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Where there is no law, but every man does what is right in his own eyes, there is the least of real liberty
Henry M. Robert

Lazarenko in Expedited Removal

23 February, 1999 - 00:00

Ukraine officially requested the United States and Interpol
Sunday to extradite former Premier Pavlo Lazarenko detained Friday at Kennedy
Airport in New York. Former head of the Ukrainian government and Hromada
leader, stripped of his parliamentary immunity by Verkhovna Rada last Thursday,
flew to the United States from Greece under B-2 tourist visa allowing a
stay of up to six months. Under US immigration rules a person in possession
of B-2 visa must testify, on entering the country, that he has no intention
to remain there permanently. US Immigration and Naturalization Service
spokesman Russ Bergeron told James MACE of The Day that the
former prime minister's statements at JFK were clearly inconsistent with
his temporarily visiting the US as a tourist and for that reason his visa
was ruled invalid. An expired diplomatic visa was also in Mr. Lazarenko's
possession at the time.

Mark Thorn of the US Immigration and Naturalization Service told AP
that anyone arriving in the United States and asking for political asylum
presents a problem because no one can confirm or refute his motivation.
Under US law the INS can neither confirm nor deny whether a person has
requested political asylum, but any person who makes such a request has
the right to be interviewed by an asylum officer who then decides whether
the person has a well-founded fear of persecution calling for asylum.

According to the Mr. Bergeron, Mr. Lazarenko is currently in custody
and undergoing a process officially known as "expedited removal," which
can take anywhere from a few hours to a few months.

The US embassy in Ukraine merely confirmed to The Day's reporter
the fact of Lazarenko's detention at Kennedy Airport, adding that his request
for political asylum, should he have made one, will be dealt with by the
Department of Justice.

(For more see page Day after Day)

 

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