Court says asylum case lacks grounds

A petition by two Chinese nationals for political asylum in the CNMI suffered a big blow yesterday after U.S. District Court Judge Alex R. Munson dropped the federal government as defendant to the case for lack of grounds.

Plaintiffs Rui Liang and Liao Da Nian failed to give the defendant “fair notice of the grounds for their claims and this lack of sufficient specificity…raises the issue of [their] standing to assert some of those claims,” the judge said in his ruling.

Although issued without prejudice for re-filing by the plaintiffs, Judge Munson’s order granted the U.S. motion to dismiss the former’s earlier motion against the defendant that was heard in the federal court last March 2.

Lawyer Bruce L. Jorgensen represented the two asylum-seekers, while Gretchen M. Wolfinger of the Office of Immigration Litigation of the U.S. Department of Justice and Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Baka stood for the defendant.
Federal officials have refused to accept the asylum applications of both Mr. Rui and Mr. Liao due to lack of jurisdictions, forcing the two to sue the U.S. as well as the CNMI governments and other local and federal officials to force them to do so.

In their complaint, the plaintiffs alleged violations of two international treaties that guarantee political asylum for those with fear of persecution in their own countries.

But the defendant argued those claims based on the treaties themselves which they said are not self-executing and thus provide no enforceable private right.

“Although plaintiffs attempt to redress the shortcomings of their complaint in their opposition to defendant’s motion. plaintiffs generalized invocation of customary international law is not sufficient to provide defendant with fair notice of the basis for plaintiffs’ claims,” said Judge Munson.

“While plaintiffs’ complaint appear to contain facts that would entitle them to relief, plaintiffs have pleaded with such equivocation, it is impossible for defendants to respond meaningfully,” he added.

Mr. Jorgensen had filed several amended motions to the complaint on behalf of his clients asking the court to process immediately their applications for asylum, alleging that the conduct of the defendants who had ignored and violated ruling by Judge Alex R. Munson, warrants such move.

Mr. Rui and Mr. Liao, who were freed from CNMI detention on overstaying charges by the Superior Court, have claimed in their asylum applications that they are in danger of being “personally threatened or harmed” by authorities of the communist government if they are sent back to Beijing.

Both federal and local officials have said the CNMI can not grant asylum to foreign nationals as its immigration laws do not allow such a program.