He was carrying a suitcase full of guns when he was apprehended in San Francisco. No, he was not a henchman of Bin Laden, but a CSUB student from Angola with a history of mental problems.
Tales of foreigners gaining entry to the U.S. using student visas and then disappearing have been much in the news recently. The misuse of entry documents has increasingly become a concern as it was discovered that at least two of the terrorists who committed the atrocities on Sept.11 entered the country on student visas.
According to Homer Montalvo, associate vice president of Admissions, this is a legitimate concern.
“Obviously, some students apply then disappear,” said Montalvo. “Some don’t have good intentions in the first place and simply disappear into the woodwork. We don’t know how many came in with mal-intent.”
However, Montalvo said there are many innocent reasons why students don’t show up for classes.
“Sometimes they apply to another university, in which case the university will contact us,” said Montalvo. “Sometimes they get married or sometimes they simply go home.”
Joselle Hiquiana, President of the International Club, agrees with Montalvo that there is some abuse of the system.
“Sometimes they use it (the student visa) as a way to get to come to the United States,” said Hiquiana, who also works for the Immigration and Naturalization Service. “It is the easiest way to get here.”
Hiquiana said in her country, the Philippines, they have begun to be more thorough in their background checks as Muslim extremists become more active. Muslim guerrillas, seeking autonomy and supported by Bin Laden, have been kidnapping foreigners in the Philippines for several years.
Ioana Zaletel, a counselor for international students and herself a former international student from Romania, thinks the threat has been exaggerated in the press.
“It has been made to appear that this is a large problem,” said Zaletel. “Only one of the terrorists used a student visa. I don’t recall ever sending out an I-20 (proof of admittance to a U.S. university) and the student not show up for class.”
Many politicians, particularly Senator Diane Feinstein, have called for tighter restrictions or perhaps even a temporary moratorium on student visas.
“The tragic attack on September 11th showed how easy it was for terrorists bent on destruction to enter our country without detection and kill thousands of people,” Feinstein said. “Our nation’s borders have become a sieve.”
In most cases the only requirements for obtaining an I-20 are proof of financial eligibility ($18,000 a year), proficiency in English, and academic records.
“There is no background check,” said Zaletel. “It is up to the U.S. embassy or consulate in their (the students’) home country to do the check. There is a five to ten minute interview with an embassy official to get a visa (student).”
Hiquiana believes the restrictions should be more stringent.
“They should at least screen the students,” said Hiquiana. “In some countries they are too lenient. They should track the students to make sure they actually go to classes.”
Montalvo agrees there should be more extensive tracking of students.
“The university may have to play a different role, which may include notifying a central agency,” Said Montalvo. “I don’t see a problem with a temporary delay until the system can be evaluated and more controls implemented.”
The INS is working on a card, which would work like an ATM card with all the students’ information on the card. Fingerprinting has also been suggested as a means to better monitor the students.
While Zaletel thinks it is important to be safe in this country, she believes more restrictions will cause more harm than good.
“My problem with the tracking is that I am here to advise the students. not to police them,” said Zaletel. “Many of them are going through culture shock and need help with things like housing and deciding on classes. Instead they will have us tracking the students.”
While these people disagree on the extent to which the students should be restricted or tracked, none of them advocate closing our country to international students.
“We do not want to become isolationists,” said Montalvo. “We have a lot to offer developing countries.”
In addition to what we have to offer, international students offer us much in return according to Zaletel.
“It is important for universities to retain these students,” said Zaletel. “Not a lot of Americans, particularly Californians, travel to foreign countries, so your only contact is through international students.”
She maintains that our universities attract the most brilliant minds from all over the world and that these people contribute significantly to the economy.
“Being in the United States broadens my horizons,” said Hiquiana. “It is important that we share our cultures and be part of a diverse group in America.”
Runner@csubak.edu