‘Stateless kids’ get US backers

The plight of at least 160 “stateless individuals” in the Commonwealth has caught the attention of several groups in the U.S. mainland, who have rallied their members to express their support for these individuals’ cause.

It all started during a national debating tournament sponsored by the National Christian Forensics and Communications Association, during which one of the topics discussed was the issue of the “stateless children” in the CNMI.

As part of his research on the matter, debater Taylor Gage communicated with the Saipan Tribune to get more background material, during which he was also referred to Washington Rep. Pete A. Tenorio.

After the debate, which he incidentally won, Gage said the topic generated so much interest among the debaters and the association that different groups are now spearheading a campaign to solicit the assistance of their state legislators so that these “stateless individuals” would be granted U.S. citizenship.

Gage disclosed Friday that the National Christian Forensics and Communications Association and several others in the U.S. mainland have been communicating with their legislators in the U.S. Congress, urging them to pass a bill to ensure that citizenship will be extended to these “stateless” individuals.

Gage said the group has already presented its own case to their legislators to get their support on the matter.

“There are groups of people in our debate league who are interested in helping the stateless individuals in the CNMI by getting the bill passed in Congress,” he said.

Gage said the organization has members all over the United States, including Virginia, Nebraska, California, Texas, New York, among others.

He said the NCFCA is optimistic in getting all the support it needs to help the CNMI stateless children get their U.S. citizenship, once legislation is introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate.

“Debaters from the NCFCA have been writing their senators in an effort to help out here. If you have any other suggestions as to what action we could take here, they would be welcome,” said Gage.

Last month, Gov. Juan N. Babauta signed into law House Bill 14-97, now Public Law 11-8, which granted Immediate Relative status to stateless individuals who have already reached 21 years old and were in danger of losing their IR status.

Section 2(a) of the bill amends the definition of “Immediate Relative” so that these children of alien workers born in the CNMI between Jan. 1, 1974 and Nov. 3, 1986 don’t lose their IR status after reaching the age of 21.

This also means that the affected individuals that are currently IR’s of nonresident workers won’t lose that IR status after reaching the age of 21 and that those who are already over the age of 21 (and were technically deportable prior to the governor’s signing of the legislation into law) are now lawfully in the CNMI as IRs.

Based on records gathered, there are over 200 stateless individuals in the CNMI but the list continued to decline in recent years.

According to Randy Mendoza, some of the stateless children left the island and are now in their parents’ homeland, while others are now married.

The list of the House of Representatives showed that there are 142 stateless children, with 125 of them born to Filipino parents and 16 born to Korean ones.

Mendoza said the group is now readying its own website that would detail the activities and actions being done by stateless children in the CNMI. The group also contracted a documentary literary that would be provided to people with interest in their case.

“We are happy that we have support outside the CNMI and we hope that we would soon be achieving our U.S. citizenship,” said Mendoza.

He added that the group hopes to catch the attention of higher authorities, particularly at the federal and congressional levels.

Nevertheless, Mendoza said he is happy that the 14th CNMI Legislature, particularly Rep. Clyde Norita and House Speaker Ben Fitial, along with Sen. Henry San Nicolas, paid attention to their dilemma.

The governor had submitted the list to U.S. Rep. Dan Burton, who chairs the U.S. House Committee on Government Reforms’ Subcommittee on Wellness and Human Rights. Burton has promised to introduce a bill in Congress to address this matter.