The New York Times. January 26, 2000
As the case of Elián González enters its third month with no end in sight, it is becoming more and more evident why the fate of this 6-year-old Cuban boy belongs in a federal court rather than in the streets of Miami or Havana -- or in the halls of Congress. Congressional moves
this week to have Elián declared an American citizen have added a new level of exploitation to this unseemly saga.
Two members of Congress from Florida, Senator Connie Mack and Representative Bill McCollum, have introduced bills to grant the boy citizenship or permanent residency.
Their avowed purpose is to remove jurisdiction over his status from the federal Immigration and Naturalization Service, where it properly belongs, and hand it over to a Florida family court as a child-custody dispute. This is an unacceptable misuse of a citizenship process to manipulate the
venue of a court case.
It is especially troubling when the object of the dispute is 6 years old. There is in fact no basis in law for a custody dispute. To this day no one has presented evidence suggesting that Elián's divorced father, Juan Miguel González, is an unfit parent. After Elián was
rescued at sea following an accident that killed his mother, Mr. González was interviewed extensively by I.N.S. officials in Havana, and satisfied them that he had a close and involved relationship with his son. In a country like Cuba, no one can truly know if a man is speaking freely. But
his credibility has been strengthened this past week by Elián's two grandmothers, who have traveled to the United States in hopes of retrieving Elián and returning home with him. Both grandmothers have spoken of their love for Elián and there is no evidence of coercion.
Holding Elián in this country only plays into Fidel Castro's hands.
His opponents in Miami and their backers in Washington are subverting uncontested family ties in the interest of an all-consuming political agenda. They assume that the nature of one's government is the only criterion in the quality of his life. In so doing they emulate the totalitarian ideal
that they correctly abhor.
President Clinton was right yesterday when he reiterated that Elián's case should play out in court. As a matter of law, the I.N.S. has authority to determine this boy's lawful guardian, and the agency has justly found that his father has the right to decide that his son should be
returned to Cuba. Elián's relatives in Miami have appealed in federal Court, and that -- not Congress in an election year -- is where this case should be resolved.
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