Mahony Urges Extending Protection for Salvadorans
Cardinal Roger Mahony said Thursday that the temporary protected status of Salvadoran refugees in this country should be extended beyond the current deadline of June 30, 1992.
Mahony, the head of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Los Angeles, said that while the prospects for a lasting cease-fire between rebels and the central government in El Salvador are improving, “a suitable climate does not yet exist which would permit many refugees to return safely to their country.”
Mahony said he is writing letters to President Bush and the U.S. attorney general’s office calling for an extension. He urged citizens to write their representatives in Congress with the same demand. Registration for the protection program ended on Oct. 31.
The program was approved by Congress last year to allow people fleeing war or natural disasters in their homelands to reside legally in this country. More than 170,000 Salvadorans have taken advantage of the program.
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