FOR HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATION Asylum seekers seek damages from feds, NMI gov’t.

Claiming that the federal and CNMI governments have violated their rights when officials refused to accept their asylum application, some 17 Chinese and Sri Lankan nationals are now seeking damages.

In a civil case, the asylum seekers through their lawyer Bruce Jorgensen asked to U.S. District Court to prohibit the CNMI and federal governments from arresting or detaining them pending the final resolution of their applications.

The 17 asylum seekers are Sri Lankan nationals Uthayachandran R. Kandiah, Jayakumar A. Sevaratnam, Kanagasabai Selvalingam, Janaka P.H. Nadungodage, Madpathage D.U.D Senanayake; People’s Republic of China citizens Yu Ren Huang, Li Tong Deng, Zhi Ping Hu, Yin Ping Guo, Xi Cheng Jin, Lan Ting Zhang, Qin Yin, Chu Fang Uue, Hui Ping
Zhang, Mhing Zhuo Ling, Lin Zheng and Jian Shan.

According to Mr. Jorgensen, the Federal and CNMI governments must be responsible in ensuring that persons seeking asylum in the CNMI are not arrested or imprisoned following their signing of United Nations Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees and the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.

Unfortunately, the two governments have taken no adequate steps to ensure that persons seeking refugee/asylum within the CNMI are not subject to arrest and imprisonment, he said.

Mr. Jorgensen has asked the court to order the immediate creation of a meaningful and impartial procedure for accepting and processing asylum applications within the CNMI.

He cited an incident in which a person who was living in the CNMI was granted asylum with the assistance of Karidat, an office created and funded by the government. Mr. Jorgensen failed to give details of the earlier asylum case.

The I-590 forms completed by the 17 applicants distributed by the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service have been transmitted to INS offices in Saipan, Honolulu, Bangkok and Manila for processing in accordance with the United Nations standards.

On Aug. 10, 1999, Mr. Oscar Martinez, the INS official assigned here informed the people that no other INS office will accept for submission and processing any I-590 forms.

Mr. Jorgensen said he has requested information on the CNMI government’s policy in connection with the processing of asylum application, but claimed he was ignored. (Lindablue F. Romero)