U.S. delegate candidates speak about their position on the Department of the Interior’s recommendation to the U.S. Congress, according to Indigenous Affairs Office Executive Director Ignacio Demapan.
He said the “winnability” of a delegate candidate in November will depend on his stand on Interior’s recommendation to grant improved immigration status to guest workers who have been here for at least five years.
He noted that of the four candidates, only two, former Rep. Joseph N. Camacho of the Covenant Party, and former Gov. Juan N. Babauta of the Republican Party, expressed their thoughts on the issue during the Carolinian rally last week and in a series of village meetings.
He said they invited all the four candidates.
Incumbent Congressman Gregorio C. Sablan, an independent, was off-island while former Lt. Gov. Jesse C. Borja of the Democratic Party was in an important meeting.
Both Sablan and Borja have criticized Interior’s report.
The indigenous rights advocates of these islands, Demapan said, are not against guest workers.
They just want to raise the local people’s awareness on this issue so they can assert their rights, he added.
The advocates want the U.S. Congress to hear the voice of the indigenous people, he said.
The indigenous people, he added, are looking for a candidate who supports their interest and will make the CNMI known to the every member of the U.S. Congress.
“Every member of the U.S. Congress should know what kind of people live in the CNMI and what their desires are,” he said.
Demapan said the indigenous people want the U.S. Congress to reject Interior’s recommendation.
He said the referendum in November will allow the local people to voice out their concerns regarding the issue.
The U.S. Congress, he added, should take note of the referendum’s result.
Demapan reiterated that Interior’s recommendation will be damaging to the future of the CNMI’s indigenous people.
“We don’t want to be the minority in these islands,” he said.
