*EPF410 05/01/2003
Foreign Visitor Registration Program Called "Great Success"
(But scholars debate efficacy and merits of NSEERS) (900)

By Anthony Kujawa
Washington File Staff Writer

Washington -- Suspected terrorists, convicted felons and drug traffickers are among the 733 people arrested as a result of the U.S. National Security Entry-Exit Registration System (NSEERS), implemented September 11, 2002, says a U.S. Justice Department official.

Kris Kobach, counsel to the U.S. Attorney General, said that since that time more than 133,000 people from 150 countries have been registered in NSEERS, at border crossings, airports and immigration offices throughout the United States.

Speaking at a Migration Policy Institute panel discussion in Washington April 25, Kobach outlined progress under NSEERS and called it a "massive leap forward" for immigration authorities. But others at the briefing questioned the program's efficacy, merits and use of "nationality-based" criteria.

Muzaffar Christi, senior policy analyst at the institute, called NSEERS's implementation "a disaster," criticizing what he said was a lack of outreach to explain to other countries why the United States was pursuing nationality-based registration policies.

"People have felt stigmatized and intimidated," said Christi, who characterized the program as a "godsend for Islamic fundamentalists."

"If al Qaeda could have done public relations, they could not have done better," said Christi explaining that the message the fundamentalist Islamic press has taken from NSEERS is that the United States has targeted all Muslims "as enemies."

Kobach said NSEERS does not target Muslims, but that visitors from certain predominantly Arab and Muslim countries are subject to domestic registration because al Qaeda has been known to operate in their homelands.

According to Kobach, the primary goals of NSEERS are to prevent terrorists and known criminals from entering the United States, to identify terrorists already in the country, and to "develop a capacity to enforce overstays."

NSEERS consists of three components: Point-of-Entry (POE) Registration, Special Registration and Exist/Departure Controls. At POE registration, temporary visitors entering the country who are identified as "presenting an elevated national security concern" are fingerprinted, interviewed and photographed. With special registration, nonimmigrant visitors staying more than 30 days are required to check in with the Department of Homeland Security and report where they are and what they're doing. By 2005, NSEERS aims to become a comprehensive entry-exit system that applies to almost all foreign visitors, said Kobach.

With Special Registration, also called "Domestic Call-in Registration," the Attorney General has directed nonimmigrant men 16 years of age or older who are nationals of specified countries to register at immigration offices within a certain time period.

Divided into four "Call in Groups," nonimmigrant visitors from the following 25 countries were required to register: Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Eritrea, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, North Korea, Oman, Qatar, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan and Kuwait. The first two groups' registration deadline ended February 7. Registration closed for the third group on March 21 and for the forth group on April 25.

Calling the program a great success, Kobach said that 11 suspected terrorists have been apprehended through NSEERS. Several of the suspected terrorists had ties to al Qaeda and were located through domestic registration, he said. One hundred eight convicted felons also have been apprehended through domestic registration, added Kobach.

Felonies "are substantial crimes," he said. "These individuals are not by law permitted to be in the U.S. after they have been convicted of crimes of this magnitude."

But Kareem Shora, legal advisor to the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, questioned whether NSEERS is a legitimate step to enhance national security. He said the program instills fear and alienates a community at a time the U.S. government should be reaching out and developing more cooperative relations with that community.

Shora added that there "continues to be confusion" on who is required to register based on nationality, and on the status of Palestinians.

Describing the lack of outreach in NSEERS, Christi said "people did not know why the government was implementing the program. We [the U.S. government] had no 'talking points' toward these communities as to why they should be coming in."

When domestic registration was implemented, Christi said, the "immigration bureaucracy was incredibly paralyzed," with no training for the job or additional resources.

While admitting immigration authorities did not effectively deploy resources in the Los Angeles office before registration began, leading to long delays and detentions, Kobach said wait times have been reduced significantly. The average time for interviews at domestic registration was 18 minutes, and for interviews at POE 15 minutes, he said.

"Efforts were made reasonably and judiciously by the federal government to meet the needs of those aliens coming in responding to the domestic enrollment call," said Kobach, adding that a number of grace periods were granted for visitors from the first groups of countries, and that deadlines were extended for the third and fourth groups.

Kobach said that less than 14 percent of those who registered domestically were found to be "out of status" -- mostly for "overstays."

"The statutory maximum of 120 days voluntary departure was offered to every person who registered and was out of status, allowing them to leave the U.S. without a removal on their record, which greatly enhances their ability to return," he said.

(The Washington File is a product of the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

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