Community Organizations Demand Recognition of Universal Declaration of Human Rights

60th Anniversary Celebration Finds Human Rights Disparities in Miami-Dade

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February 16, 2004

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By Tanya Weinberg, Staff Writer, January 7, 2003

As local groups called for the suspension of a federal registration program affecting mostly Muslim and Arab foreigners, South Florida Pakistanis are nervously preparing to comply starting Monday. ”The uncertainty and not knowing what’s going to happen to them when they go there is really getting people scared,” said immigration attorney Hina Askari. He is preparing to bring 200 Pakistani clients to the Immigration and Naturalization Service’s Miami office to be fingerprinted, photographed and interviewed in the third and largest phase of a new policy affecting men from 19 Muslim countries and North Korea. The detention of hundreds of Iranians who registered in Los Angeles last month has sparked widespread fear in the South Florida’s Muslim community, leaders say. The Justice Department says the policy, first applied to five countries in November, is designed to enhance national security, and that nationalities affected are selected on the basis of national security concerns and intelligence data.
The policy applies to males 16 or older who entered the country on visas but have not received permanent residency or applied for asylum. The Justice Department estimates that 14,000 Pakistani and Saudi men are required to register in the next phase, from Jan. 13 to Feb. 21. Pakistani leaders believe the number is closer to 100,000, including 2,000 or more in South Florida. Attorneys say many of the men have overstayed visas, but have petitioned the INS for permanent residency, as was the case with some of the Iranians detained in California. At least 400 men were detained on visa violations in the final week of the policy’s first phase, prompting angry demonstrations and a lawsuit against the federal government.
On Monday, representatives from the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the American Civil Liberties Union and several community organizations gathered at the INS Miami office to denounce the policy and call on Florida politicians to do the same. ”If we’re going to fight the war on terrorism and if we’re to make this country stronger and more immune to terrorism, it is going to require the cooperation of the Arab, South Asian and Muslim community. This is a program that only alienates this community,” said Howard Simon, executive director of the ACLU of Florida. Altaf Ali of the Council on American Islamic Relations urged Florida senators to join Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., Sen. Russell Feingold, D-Wis., and Rep. John Conyers, D-Michigan, in their call for Attorney General John Ashcroft to suspend the registration program to allow for congressional review. ”Members of Congress are the ones who passed this legislation; it’s funny that members of Congress are protesting,” said Department of Justice spokesman Jorge Martinez. The Patriot Act requires an entry-exit registration system for all nationalities to be in place at ports of entry by 2005.Martinez said the new policy requiring males from certain countries to report to INS offices is necessary because potential terrorists might have entered the country before the initial phase of the port system was launched in September. Critics contend that potential terrorists will not voluntarily register and that recent news of detentions has dissuaded many others from complying. INS spokeswoman Barbara Gonzalez would not release the numbers of men who have registered in South Florida or say whether any have been detained, citing INS and Justice Department policy. As Friday’s registration deadline nears for men from 13 countries to register in the policy’s second round, many Muslims will likely stay home, fearing arrest, said Sofian Abdelaziz Zakkout of the Miami-based American Muslim Association of North America. ”That’s the whole thing, it’s not a wise thing to do by the administration,” he said. “If you want to catch a bird, don’t hold a knife in your hand.
“Tanya Weinberg can be reached at tweinberg@sun-sentinel.com or 305-810-5029.

