Speech #1020184562

Mr. President. I have for many years opposed the use of presumptions in making refugee determinations under the Refugee Act of 1980. The Refugee Act of 1980 was enacted to change our longstanding policy of accepting refugees based on ideological or geographical considerationsaccepting only refugees fleeing from communism or from countries in the Middle East. The Refugee Act established a nonideological. casebycase consideration of each refugee applicant. This casebycase consideration includes an interview with each refugee applicant in which the burden is on the refugee to establish that he. or she. "has a wellfounded fear" of persecution on account of race. religion. nationality. membership in a particular social group. or political opinion. Sections 599d and 599e of Public Law 101167. the socalled Lautenberg amendment. create a special standard of evidence for establishing refugee status for Soviet Jews and certain other groups. The amendment creates a presumption of qualification for refugee status if an applicant merely asserts a credible basis for concern about the possibility of persecution. Under the Lautenberg amendment. despite the requirements of the Refugee Actwhich. by the way. are identical to the requirements of the United Nations60.000 of the 130.000 refugees who will be admitted to the United States this year will qualify under this special standard for establishing refugee status--this presumption of refugeeness. Although I have never supported this. or any other. special presumption of refugee atatus. there may have been a stronger argument for it when the former Soviet Union was still in existence. and the Soviet Government had an official policy of suppressing religion. and when Jews and other dissidents were persecuted for merely requesting an exit permit to leave their country. But all that has changed. Communism has fallen into disfavor. if not disgrace. in the Soviet Union. The President of Russia now attends church. Russians and others in the former Soviet Union can now emigrate without a special invitation to do so from a relative living abroad. With these changes in conditions in the former Soviet Union. this amendment has little to justify its continuation to provide a special standard of evidence for a select group. who presumably cannot establish a wellfounded fear of political persecution. Mr. President. I would like to make an important point here. These Immigrantsand I use the term immigrants advisedly because these folks coming from the former Soviet Union have all the characteristics of our traditional immigrants. and few of the characteristics of refugees fleeing to preserve their life or freedomthese immigrants are an impressive group. Many of them are educated and welltrained. and are anxious to participate in the economic and political system we have in this country. I have no doubt at all that they will embrace our system of government and become fine contributing members of our society very quickly. I also do not believe that the Immigrants we are receiving from the Soviet Union will aggravate the high dependency rate we are finding among refugees in general in this country. In my mind. Mr. President. they are a welcome immigrant flowand they are a significant flow. More persons from the former Soviet Union were granted permanent immigration status in the United States last year than from any other country in the world. They are fine immigrants as I have said. Mr. President. but they are for the most part. immigrants. Many. if not most of them. are well educated. many. if not most. have held good jobs in the Soviet Union. and many. if not most. will make important contributions to this country. But. many. if not most. are immigrants. But they are not refugees--and if they had to meet the same standards other persons applying for refugee status around the world have to meet. they could not do it. That is why we have the Lautenberg amendment. To grant this group refugee status. without having to establish that they are. indeed. persons with a wellfounded fear of political persecution. What is the difference between admitting a person as an immigrant and admitting one as a refugee? One difference is in how they get here and how they are received. Immigrants must pay their way to the United States. and after they have arrived here. they are prohibited from accepting public assistance. In fact. Mr. President. it is a deplorable offense to become a public charge under our immigration laws. A refugee. on the other hand. has money advanced for the air flight to the United States. and upon arrival. the group which receives him or her is given a reception grant of $568 per refugee to look after the refugee for the first 30 days. After 30 days. the refugee then becomes eligible for special refugee cash and medical assistance. Further. a refugee does not have to get in line with the more than 4 million other immigrants who have been approved for immigration to the United States. but who have to wait their turn in a very long line. Although the limits are very generous. we do have limits on immigration. When we accept a person as a refugee. he or she goes to the very head of the line and is admitted almost immediately. This special treatment for refugees is warranted. but only when the person is fleeing his country because of a wellfounded fear of political persecution. Mr. President. with all of the changes that have occurred in the Soviet Union in the last year. there is simply no justification for the extension of the Lautenberg amendment for another 2 years. Persons coming to the United States as refugees under this special provision allege that discriminationnot political persecutionis the basis for leaving their homeland. It is stated that antiSemitism in the Soviet Union is much reduced. and while there certainly are vestiges of antiSemitism remaining. that is also the case in this country. In view of the rapid changes we are witnessing in the former Soviet Union. there is certainly no justification for extending these special provisions for 2 more years.