|
|
|||
|
|||
|
|
U.S. Will Profile Arab Visa Applicants NewsMax.com WiresWASHINGTON – The State Department will begin profiling male applicants from Muslim countries before issuing U.S. temporary visas, officials told United Press International Thursday. The new policy is a compromise aimed at resolving a dispute between the Departments of Justice and State. In the wake of the Sept. 11 terror attack on New York and the Pentagon, the Justice Department wanted to stop granting visas altogether to all males ages 16 to 45 from Muslim countries, according to State Department sources. "This new policy is all [Attorney General John] Ashcroft, from his mouth to God's ear," one State Department official told UPI. Instead, starting next week, all men in the specified category who submit visa applications at U.S. embassies and consulates in more than 20 countries will have to wait at least an additional 20 days as their names go back to Washington for intensive screening by the FBI, using its own database and other information. If after 20 days there is no response from the bureau, then consular officers may proceed with the visa application. Although the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service handles immigration questions inside the United States, American consulates overseas routinely issue temporary visitors' visas to foreign applicants. The routine waiting time is a few days. The State Department last month secured the agreement of the Justice Department to transfer information from the National Crime Information System to its own system for screening prospective visa applicants. But so far this information has not been meshed with what is called the Consular Lookout and Support System. Please Don't Lie When You Answer These Questions Male applicants from Muslim countries also will be required to answer a detailed questionnaire directed specifically at them, apparently in addition to the regular visa application. A State Department source later stressed that the new screening process was a temporary measure, but he did not indicate how long it would last. While that questionnaire is in the draft stage, one official familiar with its development said it would request information on military service, weapons training, details of travel to particular countries and whether the applicant has a history of losing passports. "Anyone in a Muslim country, where the predominant religion is Islam, who is a male aged 18 to 45 will have to fill in the additional questionnaire," an official explained. Three State Department officials confirmed separately that the list of countries where the new policy will be enforced included Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen. Most of the hijackers responsible for the Sept 11 terrorist attacks entered the United States with temporary visas. Sometimes these visas are issued for people to attend school; at other times they are issued for business or personal travel. The State Department and Immigration and Naturalization Service often have not been able to track the bearers of these visas once their permits have expired. Powell Still Wants Open Immigration! The new procedure is seen as a setback for Secretary of State Colin Powell, who favors an open immigration policy. On Oct. 31 Powell told reporters that the State Department was reviewing the visa application with two goals in mind. He said the first was to "make sure we remain an open society and let people know they are welcome to come to the United States." But Powell added that the United States should do this "in a way that protects us from people who do not wish us well when they come to the United States." State Department sources familiar with the internal debate within the Justice Department say the new policy was driven by the Justice Department. "Justice wanted to cut off all Arab men from getting visas," one State Department official said. "That was the position they had going into the debate." Copyright 2001 by United Press International. All rights reserved.
Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:
A product that might interest you: |
|
|||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||
|
| All Rights Reserved © 2009 NewsMax.Com |