Illegal aliens sent home
A chartered Malaysian Airlines B747 yesterday flew some 151 illegal Chinese immigrants from Saipan back to their country of origin after almost one month of staying at a temporary shelter on Tinian.
The repatriation came after federal authorities completed processing of their papers, but it was not known whether some of the undocumented aliens could be eligible to seek asylum in the United States.
Officials of the Immigration and Naturalization Service who were on Saipan to oversee the influx of illegal immigrants diverted to the Northern Marianas in recent months, refused to provide details of the operations.
But the Chinese were transported from Tinian to Saipan early morning yesterday and were immediately transferred to the airport to board the jet bound to an undisclosed location in China, according to a source.
The chartered flight left a few hours after Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio and administration officials left the island for Washington D.C. where he will attend two scheduled congressional hearings on CNMI labor and immigration problems.
The latest in a string of boatloads diverted to the CNMI since April, the 151 illegal immigrants from mainland China were sent to Tinian last August 16 after federal authorities tracked them heading towards Guam.
This batch arrived nearly two months after the last group of close to 500 illegal immigrants held on Tinian for close to two months had been sent home by both CNMI and federal authorities.
The island government has agreed to provide temporary shelter to the wave of Chinese immigrants attempting to enter illegally through Guam in efforts to help the neighboring island deal with the worsening immigration crisis. BS
