[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 145 (Tuesday, December 2, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1696-E1697]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        HISTORICAL RECORD OF CITIZENSHIP ISSUE IN AMERICAN SAMOA

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. ENI F.H. FALEOMAVAEGA

                           of american samoa

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, December 2, 2014

  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to include, for 
historical purposes, the following information about the citizenship 
issue in American Samoa.

                     [Press Release, June 11, 2008]

Washington, D.C.--Faleomavaega Responds to Governor Togiola's Comments 
                     About Citizenship Legislation

       Congressman Faleomavaega announced today that he is 
     clarifying the intent of H.R. 6191, a bill he introduced to 
     make it easier for U.S. nationals living in American Samoa to 
     become U.S. citizens, if they so choose.
       ``Recently, the Governor has publicly expressed that he 
     strongly opposes the legislation and, while I respect his 
     right to oppose, I disagree with his position,'' Faleomavaega 
     said. ``Also, given that the Governor has made statements 
     that are not factual, I believe it is important to clear up 
     the misinformation he has relayed to the newspapers and 
     radio.''
       ``First, Governor Togiola states that H.R. 6191 will force 
     U.S. citizenship on U.S. nationals. This is not true. H.R. 
     6191 is about choice, not force, and only applies to those 
     U.S. nationals living in American Samoa who choose to become 
     U.S. citizens if they wish to apply.''
       ``Secondly, the Governor states that this legislation is 
     contrary to the findings of the Future Political Status Study 
     Commission which recommended that American Samoa not seek 
     U.S. citizenship for its people at this time. Again, this is 
     false. H.R. 6191 does not make citizenship automatic for 
     American Samoa's people. H.R. 6191, which my staff hand-
     delivered to Governor Togiola's office on June 7, 2008, 
     states that the intent of this legislation is to allow 
     nationals to become citizens by more expeditious means. In 
     other words, it speeds up the process. It does not make 
     citizenship automatic.''
       ``For those nationals who choose to become citizens, H.R. 
     6191 speeds up the process by doing away with certain 
     requirements and treating nationals like nationals rather 
     than foreigners. As the law now stands, in order for a 
     national to become a citizen, our people must follow the same 
     procedures as aliens, or foreigners, and this is not right 
     since nationals owe permanent allegiance to the United 
     States.''
       ``For nationals living in American Samoa, it is not right 
     that our people are currently required to pass an English 
     proficiency and civics exam given that American Samoa's 
     education system is patterned after that of public schools in 
     the U.S.''
       ``Also, our people should not be required, as they now are, 
     to move to the mainland to pass the residency requirement. 
     Our people already live in a U.S. Territory and should not be 
     subjected to the financial hardship and burdens of moving to 
     California or Hawaii or elsewhere just to establish 
     residency. While the Governor may believe that our people 
     should be treated like foreigners and forced to move and take 
     exams, I do not and this is where we disagree.''
       ``I believe the provisions of physical residency and exams 
     should be waived, and this is what H.R. 6191 does. H.R. 6191 
     waives the requirements of physical residency but keeps in 
     place all other provisions of section 316 as to good moral 
     character, etc. H.R. 6191 also makes sure that U.S. nationals 
     are required to file an application, complete an interview, 
     be fingerprinted, take an oath and meet all other 
     requirements as expressed in the Immigration and Nationality 
     Act.''
       ``Regarding the Governor's concerns about H.R. 6191 opening 
     up the floodgate to foreigners, I am pleased that after all 
     these years the Governor has finally agreed to stop the flow 
     of foreigners entering the territory if H.R. 6191 is passed. 
     If H.R. 6191 accomplishes nothing else, it has been well 
     worth the effort because ASG should have closed

[[Page E1697]]

     the floodgate years ago. ASG's weak immigration and corporate 
     laws, which allow for sponsorship of foreigners, like 
     Daewoosa, who set up shop and send their money back home, 
     have brought embarrassment to our Territory and jeopardized 
     our communal lands and customs. If ASG does not clean up its 
     mess and establish fair laws for fair business, our people 
     will lose everything.''
       ``Regarding the Governor's point that he believes H.R. 6191 
     will lead to our people being drafted in the U.S. military, I 
     would respectfully suggest that he review H.R. 6191. H.R. 
     6191 does not make anyone subject to the draft.''
       ``Finally, like the Governor, I welcome input, and I 
     introduced this legislation based on the input of the people. 
     Many of our people have requested my assistance because, like 
     me, they believe U.S. nationals who choose to become citizens 
     should be able to do so without being treated like foreigners 
     in the process. This is why I introduced H.R. 6191, and stand 
     by it, and intend to open it up for nationals living in the 
     U.S. as well,'' Faleomavaega concluded.
                                  ____


                     [Press Release, July 12, 2012]

 Washington, D.C.--Faleomavaega Opposes the Recently Filed Lawsuit To 
        Force Citizenship on Every Person Born in American Samoa

