By Maya Bell. Sun-Sentinel. Web-posted: 6:16 a.m. Mar. 24, 2000
MIAMI -- The U.S. government issued a deadline to attorneys for Elián Gonzalez's Miami relatives on Thursday, telling them they have until noon today to file court documents aimed at blocking the boy's return to Cuba, a television station reported.
Or, the Immigration and Naturalization Service said, the attorneys could agree with its request to send the boy's case through an expedited appeals process, according to WTVJ-Ch. 6.
Kendall Coffey, the family's lead attorney, said Thursday that the INS had issued a deadline but declined further comment.
"I'm not going to deny that there are some demands that the INS is making," Coffey said.
Wary of federal agents swooping in and snatching Elián, 6, Cuban exile leaders went on high alert Thursday as Attorney General Janet Reno repeated her position that "we not delay the opportunity for this little boy to be with his father."
Reno set no deadline for the boy's return to Cuba, but made it clear that the standoff between the government and the boy's Miami relatives has dragged on too long. Justice Department officials privately indicated she would not wait until the relatives had exhausted their appeals of this
week's court order clearing the path for the boy's return.
Exile leaders said Reno's reluctance to detail her next move had left them, and the community, in a state of anxiety.
"With the government not being clear, they are creating a lot of uncertainty and making our job a lot harder," said Ramon Saul Sanchez, president of the Democracy Movement exile group.
Sanchez said exile groups feel responsible for protecting Elián and keeping the community calm. For now, he said, the mood is one of high alert, with leaders standing by to mobilize the community in protest if "Elián's civil rights are violated."
The mounting tensions prompted Miami-Dade County emergency officials to retool a contingency plan drafted long ago for an event that would paralyze a city that has had its fill of civil strife -- the fall of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro.
"I'm concerned," said Miami-Dade Mayor Alex Penelas, who appealed for calm on Spanish-language radio Thursday. "There's no doubt that I think there will be protests, but nothing violent. But there can always be extremists out there with their own agenda. We're on alert."
Government attorneys have been meeting in Miami with lawyers representing the boy's family to negotiate a settlement. In a maneuver designed to buy more time, U.S. Sen. Connie Mack, R-Florida, asked the Senate subcommittee chairman on immigration to request a formal report on Elián's
case from INS. A spokeswoman for Mack, who introduced the stalled legislation to bestow citizenship on Elián, said such requests are routine in INS matters. But she said they carry with them the understanding that the INS can take no further action in the case until Congress acts or recesses
for the session.
"We are aware of the request," INS spokeswoman Maria Cardona said. "We are evaluating the situation. We have not made a decision yet on what impact it may have."
Some congressional staffers and justice sources, however, said such understandings would not apply in Elián's case for several reasons. For one thing, the understanding kicks in when an immigrant is in a deportation, or removal, proceeding. The INS has repeatedly said Elián does
not qualify for a removal proceeding because he has never been admitted to the United States.
His father, Juan Miguel Gonzalez, asked INS to withdraw the application for admission, as well as the petitions for political asylum, filed in his son's behalf. INS did so after ruling that the park cashier from Cardenas, Cuba, was a fit father who, under all national and international laws
and norms, had the right to speak for his son. That January decision touched off a series of street protests and traffic disruptions that may be a harbinger of what is in store if, and when, Elián is returned to Cuba.
Miami police said they were prepared to control any unrest and could quickly assemble officers in riot gear to control unruly crowds.
"Field forces can be put together in a matter of hours," Miami police spokesman Angel Calzadilla said. "Unfortunately, we have a lot of experience as far as that goes."
In the meantime, some exiles are taking it upon themselves to guard the modest home where Elián has lived with his great-uncle, Lazaro Gonzalez, since his mother drowned four months ago on an ill-fated voyage from Cuba. Only the boy and two adults survived.
Cuban exile Dagoberto Aviles, 65, began taking shifts outside the Gonzalez family's Little Havana home after Judge K. Michael Moore upheld Reno's authority to return Elián to Cuba without hearing the asylum claims.
"Fidel's arms are very long," Aviles said. "To do something bad to this child or family, he has to go through us first -- the Cuban community and the Cuban organizations."
Staff Writers Ellis Berger and David Cazares contributed to this report, which was supplemented with information from Sun-Sentinel wire services.
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