Foreigners Told: Indefinite Stay Not Automatic After Marriage To Filipino

[Mr Lee]

This could be a problem for those people who refuse to respect Filipinos or those who upset the locals. What do you think about this clarification? While the person in question may or may not have deserved to be deported, this stance by the BI could easily affect any of us.The Bureau of Immigration (BI) on Thursday reminded foreigners that marriage to a Filipino does not give them the right to stay indefinitely or acquire permanent residence in the Philippines.Thus, William Silas Parlin, 41, will undergo deportation proceedings after he was arrested by Immigration officials last November 22.Silas, who was given a permanent visa by the BI due to his marriage to a Filipina, is wanted in the United States for mail fraud.“The fact that he is married to a Filipina does not withdraw him from the operation of our immigration laws nor does it make him ipso facto a Filipino citizen,” said Ledesma.The complete story HERE

[Dave Hounddriver]

Here is an interesting story pertaining to a US citizen who escaped to Canada to avoid the law in the US. (It seems criminals will go anywhere these days.The point of my post is to show how different countries handle deportations in such a vastly different way. The Philippines will send a mail fraud suspect back without even an extradition hearing, while Canada ". . . has refused to send even convicted killers over the border without first gaining assurances from U.S. officials they will not seek capital punishment"My link

[Jake]

“However, since the stay of aliens in our country is just a privilege, even if they are married to Filipinos, Parlin lost that privilege when we found out that he is a fugitive from US justice and, therefore, an undesirable alien. Parlin was arrested in his residence in Pateros on the strength of a deportation warrant issued by Ledesma pursuant to a summary deportation order of the BI board".My understanding of that article was that Bureau of Immigration followed extradition treaty between US and Philippines. As a result,he was duly arrested and will eventually be deported. I have no problem with that. Whether or not he was guilty of mail fraud is notthe issue here. He must be returned to country of origin to have his day in court. Questions and background checks on the 13A application should have filtered out any undesirables right off the bat. I would be very upset if a sexual deviate (regardless of nationality) moved in as my next door neighbor. The privilege of residency in any foreign country is just that -- a privilege. I feel really sorry for his Filipina wife and family.Respectfully -- Jake

[Tom in Texas]

“... he is a fugitive from justice and, therefore, an undesirable alien... will soon be deported to the US to stand trial for mail fraud before a US district court in Maine, which issued a warrant for his arrest... US State Department had revoked [his] passport which made him an undocumented alien."Sounds like a good decision to me... deport his ass. The PH does not deserve to be a dumping ground for US criminals any more than the US deserves to be a dumping ground for PH criminals.

[Mr Lee]

I think most of you missed the point of my first post, I did not mean to make it about that particular guy because he probably deserves what he gets and should never have been given a visa in the first place IMO and as Jake wrote, but my reading that tells me that if we piss off a local or our wife (it said she can revoke), and even if we are legally staying on a spouse type visa, then they can still say tough sh*t and send our asses back to the home countries whenever they feel like it, so I am comparing the fact that staying is a privileged in the Philippines, so they can deport even legally staying married people, whereas a Filipino or other countries citizen can even be an illegal in the US and the US does not bother to hunt them down unless they commit a serious crime. Two very different worlds and I am not sure that I like the fact that one of us can be deported without due process of any type, not even a hearing.   :yes:

[Jollygoodfellow]

I think most of you missed the point of my first post, I did not mean to make it about that particular guy because he probably deserves what he gets and should never have been given a visa in the first place IMO and as Jake wrote, but my reading that tells me that if we piss off a local or our wife (it said she can revoke), and even if we are legally staying on a spouse type visa, then they can still say tough sh*t and send our asses back to the home countries whenever they feel like it, so I am comparing the fact that staying is a privileged in the Philippines, so they can deport even legally staying married people, whereas a Filipino or other countries citizen can even be an illegal in the US and the US does not bother to hunt them down unless they commit a serious crime. Two very different worlds and I am not sure that I like the fact that one of us can be deported without due process of any type, not even a hearing. :yes:

It did say a warrant for his arrest was issued by the US district court.The way I read it is that they are saying that foreigners who are permanent residents are in a different category except if they were found to be criminals hiding from the law.

He said aliens admitted into the country have no right of indefinite stay, although a foreigner may apply for permanent residence if he or she is married to a Filipino citizen.

[FlyAway]

I think most of you missed the point of my first post, I did not mean to make it about that particular guy because he probably deserves what he gets and should never have been given a visa in the first place IMO and as Jake wrote, but my reading that tells me that if we piss off a local or our wife (it said she can revoke), and even if we are legally staying on a spouse type visa, then they can still say tough sh*t and send our asses back to the home countries whenever they feel like it, so I am comparing the fact that staying is a privileged in the Philippines, so they can deport even legally staying married people, whereas a Filipino or other countries citizen can even be an illegal in the US and the US does not bother to hunt them down unless they commit a serious crime. Two very different worlds and I am not sure that I like the fact that one of us can be deported without due process of any type, not even a hearing. :o

That is the way I take the statement. "You are here as a privilege". Due process does not extend to someone who is not a 100% born in the Philippines citizen.With the way the legal system works in the Philippines, what criminal in his right mind would want to set up shop there? I do believe "Vigilante Justice" still prevails over much of the country. I am sure any "foreign wanted" criminal in the Philippines does not fight extradition for very long if it means sitting in a jail cell!

[Tom in Texas]

I think most of you missed the point of my first post... ...they can still say tough sh*t and send our asses back to the home countries whenever they feel like it...... I am not sure that I like the fact that one of us can be deported without due process of any type, not even a hearing. :o

Naaahhhhhhhhh... did not miss your point... and I agree with you --- because your concern is correct.For whatever reason... legitimate or purely bogus... if the right (or wrong) person wants us gone -- we are on the next slow boat to China. But -- IMO -- the particular example in the article may be comforting in that the BI seem to be actually applying some rational standards to this deportation.Moral -- don't tell your wife "all" of your secrets... she may put a little birdie in the BI's ear if she becomes a woman scorned (of course, this is nothing you or I would ever have to worry about due to our clean living and sweet wives)

[United Army]

Yes it is a privilege to be here in the PH, I think some foreigners may forget that after living here for sometime, but in this case that person came here thinking he maybe able to skip town you can say in the US, or the US may forget his crimes...not.