       Congressman Faleomavaega today announced his continued 
     strong opposition to the efforts to use the judicial system 
     to force citizenship upon every person who is born in 
     American Samoa.
       On July 10, 2012, a lawsuit was filed by Murad Hussain of 
     Arnold & Porter LLP, in the United States District Court for 
     the District of Columbia. Mr. Hussain represents several 
     plaintiffs born in American Samoa, and the Samoan Federation 
     of America located in Carson, California. The plaintiffs in 
     the lawsuit are seeking a declaratory judgment from the court 
     that the Citizenship Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to 
     the United States Constitution should apply to American 
     Samoa. The plaintiffs are also seeking an injunction to 
     prevent the U.S. Department of State from imprinting 
     Endorsement Code 09 on passports of persons born in American 
     Samoa noting that the ``Bearer is a U.S. National and Not a 
     U.S. Citizen. A copy of the complaint or lawsuit can be found 
     at this link: http://www.house.gov/faleomavaega/pdfs/1-
main.pdf.
       ``I respect the rights of the plaintiffs, who were born in 
     American Samoa, to file their lawsuit. I also appreciate the 
     frustration of the Samoan Federation of America that 
     struggles to meet the needs of Samoans who are U.S. nationals 
     who cannot vote in national elections and are precluded from 
     certain jobs that requires U.S. citizenship. However, I 
     believe the choice of becoming a U.S. citizen belongs to the 
     people of American Samoa, and not by judicial legislation,'' 
     Faleomavaega said.
       ``I have sent letters to the leadership of the Fono, both 
     the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House, 
     that summarizes the lawsuit that was filed this week in the 
     U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. In the 
     letters I further reiterated my opposition to the lawsuit 
     which if successful will force citizenship upon everyone born 
     in American Samoa.'' Faleomavaega added.
       ``The future of our territory is being threatened by 
     outside forces and we must unite in our opposition to this 
     lawsuit. I firmly believe the future of American Samoa should 
     be decided by the people living in the territory, not by a 
     court 7,000 miles away,'' Faleomavaega concluded.
       The full text of the Congressman's letter to the President 
     of the Senate and the Speaker of the House follows:
       I am writing to bring to your attention a lawsuit that was 
     filed this week in the U.S. District Court for the District 
     of Columbia on behalf of several persons born in American 
     Samoa. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit are seeking a 
     declaratory judgment from the court that the Citizenship 
     Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States 
     Constitution should apply to American Samoa. The plaintiffs 
     are also seeking an injunction to prevent the U.S. Department 
     of State from imprinting Endorsement Code 09 on passports of 
     persons born in American Samoa noting that the ``Bearer is a 
     U.S. National and Not a U.S. Citizen''.
       The lawsuit, filed against the United States of America, 
     the U.S. Department of State, the Secretary of State and the 
     U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs, could 
     have significant ramifications on American Samoa's political 
     relationship with the U.S. government. If the court rules in 
     favor of the plaintiffs and the Citizenship Clause is applied 
     to American Samoa, this will set the precedent for other 
     provisions of the U.S. Constitution to be applied in the 
     Territory. This is a cause for concern as the courts may 
     invalidate any of our local laws that protect our Matai 
     system and communal lands.
       For years, I have warned the people of American Samoa of 
     the dangers of outside forces determining the future of our 
     territory. The lawsuit filed this week is the manifestation 
     of our greatest fear, that citizenship will be forced upon us 
     and we could lose our Matai system and communal lands. For 
     example, in King v. Andrus, 452 F. Supp. 11 (D.D.C. 1977), a 
     federal court applied the jury system to the American Samoa 
     judiciary system against our will.
       This week a federal court is again asked to decide an issue 
     critical to American Samoa, whether American Samoans should 
     be considered U.S. citizens. We must ask ourselves do we want 
     a court to decide whether we become citizens or do we want to 
     decide our own destiny.
       I respect the right of the plaintiffs to file this lawsuit. 
     However, I believe the issue of citizenship should be decided 
     by the people currently living in American Samoa and who plan 
     on remaining in American Samoa. Since any potential negative 
     consequences of citizenship being granted to all persons born 
     in American Samoa will affect persons living in American 
     Samoa not those living in the United States. For those living 
     in the United States, there are existing pathways to 
     citizenship that allow them to become U.S. Citizens. There is 
     also a fee waiver available for some individuals who are not 
     able to pay filing fee for the naturalization application.
       I have enclosed a copy of the complaint. My hope is for a 
     thorough review by the Fono on this important issue. I will 
     also make the complaint available for download on my website 
     at http://www.house.gov/faleomavaega/pdfs/1-main.pdf.
                                  ____


                    [Press Release, August 12, 2014]

  Faleomavaega Commends U.S. Department of State's Brief in Tuaua v. 
                             United States

       Washington, D.C.--Congressman Faleomavaega today issued the 
     following statement offering his support for the U.S. 
     Department of State's recently filed brief against the 
     plaintiffs in the citizenship case formally known as Tuaua v. 
     United States, a case in which five individuals want the U.S. 
     Government to grant automatic citizenship to anyone born in 
     American Samoa.
       ``On behalf of the people of American Samoa, I submitted a 
     legal brief to the court in 2012 asserting that U.S. 
     citizenship by birthright should only be decided by the will 
     of the people and granted through legislation passed by the 
     U.S. Congress,'' Faleomavaega said.
       ``I now commend the State Department for emphasizing that 
     only Congress has the authority to grant U.S. citizenship to 
     American Samoa, a position which I have publicly expressed 
     for years. As I have stated on and off the record, I am not 
     against birthright citizenship for American Samoans; however, 
     there is a process in place. Every U.S. territory that 
     currently possesses birthright citizenship obtained it 
     through an `organic act' passed by the U.S. Congress. Each 
     organic act was supported by the will of the people in each 
     respective territory. American Samoa must also go through 
     this process if our people decide that birthright citizenship 
     is in their best interest.''
       ``We cannot allow our political status with the United 
     States to be decided by five individuals or by a court 
     thousands of miles away. If our people decide that they want 
     to be granted automatic citizenship by birthright, I will 
     work with Congress and our local leaders, as provided by 
     governing law and years of legal precedent, to pass such 
     legislation. Until then, I will continue to keep the people 
     updated as this case moves through the court,'' Faleomavaega 
     concluded.

                          ____________________