Filipinos in U.S. Navy Gain Resident Status

A new immigration law has placed U.S. citizenship just around the corner for thousands of Philippine nationals serving in the Navy, ending a dispute that once had the Navy at odds with Congress and the White House.

President Bush quietly signed a bill Oct. 1 that grants special immigrant status to Philippine nationals serving in the Navy. The measure will enable 3,024 Filipinos to obtain permanent resident immigrant visas on Dec. 1. In addition, Navy officials estimated that 2,000 dependents will also be eligible for visas.

The new law applies to sailors who have served a minimum of 12 years on active duty, or who have served six years and re-enlist for six more years. Ten sailors from Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and Palau also qualify under the bill’s provisions.

Although the bill was signed without fanfare, Navy officials and other supporters of the Filipino sailors said Wednesday that news of its enactment has filtered throughout the fleet.

“This was long overdue. A great wrong has been righted for these people,” said Lt. Cmdr. Bruce Williams, a Navy spokesman said in Washington.

Officials from government agencies said support for the bill was galvanized by the Persian Gulf War. Hundreds of Filipino sailors served in the conflict, some as corpsmen with Marine infantry units.

During the House debate on the legislation, Rep. Jack Brooks (D-Texas) called the sailors a contingent that is “remarkable for its loyalty, commitment and sense of duty” in urging passage of the measure.

Although they expressed thanks for the legislation, some Filipinos said they were also disappointed that Bush has not signed an executive order designating a period of hostilities in the Persian Gulf.

Such an order would qualify all foreign nationals serving on active duty in the U.S. armed forces during the war for immediate U.S. citizenship, regardless of where they served. Earlier this year, officials from the Navy’s legislative affairs office in Washington pressed the Defense Department and White House for such an executive order.

“I am very ecstatic over this bill. It brings a great relief to guys like me,” said 1st Class Petty Officer Florindo Farin, an 11-year Navy veteran. “This opportunity hasn’t just been given to us; we’ve earned it. But I wish it had been an executive order. It’s too bad for the new guys (Filipinos who have served less than six years). They have to wait six years and then sign up for six more.”

Farin, 34, is a corpsman assigned to the 1st Medical Battalion at Camp Pendleton.

Supporters of the Filipinos had been trying to get the legislation through Congress for more than two years. A similar measure sponsored by Rep. Owen Pickett (D-Va.) passed the House in 1989 but died later during a budget battle between Congress and the White House.

Angry Navy officials vowed then to continue pushing for the legislation until it passed. The bill that was signed by Bush earlier this month was a Senate version of legislation introduced by Pickett in 1989.

“The Navy was very supportive of this legislation. They were looking out for these young sailors, who for the most part are very high caliber people. They (Navy officials) pointed out that highly qualified Filipinos were precluded from some sensitive positions because they weren’t U.S. citizens,” said Pickett in a telephone interview from his Washington office.

Pickett credited San Diego area congressmen Randy (Duke) Cunningham (R-San Diego) and Duncan Hunter (R-Coronado) for helping push the legislation through the House.

The bill virtually assures U.S. citizenship for the sailors because of another provision in the immigration statute that extends citizenship to permanent resident aliens who serve honorably in the armed forces for at least three years.

This means that the Filipino sailors can turn around and apply for U.S citizenship immediately after receiving their visas, immigration officials said.

For Farin, the legislation came at an opportune time. Because they are not U.S. citizens, Farin and the other Filipinos are often relegated to positions that do not offer much career advancement. Coveted jobs in electronics and communications are closed to them because they require security clearances, which are available only to sailors who are U.S. citizens.

In addition, only U.S. citizens can become commissioned officers in the military. The Navy’s cutoff age for officer candidates is 35.

“I still have time to put in my application to become a Navy officer,” Farin said. “That’s been my goal during the 11 years that I’ve been in. It’s going to be tight in my case. I will be 35 in March. But, that’s just another challenge that I will have to overcome.”

Under a longstanding agreement between the U.S. and Philippine governments, 400 Filipinos are allowed to enlist in the Navy every year. But, unlike other foreigners, they are permitted to enlist without legally immigrating to the United States first and enter this country on military orders.