Poland's immigrants still supressed... Catholic and poor

I would like to see more Poles allowed immigrate.

U.S. reluctance to admit Poland into its Visa Waiver Program (VWP) since that country became free and democratic in 1990 has become a major irritant to Poland’s leaders and people. The program was established in 1986, ostensibly to foster better relations with U.S. allies and to eliminate the need for U.S. State Department consular officers to evaluate a large number of visa applications from citizens of friendly countries. So far, 27 countries participate in the program, including all of Western Europe. Because Poland is arguably the most pro-U.S. country in Europe, it is understandable why Poles are upset.

State Department officials and U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)—who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Immigration, Border Security, and Citizenship Subcommittee—say Poland is not eligible for entry into the VWP because U.S. consular officers in Warsaw and Krakow refused to grant nonimmigrant tourist visas to about 33 percent of approximately 150,000 Polish applicants in 2004. The rejections exceed the program’s maximum refusal rate of 3 percent.

Adding insult to injury, the U.S. government requires all Polish visa applicants to pay a $100 non-refundable fee, regardless of whether the application is approved or disapproved.

Marek Purowski, Polish embassy spokesman in D.C., says, “Poland’s high refusal rate has more to do with economics and educational status than anything else. Moreover, the State Department has not provided Poland with reasons why so many visa applicants have been turned down and what the criteria the refusals are based on.”
Statistics seem to support Purowski’s main contention. Poland, about the size of New Mexico and having a population of nearly 39 million, is not as wealthy as all of the 27 nations enjoying VWP status. According to the CIA’s World Factbook, Poland’s per capita gross domestic product for 2005 is estimated at $12,700, while the average GDP of the 27 VWP nations is $30,900.

The desire of Poles to enter the U.S. also has a political component. Ninety percent of Poles are Catholic, and their American cousins of Polish descent are key swing voters. In this regard, according to Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, “Treating Poland with the respect it has earned would be a great way to cement this growing bond. Republicans spent several decades trying to convince Catholic voters that their pro-family, anti-communist, entrepreneurial impulses have their natural home in the party of Reagan.”

Poland’s first freely-elected president and Nobel Laureate, Lech Walesa, described entry into the VWP as a “matter of honor” for Poland. As Poland’s president in 1991, he unilaterally abolished visa requirements for U.S. citizens visiting Poland, and he expected that the U.S. would respond in kind. It’s about time it did.

U.S. senators Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania and Barbara Mikulski of Maryland introduced legislation in 2004 to put Poland in the VWP. When scheduled for a vote, a “secret hold” of one of the other senators stopped the process. In arguing for passage of the legislation, Santorum noted that the U.S. “treats Poles as second-class” friends.