By Tanya Weinberg

Staff Writer December 10, 2002

As word spreads of a new regulation requiring men from certain countries to register with the federal government, calls from South Florida Arabs are flooding the office of Hollywood attorney Mazen Sukkar. ”They’re frantic,” said Sukkar, who published a notice in a local Arabic paper. “They’re asking, are they going to arrest us, are they going to detain us, and we don’t know the answers. ”The Department of Justice says new reporting requirements for citizens of 17 Muslim countries and North Korea could root out potential terrorists. Critics counter that those people will never come forward, some adding that the policy could even create a self-fulfilling prophecy by further alienating Muslim communities. Others call the requirement politically motivated and point to the notable absence on the list of Saudi Arabia and Egypt, strategically important American allies, and also home to all but one of the Sept. 11 hijackers. ”I can see what they’re trying to do as far as national security, but the people who we want to get are not going to show up. They’re not worrying about their [immigration] status,” said Miami immigration attorney Anis Saleh. “If you’re going to blow yourself up in six months, who cares if you’re [complying with INS] or not?” Reporting to INS Since Sept. 11 of this year, a registration system at ports and airports requires certain temporary residents and visitors to be fingerprinted and interviewed, report to INS after 30 days, then report again annually and before they leave the country. Their identities are also run through criminal, terrorist and immigration databases. The latest regulations requiring men from some countries to report to INS offices seeks to track immigrants who entered the United States before the port system was in place. The port-of-entry registration is required of individuals flagged on the basis of undisclosed classified criteria and nationals of Iran, Iraq, Libya, Sudan and Syria. Last month the Justice Department announced that citizens of those five countries, all designated as state sponsors of terrorism, must report to INS by Dec. 16.On Dec. 2, the Justice Department expanded the reporting requirement to include citizens of Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Eritrea, Lebanon, Morocco, North Korea, Oman, Qatar, Somalia, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. They must report by Jan. 10.When they report, INS will ask the men for information including detailed family and work histories, credit card numbers and telephone numbers. The policy applies to all males older than 16 who are here on business and student visas, but not to U.S. citizens, permanent residents, diplomats, refugees and asylum applicants. ”There is a realistic possibility that there are potential terrorists among these temporary foreign visitors,” said Jorge Martinez, a Department of Justice spokesman. “What we’re trying to do is trying to close the loopholes that were taken advantage of, especially by the Sept. 11 hijackers, who although a lot of them had student visas, none of them were attending schools. ”Yet citizens of Saudi Arabia, home to 15 of the 19 hijackers, are not required to report to INS offices. Also absent from the list is Egypt, home to Mohamed Atta; and others with known terror networks, like Pakistan, a key ally in the U.S. war on terrorism. Martinez said more countries are likely to be added in the coming months, but would not specify which. ”What’s troubling about it is it’s selectively targeted and specifically at Arab countries, with the exceptions of those we feel diplomatically we cannot impose this on,” said David Cole, a Georgetown University law professor. ”It’s a form of ethnic profiling,” said Cole, whose book in progress, Enemy Aliens, asserts that now, as in past eras of national fear, immigrants’ liberties are the first to go.
“We’re going to treat as suspects a whole group of people based simply on national origin,” Cole said. “That’s not a terribly effective means of policing because it’s remarkably over-inclusive and very likely to do long-term damage to relationships of the type that law enforcement currently needs to strengthen with those very communities. It would be far better to get those within the community to identify any potential perpetrators. ”Some businessmen and professionals who spent hours waiting to register at the airport and the Miami INS office said they found the experience intimidating. But they asked that their names not be used in the paper. ”They are afraid to be arrested for what they say. They feel they don’t have any rights,” said Sofian Abdelaziz Zakkout, a member of the Florida Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and director of the Miami-based American Muslim Association of North America. “We agree with the law, but it should be for everybody. ”Arrests are possible The Justice Department reports that 179 individuals have been arrested at ports, although none for terrorism. Now immigration attorneys across the country are beginning to report some arrests at INS offices. Minnesota attorney Elizabeth Streefland said she warned her client, a Libyan auto mechanic, that although INS had granted him work authorization, the agency could arrest him because it had yet to approve his pending application for permanent residency. ”He was saying, `They wouldn’t do that. They’re going to encourage me to tell them everything I know and I’m going to be open with them because I want to become a U.S. citizen,’” Streefland said. The man and two others attempting to register at the Minneapolis INS office were handcuffed, arrested and held all day with only brief contact with their attorneys, said Streefland and the other men’s attorney, Brian Aust. Along with the other two men, the mechanic was released, but he must now convince an immigration judge not to deport him. “He’s extremely humiliated,” Streefland said.While immigration attorneys say it is rare for INS to put non-criminals with pending applications into deportation proceedings, INS officials note that they have the discretion to do so to anyone lacking legal status. Those who willfully fail to comply with the registration program could be deported, fined, jailed or barred from future immigration benefits. The concept of immigrant registration is not new in the United States. Beginning in World War II, immigrants had to report to authorities yearly. That was discontinued in the early 1980s, said Mark Krikorian, Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies, a pro-enforcement group. He said the omission of Saudi Arabia from the list is one sign that the administration, with its “inordinate concern for the Saudi royal family” is pursuing the least politically disruptive measures. Even if that omission is reversed, Krikorian said, Al Qaeda is likely already looking to send people here who don’t fit an Arab profile. He pointed out that Chechens hold Russian citizenship, that the Philippines and China have active Muslim separatist groups, and that India is home to 130 million Muslims. ”What do we do then, have special registration for Filipino, Indian, and Chinese immigrants? These are some of the top immigrant sending countries,” he said. “I’m not sure INS has the resources to do that.”
The new registration program is a mix of substance and symbolism, said Florida International University security expert Ivelaw Griffith. ”Much of responding to threats is trial and error,” he said. “People want to see that their leaders are doing something. ”Tanya Weinberg can be reached at tweinberg@sun-sentinel.com or 305-810-5029.Copyright © 2002, South Florida Sun-Sentinel

