Terrorism - Foreign Students do Not Threaten National Security :: September 11 Terrorism Essays

Foreign Students do Not Threaten National Security   In response to the detestation of the September 11 terrorist attacks, America has demanded action, and we have gotten it. In addition to the U.S. armed services campaign in Afghanistan and the ongoing federal investigation of the events surrounding the initiation Trade heart attacks, we have seen a flurry of legislative and administrator action designed to increase our domestic security. Yet not alone of this activity has been without controversy. From Bushs executive order authorizing the use of military tribunals to try non-U.S. citizens venture of terrorist act, to Attorney General John Ashcrofts call for the questioning of thousands of Middle east men, government actions are sparking a crucial debate to what extent are we willing to sacrifice civil liberties and individual rights in the quest to perplex our country safer?   For many assimilators here at the university, this question is not clean a matter of abstract debate. Because several of the suspects in the September 11 attacks (as well as in the previous World Trade Center bombing) are thought to have entered the United States on student visas, the intercourse freedom of international students to study here may soon be restricted.   In the wake of the attacks, Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-California) called for a six-month moratorium on student visas, a project that was subsequently dropped under strong pressure from representatives of U.S. universities. Yet the international student visa process remains under strict scrutiny.   The Visa ledger entry Reform Act, currently in the Senate Judiciary committee, proposes a number of measures to toughen up the immigration and visa system. Of particular interest are two personas of the bill the implementation of a monitoring program for foreign students, and the self-discipline of foreign student visas to nationals of state sponsors of international terrorism. The monit oring program would project that students pass a background check before arrival, and are genuinely enrolled in a degree program once they arrive. As such, it is a reasonable response to the real threat of terrorism which we confront. It is the second component to which I wish to object.   The countries which the State Department considers to be state sponsors of terrorism are Iran, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Cuba, North Korea and Sudan. Over the last four years, we have had hundreds  of students from these countries enrolled at the university.