US to ease immigration process
Sunday, 8 January 2012
The US government is planning to reduce the time that US citizens are separated from spouses and children and who are forced to wait for as many as 10 years while their visa requests are processed, reports bdnews24.com.
"The purpose of the new process is to reduce the time that US families remain separated while their relative proceeds through the immigrant visa process," US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said in its announcement Friday.
The move drew immediate praise from Hispanic groups, a key constituency for President Barack Obama in the 2012 election year.
Democrats and Republicans said Hispanic voters could decide the 2012 election. Latino groups have been disappointed in Obama's lack of progress on immigration reform and have disapproved of a stepped-up deportation programme.
The largest Hispanic civil rights group in the United States called the current system "unconscionable" and praised the plan.
"The modifications ... are an important and humane first step towards alleviating that pain and suffering," said Nadia Tonova, director for the National Network for Arab Americans.
"The purpose of the new process is to reduce the time that US families remain separated while their relative proceeds through the immigrant visa process," US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said in its announcement Friday.
The move drew immediate praise from Hispanic groups, a key constituency for President Barack Obama in the 2012 election year.
Democrats and Republicans said Hispanic voters could decide the 2012 election. Latino groups have been disappointed in Obama's lack of progress on immigration reform and have disapproved of a stepped-up deportation programme.
The largest Hispanic civil rights group in the United States called the current system "unconscionable" and praised the plan.
"The modifications ... are an important and humane first step towards alleviating that pain and suffering," said Nadia Tonova, director for the National Network for Arab Americans.