Will
Pakistan Follow the Latin American States
Linda
Chavez
WASHINGTON'S unwillingness to deal with illegal immigration has
emboldened several Latin American governments to come up with
their own solutions. An estimated 9 million illegal aliens from
Latin America live in the United States, so Mexico, El Salvador,
Honduras and Guatemala have recently begun issuing identification
cards to illegal aliens through their consular offices in the
US
These
IDs allow illegal aliens living here to open bank accounts, obtain
drivers' licenses and library cards, and fly on US domestic
airlines.
While many Americans may find the practice objectionable, a number
of local and state governments have been quick to embrace these
new "matricula consular" IDs as a way to bring illegal
aliens in their communities out of the shadows, where they are
easy prey to criminals and scam artists. So far, several jurisdictions
in California, Texas, Arizona, Illinois, Georgia and elsewhere
have decided to accept these identification cards where official
government IDs are required.
Now, El Salvador has gone a step further in driving US immigration
policy by actually lobbying its nationals to stay in the United
States — even though they came here illegally in the first
place. Salvadoran President Francisco Flores recently sent recorded
messages to Salvadorans living in the US, reminding them to reapply
for the limited amnesty they were granted two years ago in the
wake of two devastating earthquakes in their home country.
The
emergency measure permitted Salvadorans who entered the US illegally
prior to February 2001 to apply for temporary work permits, which
expired in September 2002. The message from the Salvadoran president
was delivered via Americatel, a long-distance carrier, to some
750,000 persons in the United States who had placed calls to El
Salvador previously.
Mexico, El Salvador and other Latin American countries are taking
these unorthodox steps because illegal immigration has become
a safety valve for their own struggling economies. Those unable
to find jobs in their own countries simply sneak across the border
to the United States, where work is relatively plentiful and wages
are substantially higher than at home.
What's more, these illegal aliens send literally billions of dollars
home to support family members left behind. Throughout Latin America,
these remittances from illegal aliens living in the United States
have boosted local economies, even providing needed infrastructure
in some communities — roads, schools and even sewers for
remote villages. Experts estimate that remittances from family
members living in the US are now the chief source of foreign aid
to Latin America.
But can the United States afford to have other countries encouraging
their nationals to disobey US immigration law? The fact is, these
countries are simply taking advantage of the vacuum that exists
in American immigration policy. Despite a lot of bombastic political
rhetoric over illegal immigration, most politicians — from
both parties — are unwilling to take the bull by the horns
and come up with a sensible solution.
Like
it or not, it's not possible simply to round up all the illegal
aliens in the country and ship them home. Nor would it be desirable
to do so. Our economy is simply too dependent on their labor to
withstand a roundup of illegals like the one the US engaged in
during the Great Depression. Most illegal aliens are gainfully
employed doing dirty, often dangerous jobs that Americans won't
take, at least not at wages that allow employers to keep the jobs
here rather than ship the jobs overseas.
The only answer is a properly constructed guest-worker program
that regulates the flow of workers into the country, depending
on economic conditions in the United States. When we face boom
times and labor shortages, we should be able to bring in more
workers. When the job market tightens and the economy contracts,
we should be able to send them home again.
Those
already living and working here, albeit illegally, ought to be
able to "earn" legal status by paying a hefty fine for
having broken our immigration laws, learning English and demonstrating
work history and skills that make them a good bet as future workers.
A guest-worker program may not be the perfect solution to our
growing illegal immigration problem, but it's a lot better than
what we have now: US officials' wink and a nod to illegal immigration
and foreign governments' open encouragement to their nationals
to flout our laws.
The
writer is a nationally syndicated US columnist. Courtesy
Washington Times
