(5) meets the requirements of section 245A(a)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1255a(a)(4)).

The Attorney General shall provide for the acceptance and processing of applications under this subsection by not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.

(b) STATUS AND ADJUSTMENT OF STATUS.-The provisions of subsections (b), (c)(6), (d), (f), (g), (h), and (i) of section 245A of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1255a) shall apply to aliens provided temporary residence under subsection (a) in the same manner as they apply to aliens provided lawful temporary residence status under section 245A(a) of such Act.

SEC. 903.79 PROCESSING OF CUBAN NATIONALS FOR ADMISSION TO THE UNITED STATES.

(a) PROCESSING OF CERTAIN CUBAN POLITICAL PRISONERS AS REFUGEES. In light of the announcement of the Government of Cuba on November 20, 1987, that it would reimplement immediately the agreement of December 14, 1984, establishing normal migration procedures between the United States and Cuba, on and after the date of the enactment of this Act, consular officers of the Department of State and appropriate officers of the Immigration and Naturalization Service shall, in accordance with the procedures applicable to such cases in other countries, process any application for admission to the United States as a refugee from any Cuban national who was imprisoned for political reasons by the Government of Cuba on or after January 1, 1959, without regard to the duration of such imprisonment, except as may be necessary to reassure the orderly process of available applicants.

(b) PROCESSING OF IMMIGRANT VISA APPLICATIONS OF CUBAN NATIONALS IN THIRD COUNTRIES.-Notwithstanding section 212(f) and section 243(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, on and after the date of the enactment of this Act, consular officers of the Department of State shall process immigrant visa applications by nationals of Cuba located in third countries on the same basis as immigrant visa applications by nationals of other countries. (c) DEFINITIONS.-For purposes of this section:

(1) The term "process" means the acceptance and review of applications and the preparation of necessary documents and the making of appropriate determinations with respect to such applications.

(2) The term "refugee" has the meaning given such term in section 101(a)(42) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

SEC. 904.80 INDOCHINESE REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT.
(a) FINDINGS.-It is the sense of the Congress that-

(1) the continued occupation of Cambodia by Vietnam and the oppressive conditions within Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos have led to a steady flight of persons from those countries, and the likelihood for the safe repatriation of the hundreds of thousands of refugees in the region's camps is negligible for the foreseeable future;

8 U.S.C. 1201 note.

80 Legislation nearly identical to sec. 904 was enacted as secs. 801 to 803 of the Indochinese Refugee Resettlement and Protection Act of 1987 (sec. 101(a), title VIII, Continuing Appropriations Act for 1988; Public Law 100-202).

(2) the United States has already played a major role in responding to the Indochinese refugee problem by accepting approximately 850,000 Indochinese refugees into the United States since 1975 and has a continued interest in persons who have fled and continue to flee the countries of Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam;

(3) Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, and Thailand have been the front line countries bearing tremendous burdens caused by the flight of these persons; (4) all members of the international community bear a share of the responsibility for the deterioration in the refugee first asylum situation in Southeast Asia because of slow and limited procedures, failure to implement effective policies for the region's "long-stayer" populations, failure to monitor adequately refugee protection and screening programs, particularly along the Thai-Cambodian and Thai-Laotian borders, and the instability of the Orderly Departure Program (ODP) from Vietnam which has served as the only safe, legal means of departure from Vietnam for refugees, including Amerasians and long-held "reeducation camp" prisoners;

(5) the Government of Thailand should be complemented for allowing the United States to process ration card holders in Khao I Dang and potentially qualified immigrants in Site 2 and in Khao I Dang;

(6) given the serious protection problem in Southeast Asian first asylum countries and the need to preserve first asylum in the region, the United States should continue its commitment to an ongoing, generous admission and protection program for Indochinese refugees, including urgently needed educational programs for refugees along the Thai-Cambodian and Thai-Laotian borders, until the underlying causes of refugee flight are addressed and resolved;

(7) the executive branch should seek adequate funding levels to meet United States policy objectives to ensure the well-being of Indochinese refugees in first asylum, and to process 29,500 Indochinese refugees within the overall refugee admissions level of 68,000 as determined by the President; and

(8) the Government of Thailand should be complimented for the progress that has been made in implementing an effective antipiracy program.

(b) RECOMMENDATIONS.-The Congress finds and recommends the following with respect to Indochinese refugees:

(1) The Secretary of State should urge the Government of Thailand to allow full access by highland refugees to the Lao Screening Program, regardless of the method of their arrival or the circumstances of their apprehension, and should intensify its efforts to persuade the Government of Laos to accept the safe return of persons rejected under the Lao Screening Program.

(2) Refugee protection and monitoring activities should be expanded along the Thai-Laotian border in an effort to identify and report on incidents of refugees forcibly repatriated into Laos.

(3) The Secretary of State should urge the Government of Thailand to address immediately the problems of protection associated with the Khmer along the Thai-Cambodian border. The Government of Thailand, along with appropriate international relief agencies, should develop and implement a plan to provide for greater security and protection for the Khmer at the Thai border.

(4) The international community should increase its efforts to assure that Indochinese refugee camps are protected, that refugees have access to a free market at Site 2, and that international observers and relief personnel are present on a 24hour-a-day basis at Site 2 and any other camp where it is deemed necessary.

(5) The Secretary of State should make every effort to identify each person at Site 2 who may qualify for admission to the United States as an immigrant and for humanitarian parole.

