Speech #850005057

Mr. Speaker. I have introduced today a bill similar to the legislation I sponsored in the last Congress in the field of immigration. My new bill contains the following provisions: First. It would permit the entry of 5.000 minor war orphans adopted abroad by United States citizens or coming to the United States for such adoption. In cases of war orphans adopted byi United States citizens who are serving abroad in our Armed Forces or who remain abroad in the employment of the United States Government or an American organization. visas issued to orphans will be valid for 3 years. so that the adoptive parents will not be forced to return to the United States within the normal 4 months period of validity of the visa. Expeditious naturalization after admission to the United States is proposed for these children in order that they may accompany their adoptive parents abroad to foreign posts without undue hardship. Second. Having been advised by the Department of State that about 19.000 Visas allocated under the Refugee Relief Act of 1953. as amended. have not been issued to three categories of immigrants for whom the visas were originally intended. my bill permits the issuance of this number of immigrant visas without time limitations. On the expiration of the 1953 law. December 31. 1956. 16.338 allocated visas remained unissued to German expellees residing in West Germany and in Austria. 1.597 visas remained unissued to Dutch refugees and Dutch relatives of United States citizens residing in Holland. and 1.098 visas remained unissued to European refugees stranded in the Far East. My bill will permit the above specified number of visas to be issued to the immigrants as previously defined in the now expired law. The Department of State will be charged with the issuance of those visas by consular officers so that there will be no perpetuation of the special organization set up for the administration of the Refugee Relief Act of 1953. as amended. Third. The Congress has been aware for some time of the fact that a considerable number of displaced persons and refugees born in Soviet Russia have misrepresented their place of birth in order to avoid forcible repatriation to Soviet Russia back in the years when this country practiced this unfortunate policy. Now many thousands of those people who have been in the United States for many years are faced with deportation proceedings on the ground that fraud was committed when they made applications for entry in the United States. Under the provisions of my bill. the Attorney General would be authorized to cancel deportation proceedings outstanding against this category of displaced persons and refugees if he finds that no fraud was committed for the purpose of evading quota restrictions of our immigration laws and that the misrepresentation was predicated solely upon the fact that the immigrant had grounds to fear repatriation which meant persecution. deportation to Siberia. or death. Fourth. My bill will cancel the mortgage imposed upon several immigration quotas by legislation passed in 1948 under which displaced persons were brought to this country. Similarly. the mortgage imposed on the quota for Spain in connection with the importation of skilled sheepherders will be canceled. The effect of this provision of my bill would permit the full use of about 12 immigration quotas. Fifth. My bill would admit under proper safeguards prescribed by the United States Public Health Service up to 1.200 immigrants afflicted with tuberculosis. provided such immigrants are spouses or children of United States citizens. or members of a family unit previously admitted to the United States for permanent residence. The purpose of this provision is to prevent the separation of families and curtail the number of private bills introduced in the Congress. mostly for the purpose of permitting our servicemen to bring their alien brides. Sixth. My bill will clarify certain provisions of the immigration laws applicable to the exclusion of aliens who have committed crimes classifiable as misdemeanors and will authorize the use of the criminal code of the District of Columbia in order to determine whether such crimes. if committed in the United States. would be classified as minor offenses. This provision will also relieve the Congress of acting on a great number of private bills.