By Jehangir Khattak, Special to Arab News
Published on 31 August 2002 NEW YORK
As America prepares to mourn the tragic events of Sept. 11, anxiety of the country’s seven million plus Muslim population is increasing every passing day. The Muslim population in US will be remembering the tragedy with mixed feelings of grief and fear. Muslim organizations across the country have drawn up elaborate programs to mark the occasion. Community leaders, such as Altaf Ali, the regional director of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), Florida, are stressing the need to show that Muslims, like all Americans, have suffered from and regret the events of Sept. 11.”Our absence from involvement, if we do not go out and show support in acts of solidarity and establishing a day of unity and prayer, that in a sense can backfire and harm us,” he says. “There’s only benefit from getting involved. ”But some leaders profess frustration and a sense that numerous efforts to condemn the attacks and send a message of solidarity have been ignored by many. ”They only complain about us. They don’t want to employ us. They don’t want to rent to us. If you’re Mohammad you don’t get an apartment,” says Sofian Abdelaziz Zakkout, director of the Miami-based American Muslim Association of North America and a recent appointee to the Florida Advisory Committee to the US Commission on Civil Rights. “When you see people attacking your religion, attacking our Prophet, and finally they want our apology, it shows they don’t care about our condemnation.” Such are the feelings common among most American Muslims. For them, 9/11 was a double tragedy, which turned them into both the perpetrators and victims of the new magic word in international relations — terrorism. That’s why many believe that for the toiling Muslim labor on the American streets, 9/11 anniversary means grief and more fear of harassment and humiliation. Latest opinion polls by a leading Muslim advocacy group, Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) — suggest that 57 percent of the American Muslims experienced bias or discrimination since 9/11 and 87 percent say they know of a fellow Muslim who experienced verbal abuse, religious or ethnic profiling and workplace discrimination. Analysts opine that 9/11 terrorist attacks put the tolerance of American society to test, and many believe that the diverse society of this land of opportunities almost failed it — the way it did during World War II, when the country’s population of Japanese descent was subjected to worst segregation. The credit of saving the American society from a complete failing in these testing times, say the analysts, goes to the liberal sections of society, who have shown more compassion and sympathy toward fellow countrymen of Islamic faith. The CAIR opinion poll too found this trend. It said more than three-in-four American Muslims (79 percent) experienced kindness or support from friends or colleagues of other faiths. That kindness often took the form of verbal reassurances, support during the anti-Muslim backlash following the attacks and even offers to help guard local mosques. Many Muslims believe that the predominantly Jewish-controlled American media is to be blamed for the nearly violent backlash against them. The media through its overzealous reporting and propaganda portrayed every Muslim as a savage hard-line religious warrior who wants to conquer the American society and the country. The rippling effect of this propaganda was such that President George W. Bush’s new doctrine of “either you are with us or against us” was half implemented in his own country. One year down the tragic events of 9/11, his law enforcement officials today discreetly implement the last part of his doctrine — “you are against us”. And that’s why a humiliating profiling, surveillance and harassment of Muslims by the FBI and smear campaign by the hard-line religious right continues. It’s thus no surprise to see people of dark skin and Asian or Middle Eastern complexion on plains, trains and automobiles being subjected to humiliating searches and profiling. Arrest of thousands of Muslims on suspected terrorist links and over 1300 reported cases of hate crimes against Muslims are the manifestations of this madness, seen by many as more tragic than what happened on 9/11. Several human and civil rights groups have raised their voice against this growing intolerance and some draconian laws, seen as Muslim specific. The deluge of disinformation of the media and heavy-handed approach of the authorities has also swung into action many national Muslim organizations and groups, who have been actively defending their faith, removing misunderstandings and educating the general public about the true message of Islam. These groups and organizations have joined hands with like-minded groups of other faiths to promote inter-faith dialogue and build bridges between communities. Interestingly, the number of converts to Islam has more than doubled in the US since 9/11 while the demand for books on Islam has also increased manifolds. Hundreds of incidents involving Muslims being discriminated against by law enforcement officials and at work places have also forced the authorities to arrange for special crash programs to educate their staff about Islam. Even educational institutions such as the North Carolina University have added Islam as a subject in their curriculum to enable their students to better understand Islam. On the political front, Muslims are struggling to make their voice heard in the corridors of power in Washington. They are supporting candidates sympathetic to their plight. In some instances, their support has hit the headlines in the national media, such as the case of outspoken Congresswomen Cynthia McKinney of Atlanta, Georgia. McKinney, a strong supporter of Palestinian and Arab cause, lost her bid for a sixth term in office on Aug. 21 in the bitterly contested Democratic primary. Her challenger, Denise Majette was backed by the powerful Jewish lobby while McKenney was backed by Arabs and Muslims. Interestingly Majette also got votes from Republicans who crossed over to the Democratic camp to ensure McKinney was defeated. McKinney hit the headlines when she said President Bush had advance knowledge of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and suggested his friends in the defense industry could profit from a war. While McKinney’d defeat may be frustrating for her supporters and Muslims, it certainly points to a healthy trend, the Muslim population’s serious effort to join the political mainstream. And these efforts have started giving results. In 2000, more than 150 Muslim candidates contested the election but except for Saghir Tahir (of Pakistani origin who became first Muslim member of New Hamshire State Assembly) and one or two others, all lost in their bids. This time again, hundreds of Muslims are contesting the Democratic and Republican primaries. And even one has already almost made it to the Missouri State Assembly. Yephett El-Amin has won the Democratic primary in the 57th District of the state and is unopposed in the general elections. The mainstream American media too is starting to open up to the Muslim views on issues that directly affect them. Some newspapers have started giving spaces for columns to Muslim writers. Chicago’s Daily Herald recently asked to Palestinian-American Ray Hanania to write a weekly column in the paper. The Atlanta Journal and Constitution too give space to Muslim writers more than before.One analyst summed up the plight of American Muslims in these words: “The events of 9/11 changed America, particularly for Muslims. It put them in the dock — thanks to a smear media campaign. One year down the road, Muslims remain in the dock — thanks to the poisonous media campaign which continues even today.”

