[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 190 (Tuesday, December 15, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Page S13246]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           RECEIPT OF ASYLUM

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I am pleased to learn that, after 14 years 
of legal struggle, Ms. Rody Alvarado has finally received asylum in the 
United States. The details of Ms. Alvarado's case are shocking. She 
suffered from horrific domestic violence in her home country of 
Guatemala and sought protection in the United States under our asylum 
laws. Because persecution of this type had not previously been 
recognized as a basis for refugee or asylum protection, Ms. Alvarado 
was forced to fight a long legal battle to win her case.
  The administrations of three different Presidents--Clinton, Bush and 
Obama--have grappled with how to handle gender-based asylum claims, but 
the resolution of this case brings us closer to the end of this 
journey. Ms. Alvarado can finally feel safe here in the United States 
because she is no longer at risk of being deported to Guatemala. The 
Obama administration must now issue regulations to ensure that other 
victims of domestic violence whose abuse rises to the level of 
persecution can obtain the same protection as refugees or asylees.
  Ms. Alvarado fled Guatemala in 1995 after being beaten daily and 
raped repeatedly by her husband. When she became pregnant but refused 
to terminate her pregnancy, her husband kicked her repeatedly in the 
lower spine. Ms. Alvarado had previously tried to escape the abuse, 
seeking protection in another part of Guatemala, but her husband 
tracked her down and threatened to kill her if she left their home 
again. We know that Ms. Alvarado notified Guatemalan police at least 
five separate times, but the police refused to respond, telling her 
that her desperate situation was a domestic dispute that needed to be 
settled at home.
  Over the past 14 years, Ms. Alvarado's case has been considered by 
immigration judges, the Board of Immigration Appeals, BIA, five 
different Attorneys General, and three Secretaries of Homeland 
Security. Throughout this extensive consideration, the core facts of 
her case have never been disputed. All parties have agreed that Ms. 
Alvarado suffered extreme abuse at the hands of her husband and that 
the Guatemalan Government would not protect her. All parties agreed 
that she has a well-founded fear that she would be abused again if she 
was forced to return to Guatemala.
  The dispute in Ms. Alvarado's case centered on whether the abuse she 
suffered was persecution under the terms of the Refugee Convention and 
applicable U.S. law. To obtain protection in the United States, an 
asylum seeker must demonstrate that they have a well-founded fear of 
persecution based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or 
membership in a particular social group.
  I first wrote to Attorney General Janet Reno in December 1999, when 
the BIA reversed Ms. Alvarado's grant of asylum, concluding that her 
abuse was not persecution on account of membership in a particular 
social group. This decision was particularly troubling because it left 
unclear what grounds, if any, could be applied to a victim of severe 
domestic abuse who cannot obtain the protection of her country of 
origin. I wrote to Attorney General Reno again in February and 
September 2000 asking her to exercise her authority to review the case, 
called Matter of 
R-A-, and to reverse the BIA's decision. Unfortunately, the case was 
not reversed at that time, and it then languished for years. I wrote to 
Attorney General Ashcroft in June 2004 asking him to work with the 
Department of Homeland Security, DHS, to issue regulations to govern 
cases such as Ms. Alvarado's and to then decide her case in accordance 
with such rules. When he was a nominee to be Attorney General in 
January 2005, I asked Mr. Alberto Gonzales to commit to taking up the 
case and resolving it if he was confirmed. Mr. Gonzales promised to 
work with DHS to finalize regulations but did not take any action 
during his years as Attorney General.
  Ten years after I and other Members of Congress first sought 
appropriate action and the fair resolution of this case, we celebrate 
the long-overdue outcome. While I am dismayed at the length of time Ms. 
Alvarado has lived with fear and uncertainty, the final resolution of 
this case gives me hope that abuse victims like Ms. Alvarado who meet 
the other conditions of asylum will be able to find safety in the 
United States.
  The Obama administration has laid out a welcomed, new policy in its 
legal briefs in this case, and I thank the President, Secretary 
Napolitano, and Attorney General Holder for bringing this case to such 
a positive resolution. Yet the administration's work is not done. It 
must issue binding regulations so that asylum seekers whose cases have 
been held in limbo for years can also be resolved and that future cases 
are not delayed in adjudication. I urge the administration to 
immediately initiate a process of notice and comment rulemaking so that 
asylum seekers, practitioners, and other experts can contribute to the 
formulation of new rules.
  Today, I commend Ms. Alvarado on the courage she has demonstrated 
over many years while seeking protection in the United States. I 
congratulate her and wish her all the best as she finally experiences 
true freedom from persecution and the full scope of liberties enjoyed 
by Americans.

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