U.S. Honors Guatemalan Independence Day, Still No Word on TPS
Monday, September 13th, 2010U.S. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton has issued a statement congratulating Guatemala on the 189th anniversary of its independence. The statement recognizes “the great contributions” made by the Guatemalan community in the United States, and reiterated the “close partnership” between the people of the two nations. In addition, Secretary Clinton took the opportunity to highlight the Pathways to Prosperity Initiative and the Central American Regional Security Initiatives, two U.S. programs that provide assistance to Guatemala.
However, the statement is silent on the one U.S.-Guatemalan issue of greatest interest to readers of this blog (and to that greatly-contributing Guatemalan community in general). The issue is, of course, the matter of TPS. While Secretary Clinton did wish “a happy independence day and a prosperous year,” and noted that she “look[s] forward to continuing the partnership between our countries,” she made no mention of the recent natural disasters, or of the outstanding request for Temporary Protected Status.
There has, unfortunately, been nothing but silence on the issue for months now, and it appears highly unlikely that we will get any real news before November. With election season in full swing and a raft of other issues on the President’s plate, it is hard to imagine any immediate movement on this issue. The primary hope for the many members of the Guatmalan diaspora anxiously awaiting word on this most pressing of matters is that something positive will come out of the scheduled November meeting between presidents Obama and Colom.