How did Texas become the target? Do they like the sound of the word Texas in Punjab? ===========================================
Texas struggles to handle influx of Indians Flow of undocumented immigrants strains courts, triggers investigations By RICHARD MAROSI and ANDREW BECKER LOS ANGELES TIMES Feb. 10, 2011, 7:26PM HARLINGEN — Thousands of immigrants from India have crossed into the United States illegally at the southern tip of Texas in the past year, part of a mysterious and rapidly growing human-smuggling pipeline that is backing up court dockets, filling detention centers and triggering investigations. The immigrants, mostly young men from poor villages, claim to be fleeing religious and political persecution. More than 1,600 Indians have been caught since the influx began here early last year, while an undetermined number, perhaps thousands, are believed to have sneaked through undetected, according to U.S. border authorities. Hundreds have been released on their own recognizance or after posting bond. They catch buses or go to local Indian-run motels before flying north for the final leg of their months-long journeys. "It was long ... dangerous, very dangerous," said one young man wearing a turban outside the bus station in the Rio Grande Valley town of Harlingen. The Indian migration in some ways mirrors the journeys of previous waves of immigrants from far-flung places, such as China and Brazil, who have illegally crossed the U.S. border here. But the suddenness and still-undetermined cause of the Indian migration baffles many border authorities and judges. The trend has caught the attention of anti-terrorism officials because of the pipeline's efficiency in delivering to America's doorstep large numbers of people from a troubled region. Authorities interview the immigrants, most of whom arrive with no documents, to ensure that people from neighboring Pakistan or Middle East countries are not slipping through. There is no evidence that terrorists are using the smuggling pipeline, FBI and Department of Homeland Security officials said. 'A dramatic increase' The influx shows signs of accelerating: About 650 Indians were arrested in southern Texas in the past three months of 2010 alone. Indians are now the largest group of immigrants other than Latin Americans being caught at the Southwest border. The migration is the "most significant" human-smuggling trend being tracked by U.S. authorities, said Kumar Kibble, deputy director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. In 2009, the Border Patrol arrested only 99 Indians along the entire Southwest border. "It's a dramatic increase," Kibble said. "They could either knowingly or unknowingly smuggle people into the U.S. that pose a national security threat." Most of the immigrants claim to be from the Punjab or Gujarat states. They are largely Sikhs who say they face religious persecution or members of the Bharatiya Janata Party who claim to be targeted for beatings by members of the National Congress Party. But analysts and human rights monitors say political conditions in India don't explain the migration. There is no evidence of the kind of persecution that would prompt a mass exodus, they say, and Sikhs haven't been targets since the 1980s. The prime minister of India, Manmohan Singh, is a Sikh. "There is no reason to believe these claims have any truth to them," said Sumit Ganguly, a political science professor and director of the India Studies Program at Indiana University. Possible cost for journey: At least $12,000 Some authorities think the immigrants are seeking economic opportunities and are willing to pay $12,000 to $20,000 to groups that smuggle them to staging grounds in Mexico. Kibble said smugglers may have shifted to the Southwest after ICE dismantled visa fraud rings that brought Indians to the Northeast. Many Indians begin their journey by flying from Mumbai to Dubai, then to South American countries such as Ecuador or Venezuela, said authorities and immigration attorneys. Guatemala has emerged as the key transit hub into Mexico, they said. The roundabout journeys are necessary because Mexico requires visas for Indians. They sneak across the dangerous Guatemala-Mexico border and take buses or private vehicles to the closest U.S.-Mexico border. Mexican organized crime groups are suspected of being involved by either running the operations or charging groups tolls to pass through their territory. The Indians usually wade across the Rio Grande, and then are shuttled from stash houses to transportation rings that take them north. David Aguilar, deputy commissioner of Customs and Border Protection, said he believes a high percentage are caught as soon as they cross the river. "We very intensely interview, look at their backgrounds, check them against any watch list," Aguilar said, adding that although India is not a "special interest" source country for terrorists, undocumented immigrants are scrutinized as if it were. Crowding courts The detainees eventually claim asylum. In January, immigration court calendars at the area's two main detention facilities were full of Patel and Singh surnames, and attorneys and judges struggled to keep up. Some attorneys had failed to file the necessary forms; interpreters were not always available. Judge Keith Hunsucker said more immigration judges would soon be assigned to handle the increased workload. Many detained immigrants clear the first hurdle toward a full asylum hearing by convincing asylum officers they have a "credible fear" of persecution if they return to India. They can then post a bond and move anywhere in the United States as long as they agree to appear for their next court date. Not all show up, however. "That's why I won't take their cases anymore," said Cathy Potter, a local immigration attorney who helped about 20 Indians get freed on bond last year. "It undermines my credibility. I don't want anything to do with this." It is not clear how many Indians have been granted asylum or deported; immigration officials did not fulfill requests for that information. Judges and attorneys appear to be toughening up, however. Bond amounts have risen sharply in recent months, and attorneys say asylum claims are increasingly being rejected. This report is published in cooperation with the nonprofit Center for Investigative Reporting in Berkeley, where Becker is a staff reporter. _______________________________________________ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
