U.S. responds to request to issue visa waivers for Syrian Armenians

PanARMENIAN.Net - The U.S. Government has responded to the request of Four Prominent Armenian-American Lawyers to issue visa waivers for Syrian-Armenians.

Currently, there is no American Diplomatic presence in Syria. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) of the Department of Homeland Security has assigned a case number to the request stating: “Due to the violent upheaval and deteriorating situation in (Syria) USCIS announced that eligible Syrian nationals . . . in the United States may apply for Temporary Protected Status (TPS).”

Citing the recent burning of St. Kevork Armenian Church in Aleppo and the kidnapping of Armenians on a Beirut Aleppo bus, Vartkes Yeghiayan Esq., Former assistant director of ACTION/Peace Corps, and William Paparian Esq., Former Mayor of Pasadena, replied to the letter from USCIS : “Through our letter of October 12, 2012, which was directed to State Secretary Hillary Clinton and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, we wished to express our deep concern for the fate of the beleaguered Christian citizens of (Syria). The fighting there has engulfed large portions of the country and has made the already precarious position of Christians even more untenable. It is precisely because we feel the current legislation, including the extension of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Syrian nationals, is insufficient in addressing the deteriorating humanitarian situation that we turned to the United States government.”

“It is with deep regret that we conveyed our extreme displeasure with the response of the U.S. Government to our request,” said Varkes Yeghiayan.

After the initial announcement of the request for Visa Waivers for Syrian Armenians, countless friends and family of Syrian Armenians in the United States and elsewhere have expressed their support for the U.S. Government taking favorable action to allow Syrian Armenians to come to the United States.

“We will continue to press the U.S. Government to take immediate action to alleviate the suffering of Christians in Syria and will immediately advise the Syrian Armenian community and their family and friends of further developments.” said William Paparian.