Special U.S. status sought for Haitian storm victims

By Luis F. Perez
MCT NEWS SERVICE

October 5, 2008

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Even though Rijoberto Ayala came here illegally, after Hurricane Mitch had devastated his homeland, the United States gave him permission to stay temporarily.

That was 1999.

Last month, about 70,000 Hondurans – including Ayala – got their eighth extension of their Temporary Protected Status.
Now, as immigrant advocates push the government to grant the same status to Haitians as a result of the storms that have devastated their island this year, critics point to Hondurans, Nicaraguans and Salvadorans who have been allowed to stay for years after natural disasters struck their countries. The government estimates that more than 300,000 immigrants from those countries are eligible for the extension.

“You have to ask how 'temporary' is Temporary Protected Status,â€