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By Tanya Weinberg
Staff Writer, August 27, 2002

As the one-year anniversary nears, Muslim leaders are grappling with how to best mark the day that devastated the nation and left their own community reeling. The local director of a national Islamic group is encouraging all Islamic centers to participate in interfaith marches in their respective counties on Sept. 11. But some leaders feel that Muslims should concentrate on unifying their own community a few days earlier, on the Islamic holy day of Friday. Additionally, there are plans to hold open houses on Sept. 11, and also concerns that participation in interfaith prayers could violate Islamic teachings. Friday’s arrest of a Seminole County man who had allegedly stocked his home with an arsenal of weapons and a list of 50 Islamic centers underscored arguments on different sides of the current debate. Altaf Ali, the regional director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, is stressing the need to show South Floridians that Muslims, like all Americans, have suffered from and regret the events of Sept. 11.”Our absence from involvement, if we do not go out and show support in acts of solidarity and establishing a day of unity and prayer, that in a sense can backfire and harm us,” he said. “There’s only benefit from getting involved. ”But some leaders profess frustration and a sense that numerous efforts to condemn the attacks and send a message of solidarity have been ignored by many in the wider community. ”They only complain about us. They don’t want to employ us. They don’t want to rent to us. If you’re Mohammed you don’t get an apartment,” said Sofian Abdelaziz Zakkout, director of the Miami-based American Muslim Association of North America and a recent appointee to the Florida Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. ”When you see people attacking your religion, attacking our prophet, and finally they want our apology, it shows they don’t care about our condemnation,” he said. On Saturday, Zakkout, Ali and other leaders gathered to discuss the differences in opinion, but much of the meeting was dominated by the news of podiatrist Robert Goldstein’s arrest for possession of a non registered destructive device and attempting to use an explosive to damage and destroy Islamic centers.(1) For Zakkout, the news was one more reason why Muslims should unify on Sept. 6, the Friday before Sept. 11 when he thinks it will be more feasible to mobilize large groups of Muslims. ”We have to be all together that day to give our condemnation to all kinds of terrorists,” he said. “We have to be fighting all kinds of terrorism from all different religions, not just Islam. ”The Islamic Center of Boca Raton will most likely host a lecture or some kind of open house on Sept. 11, said spokesman Hassan Shareef. But the center has yet to decide whether it will encourage the congregation to participate in outside commemoration efforts. ”For us the first question always is, is this Islamic or is this permissible to do, and then we go from there,” Shareef said. He was moved by one community leader’s questioning of whether interfaith prayer was appropriate when Islam limits a period of mourning to three days or, in the case of a deceased spouse, 40 days.”It’s going to be a very tricky thing to work out. We’ve obviously never been in this situation before,” Shareef said.The religious leader of Masjid Al-Hijrah in Miramar said despite the concerns about violating Islamic law, interfaith prayer on Sept. 11 was feasible. ”Our religion does not say we cannot extend condolences to the bereaved at any time,” Gulshair El’Shukri said. “Our religion does not say we cannot pray for the country we live in.

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