The Foreign Service Journal, May 2007

M A Y 2 0 0 7 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 9 “Whatever it takes, I’m getting her out.” In testimony at the March 26 hear- ings, retired U.S. Army Major Gener- al Paul D. Eaton made the case for giving Iraqis who have worked closely with the U.S. priority status for immi- gration without regard to quotas. Since the mid-1970s, some 37,000 Iraqis have been allowed to emigrate; but since 2003, only 466 visas have been granted to Iraqi refugees, with an additional 50 per year accorded to military translators. Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees and Migration Ellen Sauerbrey told the committee that in February Secretary Rice estab- lished the Iraqi Refugee and Intern- ally Displaced Task Force, led by Asst. Sec. Paula Dobriansky, to coordinate the government response on behalf of Iraqi refugees. Sauerbrey also said the administra- tion is “working to identify the best way to broaden our existing authori- ties” to assist those at risk due to their association with the U.S. Refugees International represen- tative Kristele Younes stated that the problem was still not being adequate- ly addressed either by the internation- al community or the U.S. RI com- mends the Bush administration’s offer to resettle some 7,000 refugees found eligible under U.S. law, and supports its request to Congress for additional funding for resettlement and overseas assistance to internally-displaced per- sons and refugees. But, Younes adds, “the amounts requested and the admissions offered are far too small, given the level of need.” Also testifying was New Yorker magazine writer George Packer. His report, “Betrayed,” an account of Iraqis who have worked for the U.S., is detailed and compelling ( www. newyorker.com/reporting/2007/ 03/26/070326fa_fact_packer ). “They are,” he states, “truly a unique ‘homeless’ population in Iraq’s war zone — dependent on us for security and not convinced we will take care of them when we leave.” — Susan Maitra, Senior Editor Visa Waiver Expansion: Smart Move or Security Blunder? Under legislation passed by the Senate on March 13, the Visa Waiver Program — which grants entry to the U.S. for 90 days — would be expand- ed for the first time since the program was adopted in 1999. The measure opening the VWP to allies in the Global War on Terror faces uncertain prospects in the House. Called for by President Bush, the initiative has revived the debate over access versus security in visa policy. Included as an amendment to “Improving America’s Security by Implementing Unfinished Recom- mendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007,” the provision would lift visa restrictions for citizens from coun- tries that “cooperated with the govern- ment of the United States on coun- terterrorism initiatives and informa- tion-sharing” — provided that the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Secretary of State expect such cooperation will continue. The ad- ministration has already identified 13 countries to add: South Korea, Greece, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Bulgaria, Romania, the Czech Repub- lic, Malta, Hungary, Slovakia and Poland ( www.novinite.com/view_ news.php?id=77894 ). Under the VWP, the nationals of 27 participating states are inspected upon arrival at U.S. points of entry, but are exempt from the usual back- ground checks and in-country inter- views associated with obtaining a visa. Participating countries must issue passports that are machine-readable C YBERNOTES 50 Years Ago... The statesman is … like one of the heroes of classical tragedy who has had an intuition of the future but who cannot transmit it directly to his fellow men and who cannot validate its ‘truth.’ This is why statesmen often share the fate of prophets, that they are without honor in their own country and that their greatness is usually apparent only in retrospect when their intuition has become experience. — Henry Kissinger, “The Problem of Leadership,” FSJ , May 1957.