Action not against Pakistanis: US: Post-Sept deportations
By Anwar Iqbal
WASHINGTON, July 20: United States Attorney General John Ashcroft has assured Pakistan that the action against deportation absconders was not directed against Pakistani nationals although more than 400 Pakistanis have already been deported from the United States.
In a meeting with the outgoing Pakistan Ambassador, Maleeha Lodhi, Ashcroft said there were more than 300,000 deportation absconders in the US.
“And our campaign is against all absconders, regardless of their caste, colour or creed,” the attorney general is believed to have told the Pakistan envoy.
The current deportation campaign began in March after a cabinet-level decision in the US to go after illegal immigrants.
But scores of Pakistanis were detained after the Sept 11 terrorist attacks in the US, months before the move to catch the absconders began.
“Although all those arrested after Sept 11 were investigated for terrorism, no Pakistani has so far been charged with this crime,” said a senior Pakistan diplomat.
“Those sent home were found guilty of immigration violations,” he added.
Initially, the arrests were kept secret and even the embassy had problem contacting the detainees. “But now, the US immigration officers are allowing us full consular access,” the diplomat said.
On June 26, a planeload of 131 Pakistanis was deported, which was the single largest group of Pakistani nationals ever to be deported from the United States.
US officials are still holding more than 200 Pakistanis, most of them deportation absconders.
During his meeting with Ambassador Lodhi, Ashcroft assured her that the two governments would continue cooperating to provide consular access and legal representation to Pakistani detainees.
He said the two governments were also making arrangements for “the speedy, dignified and honourable repatriation of those who have been ordered to leave the country,” an embassy spokesman said.
