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New law says FAS citizens could be deported
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Posted on Jun 10 2008
Gov. Benigno R. Fitial has signed into law a bill clarifying that citizens of the “freely associated states” could be deported when they commit crimes in the Commonwealth.
The measure, sponsored by Rep. Oscar M. Babauta, updates the definition of “alien” to consider the dissolution of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands.
Before it was amended, the law defined the term “alien” as someone who is not a U.S. citizen or national, not a citizen of the Trust Territory or the Northern Marianas, or not a permanent citizen of the Commonwealth.
The Legislature said the current definition of the term was “ambiguous because of references to the Trust Territory, and [had] resulted in time-consuming litigation.” The Legislature added that the amendment was needed to bring the law consistent with the current state of political affairs.
The newly signed legislation reflects the CNMI Supreme Court’s recent ruling in the case of a man from Yap, who had argued he could not be deported based on the language of the Commonwealth Entry and Deportation Act.
Douglas Amaichy Phillip, the respondent in the deportation case, said he could not be deported because he is a citizen of the Federated States of Micronesia, a former entity of the now dissolved Trust Territory.
In an opinion, the High Court said that because the Trust Territory no longer exits, its residents, including those of the FSM, now qualify as aliens in deportation matters.
“In addition, federal immigration law only grants [Micronesian] nationals certain entry privileges and applies all other immigration laws to them,” the Supreme Court said.
“The Commonwealth has always embraced its Micronesian brothers and sisters when they come here for work and educational purposes. However, the [U.S. government’s compacts of free association with the Micronesian states] was not intended to harm the territories and commonwealths, and there is no reason to believe that the Commonwealth Legislature [which had left the definition of ‘alien’ untouched in the local statutes] wishes to cause such harm either,” the court added.
