a spokesman for the Asian American Justice Center (AAJC), which spearheaded the campaign to beat the proposal.

Under the Hayworth proposal, siblings of US citizens who have been waiting for years to immigrate legally to the US would have been unable to do so.

Under present laws, US citizens — who must be over 21 when they petition for their siblings — must wait for 11 years in order to be reunited with their brothers and sisters. For some countries such as India, Mexico and the Philippines, the wait is longer — as long as 23 years in the case of the Philippines, ethnic immigration lawyers said. 

Traci Hong, director of immigration program at the AAJC, previously known as the National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium, said the Hayworth amendment would have retroactively punished US citizens and their brothers and sisters who have been waiting patiently for years to immigrate legally to the US.

An AAJC statement on Friday urged 39 local and national Asian Pacific American groups opposed to the measure to continue pressuring members of Congress "about comprehensive immigration reform and the need to protect family immigration."

"The battle is not over yet. Rep. Hayworth and his cohorts have made it clear that they will sacrifice family immigration, particularly the brothers and sisters of US citizens, to undercut comprehensive immigration reform or even a guest worker program," the statement said.

The US House on Thursday suspended deliberations on HB 4437 without tackling the Hayworth amendment.

Earlier this week, the US House had approved by voice vote a resolution acknowledging the achievements and contributions of Filipino Americans over the past century and recognizing 2006 as the centennial of sustained immigration from the Philippines to the US.

Democratic congressman Ed Case of Hawaii, author of House concurrent resolution 218, said Filipino immigrants have played a prominent role in all facets of life in their adopted land including the military, "where Filipino Americans demonstrated decades of bravery and loyalty to our country and have one of the highest enlistment rates."

The House measure approved on Wednesday requested President George W. Bush to issue a proclamation "calling on the people of the United States to observe this milestone with appropriate celebratory and educational programs, ceremonies and other activities."

A similar concurrent resolution will be introduced in the Senate.

Approval of the House resolution kicked off a week of festivities in Hawaii, a lead-in to a yearlong celebration of 100 years of Filipino immigration to America.

"The history of Filipino Americans is the quintessential American immigrant story of early struggle pain, and sacrifice, leading to success in overcoming ethnic, social, economic, political and legal barriers," said Case, whose home state boasts a population of 275,000 Fil-Ams, second only to California’s 1.1 million, out of about 2.4 million nationwide.