(6) The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees should be pressed to upgrade staff presence and the level of advocacy to revive the international commitment with regard to the problems facing Indochinese refugees in the region, and to pursue voluntary repatriation possibilities in cases where monitoring is available and the safety of the refugees is assured. (c) ALLOCATIONS OF REFUGEE ADMISSIONS. Given the existing connection between ongoing resettlement and the preservation of first asylum, the United States and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees should redouble efforts to assure a stable and secure environment for refugees while dialog is pursued on other long-range solutions, it is the sense of the Congress that

(1) within the worldwide refugee admissions ceiling determined by the President, the President should continue to recommend generous numbers of admissions from East Asia first asylum camps and from the Orderly Departure Program sufficient to sustain preservation of first asylum and security for Indochinese in Southeast Asia, consistent with worldwide refugee admissions requirements and the consultative processes of the Refugee Act of 1980;

(2) within the allocation made by the President for the Orderly Departure Program from Vietnam, the number of admissions allocated for Amerasians and their immediate family members should also be generous;

(3) renewed international efforts must be taken to address the problem of Indochinese refugees who have lived in camps for 3 years or longer; and

(4) the Secretary of State should urge the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to organize immediately an international conference to address the problems of Indochinese refugees.

(d) REPORTING.-The President shall submit a report to Congress within 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act on the respective roles of the Immigration and Naturalization Service and the Department of State in the refugee program with recommendations for improving the effectiveness and efficiency of the program.

SEC. 905.81 AMERASIAN CHILDREN IN VIETNAM.

(a) FINDINGS AND DECLARATIONS.-The Congress makes the following findings and declarations:

(1) Thousands of children in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam were fathered by American civilians and military personnel.

(2) It has been reported that many of these Amerasian children are ineligible for ration cards and often beg in the streets, peddle black market wares, or prostitute themselves.

(3) The mothers of Amerasian children in Vietnam are not eligible for government jobs or employment in government enterprises and many are estranged from their families and are destitute.

(4) Amerasian children and their families have undisputed ties to the United States and are of particular humanitarian concern to the United States.

(5) The United States has a longstanding and very strong commitment to receive the Amerasian children in Vietnam, if they desire to come to the United States.

(6) In September 1984, the United States informed the Socialist Republic of Vietnam that all Amerasian children in Vietnam, their mothers, and qualifying family members would be admitted as refugees to the United States during a three-year period.

(7) Amerasian emigration from Vietnam increased significantly in fiscal year 1985 under the Orderly Departure Program of the United Nations High Commissioner on Refugees.

(8) On January 1, 1986, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam unilaterally suspended interviews of all individuals seeking to leave Vietnam legally under the auspices of the Orderly Departure Program for resettlement in the United States.

(9) On the 19th and 20th of October 1987, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam permitted the United States to resume interviewing Amerasians and their families.

(b) SENSE OF THE CONGRESS.-It is the sense of the Congress that

(1) the United States should maintain its strong commitment to receive the Amerasian children in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and their families;

(2) the Socialist Republic of Vietnam should cooperate fully in facilitating the processing of all Amerasians who desire to be resettled in the United States; and

(3) the Socialist Republic of Vietnam should cooperate fully in the processing of Amerasians for emigration.

SEC. 906. REFUGEES FROM SOUTHEAST ASIA.

(a) FINDINGS.-The Congress finds that

(1) the United States remains firmly committed to the security of Thailand and to improving relations between our two nations;

81 Subsec. (a), paragraphs (1) through (5), were also enacted as sec. 804 of the Indochinese Refugee Resettlement and Protection Act of 1987 (sec. 101(a), title VIII, of the Continuing Ap propriations for 1988; Public Law 100-202).

(2) the United States refugee resettlement and humanitarian assistance programs constitute an important factor in bilateral relations between the United States and Thailand;

(3) the preservation of first asylum for those fleeing persecution is one of the primary objectives of the United States refugee program;

(4) the actions of another government in labeling refugee populations as "displaced persons" or closing its borders to new arrivals shall not constitute a barrier to the United States considering those individuals or groups to be refugees;

(5) it is in the national interest to facilitate the reunification of separated families of United States citizens and permanent residents, and the Congress will look with disfavor on any nation which seriously hinders emigration for such reunifications; (6) the persecution of the Cambodian people under the Khmer Rouge rule from 1975-1979, which caused the deaths of up to two million people and in which the bulk of the Khmer people were subjected to life in an Asian Auschwitz, constituted one of the clearest examples of genocide in recent history; and

(7) the invasion of Cambodia by Vietnam and the subsequent occupation of that country by 140,000 Vietnamese troops backing up the Heng Samrin regime, which itself continues to seriously violate the human rights of Cambodians, and the presence of 40,000 heavily armed troops under the control of the same Khmer Rouge leaders, overwhelmingly demonstrate that the life or freedom of any Cambodian not allied with the Khmer Rouge or supporting Heng Samrin would be seriously endangered if such individual were forced by a country of first asylum to return to his or her homeland.

(b) STATEMENT OF POLICY.—It is the sense of the Congress that

(1) any Cambodians who are, or had been, at Khao I Dang camp should be considered and interviewed for eligibility for the United States refugee program, irrespective of the date they entered Thailand or that refugee camp;

(2) any Cambodian rejected for admission to the United States who can demonstrate new or additional evidence relating to his claim should have his or her case reviewed;

(3) the United States should work with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the Government of Thailand to improve the security of all refugee facilities in Thailand and to prevent the forced repatriation of Cambodian refugees;

(4) the United States should treat with utmost seriousness the continued reports of forced repatriations to Laos of wouldbe asylum seekers, and should lodge strong and continuous protests with the Thai Government to bring about an end to these repatriations, which endanger the life and safety of those involuntarily returned to Laos; and

(5) within the Orderly Departure Program the United States will give high priority consideration to determining the eligibility of serious health cases and cases involving children separated from both parents.