Speech #910248687

Mr. Speaker. there could hardly be a more appropriate time than Captive Nations Week to say a few words in behalf of political refugees who seek asylum in the United States and to discuss practical means for assisting them. On January 27 I introduced H.R. 15541. which would. if enacted into law. amend section 203(a) (7) of the Immigration and Nationality Act to make available annually an additional 10.200 conditional entries for certain refugees. My primary reason for sponsoring this measure was a desire to at least partly alleviate the plight of the large number of Czechs and Slovaks who were driven from their homeland by the Soviet invasion of August 1968. Many of these refugees would like to come to the United States but they are prevented from doing so because of oversubscribed quotas. The people to whom H.R. 15541 would give special consideration would neither swell the ranks of the unemployed nor add to the relief burdens of local communities. because they would have to be sponsored by American families and organizations that would assume responsibility for them. A large number of those who would become eligible for admittance to the United States under my bill possess special skills that are desperately needed in key industries. including vital defense installations. They would neither displace domestic workers nor keep the unemployed from obtaining work. Many of those who are presently jobless either do not have the special skills that are required for positions that employers find difficulty in filling or they are reluctant to move from their present homes to distant cities where their skills are in demand. The refugees from Czechoslovakia who have acquired unusual skills are not only willing but anxious to journey several thousand miles in order to begin new careers in America. Certainly these wouldbe immigrants would receive tremendous benefits in freedom and opportunity if they were permitted to come to the United States. but they would also make numerous worthwhile and lasting contributions by way of compensation. For example. among them is an engineer who holds