Amnesty International charged that in Guatemala "opponents or suspected opponents of the government have been systematically seized without warrant. tortured and murdered." Currently. the only way Guatemalans can attempt to stay in the United States is to seek permanent political asylum. Despite the welldocumented evidence of political repression in Guatemala. just 0.4 percent of Guatemalan applicants received political asylum in 1984. The United States could provide Guatemalan refugees temporary shelter in our country by granting them extended voluntary departure status (or EVD). This status would permit refugees from Guatemala to remain temporarily in the United States until the situation in their home country improves sufficiently to allow them to return there safely. Granted at the discretion of the U.S. Attorney General. extended voluntary departure status has been conferred in the past to nationals from Vietnam.
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refugees