[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 104 (Tuesday, August 2, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: August 2, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                       FANIE PHILY MATEO ANGELES

  The Clerk called the bill (H.R. 2084) for the relief of Fanie Phily 
Mateo Angeles.
  Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the bill 
be passed over without prejudice.
  The SPEAKER. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from 
Wisconsin?
  There was no objection.
  Mrs. MINK of Hawaii. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2084, a 
bill for the relief of Fanie Phily Mateo Angeles.
  I urge my colleagues to vote in support of this private legislation 
which would grant the beneficiary, Fanie Phily Mateo Angeles, an 
adjustment of status from humanitarian parolee to legal permanent 
resident in the United States as of the date of its enactment. This 
would also direct that a visa number deduction be made by the 
Immigration and Naturalization Service.
  Fanie Phily Mateo Angeles currently resides in Gaithersburg, MD. She 
has four sisters and two brothers living in the United States. Most 
have American citizenship and a few have legal permanent resident 
status. She came to the United States in 1976 under her father's 
petition as a first preference unmarried child of a permanent resident. 
But due to the sudden, severe illness of her mother in the Philippines, 
she and her father were forced to return to their homeland to care for 
her. In order to maintain her permanent residency status and comply 
with INS regulations, she returned to the United States every year for 
a 1 to 2 months period at great expense.
  Unfortunately, Ms. Angeles' mother died in 1983 and her father, 
bereaved by this unexpected loss, decided to remain in the Philippines 
for the rest of the year. Ms. Angeles, likewise, stayed with her father 
to care for him during this time.

  In 1985, Ms. Angeles attempted to return to the United States but was 
detained by INS agents who charged that she had violated INS 
regulations by overextending her stay outside of the United States. She 
was detained 2 weeks, her green card confiscated, and she was declared 
excludable from the United States by an INS judge.
  In 1989, she filed an appeal with the Board of Immigration Appeals 
but was flatly denied in 1990. She faced immediate deportation. 
However, recognizing the special circumstances of Ms. Angeles's case, 
INS commissioner Gene McNary on February 22d exercised his discretion 
and granted her a humanitarian parole which allowed her to remain in 
the United States indefinitely while she regains her permanent resident 
status.
  Since then, she has been renewing her humanitarian parole status 
every year as required by U.S. law. However, this law may not be 
available in the next few years; it is scheduled to expire in October 
1996 unless otherwise renewed by Congress.
  Her best option now to regain her former legal permanent resident 
status, which could eventually lead to her American citizenship, is to 
apply as a 4th preference sister of an American citizen. However, this 
could take about 20 years due to the long waiting period under the 
current INS rules. As of now, the INS takes about a month to process 1 
week of these 4th preference claims.
  While the grant of humanitarian parole is reserved for emergency or 
extraordinary circumstances like Ms. Angeles, it nonetheless falls 
short of providing the security that a permanent legal residency 
offers. But more importantly, it forecloses any opportunity for Ms. 
Angeles from becoming an American citizen. Since she already received 
and possessed a green card in 1976, she would already have been 
naturalized as a citizen before her detention and confiscation of her 
green card by the INS in 1985.
  Mr. Speaker, through her selfless and compassionate care of her aging 
parents, Ms. Angeles has demonstrated her strong sense of 
responsibility, her love of family, and her willingness to sacrifice 
her own aspirations for the benefits of others. I can think of no one 
who better emulates the basic principles of fairness and compassion 
that this country was founded on. Therefore, it is only just that we 
provide Ms. Angeles with a fair solution to her exceptional situation 
and give her the permanent residency status she patiently seeks.
  Mr. Speaker, on behalf of Ms. Angeles and her family, I respectfully 
urge this distinguished body to unanimously vote for passage of H.R. 
2084, a bill for the relief of Fanie Phily Mateo Angeles.

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