For INS, It’s ‘Business as Usual’ Until Amnesty Law Takes Effect

Despite appeals on behalf of illegal immigrants who may soon qualify for amnesty under the landmark immigration reform act, immigration authorities say they plan to continue arresting and processing illegal immigrants for deportation.

“The word from Washington is ‘business as usual,’ ” said Ernest Gustafson, Los Angeles district director for the Immigration and Naturalization Service, noting that the bill will not become law until President Reagan signs it, as he is expected to do within a few weeks.

“To not enforce the (current) law because someone may qualify (for amnesty under the new law) is not something that Congress expects us to do,” he added.

‘Unnecessary and Inhumane’

Duke Austin, an INS spokesman in Washington, said that after the law takes effect, the agency will defer deportation for those who can demonstrate that they may qualify for amnesty under its provisions.

Earlier Tuesday, at a press conference at Our Lady Queen of Angels Church, several immigrants’ rights advocates who labeled the current INS policy “unnecessary and inhumane” urged officials to halt enforcement operations against illegal immigrants who may qualify under the bill.

In a letter, the group urged INS Commissioner Alan Nelson in Washington to release immigrants arrested by the agency who may qualify for amnesty and to suspend deportation proceedings against them. They also urged Nelson to halt INS raids on factories and communities.

“These raids, if allowed to continue, may result in the arrest and deportation of persons, including the parents of U.S. citizen children, who may qualify for amnesty,” stated the letter.

The group, which included lawyers, priests and representatives of Latino community organizations, also urged illegal immigrants who may qualify for legalization under the bill to hold off filing applications with the INS until after the bill is signed into law.

Peter Schey of the National Center for Immigrants’ Rights Inc. predicted that more than 60% of applicants will not qualify for legalization and that “mass deportation” may result.

Before applying to INS offices, immigrants should first approach nonprofit community agencies, such as legal aid offices and church-sponsored immigration centers, for information and advice on eligibility under the bill, he said.

Bert Corona, a long-time immigrant rights advocate, urged that such centers also provide legal defense services, contending that most immigrants would not qualify under conditions for legalization that are yet to be clarified by the INS. In general under the bill, immigrants must prove that they have lived in the country continuously since at least 1982.

Corona and others also expressed concern over reports that they said they have received from undocumented workers that some employers have begun demanding that Latino workers produce proof of citizenship or lose their jobs.

Fines, Jail Terms

Under the bill, employers who knowingly hire illegal aliens would face fines and jail terms. But Antonio Rodriguez of the Los Angeles Center for Law and Justice pointed out that the bill does not apply to current employees, only those hired after May, 1987.

He said the group plans to begin an information campaign, including seminars and distribution of flyers at factories and other work places, advising workers of their rights under the bill.

And he warned that “any discriminatory practices initiated against minority workers, whether documented or undocumented . . . will be met with legal challenges in the courts.”