01 September 2016 – The Philippine Consulate General in New York hosted a town hall forum on Parole Visas for Filipino World War II Veterans and their Families on August 27.
The forum discussed the parole program policy based on the executive order signed by President Barack Obama last June 08, 2016. The attendees were informed that the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has started to allow certain Filipino World War II veteran family members who are beneficiaries of approved family-based immigrant visa petitions an opportunity to receive a discretionary grant of parole on a case to case basis, so that they may come to the United States while waiting for the availability of their immigrant visa.
This parole policy was first announced in the White House report “Modernizing and Streamlining our Legal Immigration System for the 21st Century” issued in July 2015. There is an estimated 2,000 to 6,000 Filipino-American World War II veterans who are living in the United States today.
This policy will enable eligible individuals to provide support and care to aging veteran family members who are U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents.
In her welcome remarks, Deputy Consul General Kira D. Azucena hailed the implementation of the Parole Visa Program as an important milestone in the Filipino-American community’s ongoing campaign of lobbying the US government to grant Filipino veterans the honor and recognition due to them.
Deputy Consul General Azucena added that this newly enacted policy is timely considering that 2016 marks the 70th Anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Philippines and the United States. She also expressed confidence that the Parole Visa Program will reunite many veterans with their families in the Philippines, and encouraged the community to continue supporting nationwide efforts to lobby the US government on Filipino veteran matters, notably the pending House Bill H.R. 2737 on the Awarding of the Congressional Gold Medal.
The forum’s guest speaker, Shyconia Burden, Community Relations Officer for the New York City District Office of US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) elaborated on the details and intricacies of the Veteran Family Parole Visa program, including the fact that certain family members of Filipino World War II veterans may be eligible to receive a discretionary grant of parole to come to the United States before their visa becomes available.
According to her, certain eligible relatives will be able to seek parole on their own behalf when their Filipino World War II veteran and his or her spouse are both deceased. This provision is applicable in limited cases.
The USCIS will review each case individually to determine whether authorizing parole is appropriate, on a case-by-case basis, for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit, Ms. Burden emphasized.
During the town hall’s question-and-answer portion, Ms. Burden, together with Mr. Everett M. Lo of the Office of the Regional Commissioner for Public Affairs, Social Security Administration, and Ms. Almonte, addressed queries from the audience on the Parole Visa program. Handouts and brochures from the USCIS were also made available.
At the conclusion of the Forum, Deputy Consul General Azucena handed Ms. Burden a Certificate of Appreciation while the closing remarks were delivered by Mr. Eric Lachica, a community advocate of the American Coalition for Filipino Veterans. END
