The Patriot Act 2001, passed hurriedly by Congress after the September 11 attacks, which is being strictly implemented since October 1, has led to increasing complaints that people of Middle Eastern and South Asian origins or looks are bearing the brunt of the new law.

The new law, which has come under sharp criticism from civil liberties and immigrant bodies, makes it easier to bring about a more vigilant enforcement of visa laws, arrest and deportation of visa overstays as well as deportation absconders, delay in processing of work permits of aliens, a new and stringent procedure related to grant of student visas, and enforcement of immigration laws relating to students after they enter the United States.

Ironically, like most other immigration policies which have come to the fore now, the necessary procedures were already in place, some since World War II and others since 1998, but they had been suspended for decades in respect to most visiting foreign nationals. "Now, our national interest demands that such procedures be implemented fully to guarantee the safety of all residents of the United States, including US nationals and other visitors," Attorney General John Ashcroft explained. There are three components to the process: first, fingerprinting and photographing at the entry points to the country; second, periodic registration of aliens who stay in the US for 30 days or more and third, exit controls that will help the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) remove aliens who do not comply with the relevant regulations or are found to have been in violation of other US Immigration laws.

The nationals of the following countries are affected by the National Security Entry-Exit Registration System (NSEERS): all nationals of Iran, Iraq, Libya, Sudan, and Syria.

Also affected are other non-immigrant aliens whom the State Department considers to present an elevated national security risk, based on criteria reflecting current intelligence. According to a report in the Washington Post on 24 September, Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) internal memo, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen have been added to the list of such countries. Intending visitors to be subjected to the new procedures would be picked out by INS inspectors "in their discretion", which means not all arriving Pakistanis may be photographed and fingerprinted. The fingerprints of the aliens undergoing NSEERS would be matched against a database of known criminals and terrorists. According to the Attorney General's office, in the past five months, during a pilot project using the same fingerprint technology to identify wanted criminals , INS was receiving an average of more than 70 fingerprint "hits" a week, resulting in the arrest of 2,000 wanted felons from January through July 2002. Fingerprinting is considered by the Justice Department as a foolproof procedure to identify criminals who have changed identities. Though an undeclared objective, fingerprinting would also help INS identify those illegal immigrants who obtained US nationality or Green Cards by changing the identities through which they entered the United States.

This would further increase the chances of arrests of many intending Pakistani visitors as a substantial number change their names and try to re-enter the United States under a new identity. With fingerprinting, they would all be like sitting ducks at ports of entry. Already, many Pakistanis have been deported from entry airports when their previous instances of visa overstay were discovered during the initial fingerprinting.

The INS inspector at the point of entry is one of the most powerful officials in the US because he has immense discretionary powers, and is not even accountable to an INS District Director. He can only be held judicially accountable and that too with great difficulty.

If a visitor remains in the US for more than 30 days, he must report to an INS office between day 30 and day 40. If a visitor remains in the United States for one year or longer, he must report 10 days before or after the anniversary of his entry into the United States. During the stay, if the visitor changes his address, employer or school after staying in the United States for 30 days or more, he must notify the INS in writing within 10 days of the change.

A tourist would be asked for evidence substantiating his declared purpose of visit, hotel receipts, ticket stubs, or in case he or she has been staying with relatives, documents such as postmarked envelopes showing their address. A visitor who is an employee would have to show payroll stubs, employment contracts and the like. A student would have to produce class schedule, official notification of the grades, student identification card etc. The INS officer could ask other relevant questions, and he could also ask the visitor to come with additional evidence after a period of seven days. Those designated for exit from the United States would have to appear in person before an INS inspecting officer at a designated port of departure and leave from that port the same day. In case of non-compliance, the offender would be deemed to be out of status and subject to arrest, detention, fines, and removal from the United States.

Source: Daily Times