By Gemma Q. Casas
Variety News Staff

THE Fitial administration says the model legislation that serves as the basis for a new measure that will federalize local immigration is “seriously flawed” and will only disenfranchise the local people.
Gov. Benigno R. Fitial has submitted to the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources his official position on the issue of immigration federalization.
In a 22-page memorandum to the committee dated March 19, the governor said S. 507, introduced by then-Sen. Frank Murkowski, R-Alaska, is already dated and puts at a disadvantage the islands’ economic viability.
“The bill was based on the facts presented during hearings in 1998 and 1999 dealing with the economic model of the commonwealth, population and unemployment statistics, deficiencies in the CNMI’s enforcement of its immigration laws, abuses of alien workers and inadequate law enforcement addressed to those problems,” said the governor.
“Today…the commonwealth is entitled to a fresh assessment of the existing facts,” he said.
According to the government’s projection, by the end of 2008, the alien population in the Northern Marianas will drop to 15,000 as more businesses shut down.
“We believe that these reductions will result in a total CNMI population of about 60,000 at the end of 2008, with one-fourth of this number (15,000) representing the alien workers still in the commonwealth. It is hard to predict at this time whether this number of alien workers will meet the needs of the CNMI economy at that time or in future years,” said the governor.
He added, “Without a substantive imported workforce, conditions in the CNMI would be far worse than they currently are.”
He said the Murkowski bill will adversely affect the islands’ tourism industry by limiting its access to potential tourists from China and Russia.
“Application of federal immigration laws to the CNMI would deny the commonwealth this unique opportunity to develop new markets for its visitor industry,” Fitial added.
On the issue of granting U.S. permanent residency to long-term foreign workers and related migration provisions, Fitial said it was never the intention of the negotiators of the Covenant agreement to put local residents at a disadvantage.
He noted that “unlike employment-based immigrants, family-based immigrants are not chosen based on their skills or willingness to work in jobs that local residents cannot or will not perform. As a result, the family-based immigrants would be in a position to compete directly with indigenous residents,” said the governor.
“As U.S. citizens, these immigrants would gain the right to vote and hold office. If these immigrants are admitted in sufficient umbers, it could result in the displacement of the indigenous peoples and their loss of control over their community,” the governor said.
He said the CNMI prefers its immigration rules that allow “blending of cultures” naturally through marriage.
“This organic and gradual process is far preferable to the abrupt change that might result from the decisions of even well-intentioned federal officials that would adversely affect the rights of these U.S. citizens who as Pacific islanders deserve the protection of the federal government,” he said.