At a meeting at Bukhara Restaurant on Coney Island Avenue in Brooklyn, Mohammad Arshad Khan, a lobbyist for immigrant rights, addressed state Senator Kevin Parker and Rep. Jerrold Nadler.

Arshad Khan said that Pakistanis in the United States should not be harassed by immigration services or subjected to arbitrary detention. Pakistanis who filed 245-is, to work sponsored by an employer, with the Labor Department by the April 2001 deadline have not received responses two years later. This is despite the fact that the LIFE Act of 2000 gave this opportunity to all undocumented immigrants in the United States.

Now, these same Pakistanis have been issued NTAs (Notices to Appear) after undergoing special registration. They are burdened by court appearances and lawyers’ fees.

It is shameful that the Labor Department has dragged its feet over issuing 245-is. It is also outrageous that NTAs have been issued to people in the process for 245-is. These people were already in the system. Does immigration services not have access to the Labor Department records? These Pakistanis now face deportation.

Sen. Parker said he will make all efforts to right these wrongs. He said he is willing to help any Pakistani who feels wronged by the FBI and immigration services. Rep. Nadler said he would raise the issue in Congress about the injustice of issuing NTAs to people being processed for 245-i.