Speech #860253383

Only by doing so. can we be true to the principles that we stand for. We. Americans of Chinese descent. are proud of our contribution to the advancement of our Nation. but as an emigrant group. we have problems which particularly concern us. One of such problems deals with immigration laws. A common difficulty facing many foreign nationals in the United States is how to adjust their immigration status to that of a permanent resident. We earnestly hope that Congress would be able in the near future to pass a bill that would provide for the adjustment of status to permanent residents of many Chinese persons whose entry into the United States was based on doubtful claims and facts. In enacting such legislation. there has been precedent in the past whereby special legislation was introduced to permit adjustment of immigration status of other nationalities who entered the United States by the same means. Aside from our interest in legikation for adjustment of immigration status. we are also concerned with antiCommunist Chinese refugees in Hong Kong. Recently. the House of Representatives has passed a House Joint Resolution 397 which affords immigration privileges to a limited number of refugees from Communistdominated or occupied territories. within the mandate of the United Nations High Commissioner. Since antiCommunist Chinese refugees in Hong Kong are not under the Mandate of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. they certainly would be completely excluded from the benefits of this particular legislation. We cant help feeling seriously disturbed because of the discriminatory provision in the present House Joint Resolution 397. We strongly urge the liberalization of that bill by deleting the clause of "within the mandate of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees." In closing. may I once again welcome you to Chinatown and wish you a happy visit to New York City and to our community. Jim Mitchell: Looking for a New Job