Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee Urges Congress to pass Legislation Protecting Haitian Refugees

Houston -- At a press conference today, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Houston) urged the US House to enact legislation to protect Haitian refugees who fled to the United States to avoid persecution.

"Many of the men, women, and children who were ;Forced to flee this small island country faced persecution because they or their close family members tried to participate in democratic elections , 11 says Jackson Lee. "They, and others liked them, suffered at the hands of regimes whose police, military and paramilitary forces engaged in the brutal killings or torture of its citizens.

Congresswoman Jackson Lee is a cosponsor of H.R. 3033, the Haitian Refugee and Immigration Fairness Act, which provides for the permanent resident status adjustment of certain Haitian nationals (and their spouses and children) who were brought into the United States or filed for amnesty after fleeing their country.

According to estimates made by the INS, the number of Haitians already in the United States that would benefit from this legislation is fewer than 45,000. Identical language passed the full Senate as an amendment to the Senate Treauury/Postal appropriations bill.

"It is in our national interest to allow Haiti's fragile democracy to take hold. That job will be much more difficult should thousands of individuals be forced to return to Haiti by the US These people may again become the targets of political violence, spawning another episode of political and social disorder," concluded Jackson Lee.

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