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Akha Activist, Wife of United States Citizen, and Mother of Four Denied US Visa

An Akha woman activist who opposed the US War on Drugs in Thailand that saw many of her people brutally murdered and is married to Oregon activist Matthew McDaniel of the Akha Heritage Foundation has been refused entry into the US. They have four children. Together the six of them are on the run in South East asia. Her spousal visa was applied for in Jan of 2005, they have been married more than five years. Their four children have US passports and are residents of Oregon as American Citizens. But without their mother they will not come to the US.

After a silence of seven months US Immigration finally said there was not enough evidence of marriage. However, the Akha woman was married in a traditional village ceremony, and witnesses at that ceremony filed a notarized statement to their marriage. A woman with a Thai passport will loose her right to land if she marries to a foreigner, so few marry officially in Thailand. The Akha do not register their marriages with the Thai government.

US Immigration is claiming they are not retaliating against anyone. They said that since there isn't sufficient proof of marriage, kids are not enough, that they must remarry somewhere and file again for a spousal visa and pay a new fee and wait all over again.



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Gimme a break.... The US govt at its finest guys

Well I wouldn't want an Anti me activist in my country either..........but I actually think people should have the right to chose the country they want to be a part of (of course you have to submit to the idea of the country...)

From the thread:

An Akha woman activist who opposed the US War on Drugs in Thailand that saw many of her people brutally murdered and is married to Oregon activist Matthew McDaniel of the Akha Heritage Foundation has been refused entry into the US.

OK, let's see-the War On Drugs killed her people, just the same way the American soldiers twisted Al Qaeda's arm to behead people and make videos of it...and I suppose the U.S. also twisted the Vietcong's arms to kill anyone helping fight the Communists. I got it, America's to blame again for the actions of the terrorist scum they're fighting.

Works every time

Originally posted by Dagons Blade
From the thread:

An Akha woman activist who opposed the US War on Drugs in Thailand that saw many of her people brutally murdered and is married to Oregon activist Matthew McDaniel of the Akha Heritage Foundation has been refused entry into the US.

OK, let's see-the War On Drugs killed her people, just the same way the American soldiers twisted Al Qaeda's arm to behead people and make videos of it...and I suppose the U.S. also twisted the Vietcong's arms to kill anyone helping fight the Communists. I got it, America's to blame again for the actions of the terrorist scum they're fighting.

Works every time

dude that is the most convoluted post i have ever seen

could you elaborate?? i honestly dont get what your saying

She said she opposes the US War on drugs in Thailand. And soon she'll be saying WE killed her people. Uh, maybe it had to do with the druglord scum that usually winds up going into villages and killing people and forcing them to make their village THEIRS.

That's all I was saying. I mean let's be fair..nothing the US ever does for anyone is right, is it?

Originally posted by Dagons Blade
She said she opposes the US War on drugs in Thailand. And soon she'll be saying WE killed her people. Uh, maybe it had to do with the druglord scum that usually winds up going into villages and killing people and forcing them to make their village THEIRS.

That's all I was saying. I mean let's be fair..nothing the US ever does for anyone is right, is it?

She just wanted to live in america... with her husband... thats all...

Originally posted by Dagons Blade
She said she opposes the US War on drugs in Thailand. And soon she'll be saying WE killed her people. Uh, maybe it had to do with the druglord scum that usually winds up going into villages and killing people and forcing them to make their village THEIRS.

That's all I was saying. I mean let's be fair..nothing the US ever does for anyone is right, is it?

umm, so you're putting words in her mouth now?? she has never said WE KILLED her people per se... hell most Americans dont even approve of Americas war on drugs.. why should that make a damn bit of difference? She's married to an American.. the US govt obviously just doesnt want her in the country and are using some bogus claims to keep her out... Thats whats f*cked up

I know, I KNOW. It's just with something like a war on drugs, everyone complains about innocent casualties. I suppose the people who overdose on this garbage and wind up dying from it aren't plausible enough to be casualties of the war either.....anyhow I'm out of this thread. Sorry for the misunderstanding. You may now bash me at will for being an idiot..

no, no bashing needed.. i just didnt understand what you meant is all

Originally posted by bilb
umm, so you're putting words in her mouth now?? she has never said WE KILLED her people per se... hell most Americans dont even approve of Americas war on drugs.. why should that make a damn bit of difference? She's married to an American.. the US govt obviously just doesnt want her in the country and are using some bogus claims to keep her out... Thats whats f*cked up

As to words in peoples' mouths, when is that any different? Words are put in Americans mouths every day and people are too incensed to really care whether or not they're true or not. As to not wanting her in America, well how may other people want us in THEIR backyards?

I'm just saying that it seems that it's always the same old same old. And she DID say the U.S. War On Drugs killed her people. And there is some inference there that if we weren't fighting it that her people wouldn't have died. Oh well whatever.

4 more mouths to feed, and when they DO come here, I only hope they remember that it was America the Great Satan that made it possible....

Originally posted by bilb
no, no bashing needed.. i just didnt understand what you meant is all

OK, fair enough. I'm sorry Bilb. Back to the topic.

Originally posted by bilb
http://www.indymedia.org/en/index.shtml

Akha Activist, Wife of United States Citizen, and Mother of Four Denied US Visa

An Akha woman activist who opposed the US War on Drugs in Thailand that saw many of her people brutally murdered and is married to Oregon activist Matthew McDaniel of the Akha Heritage Foundation has been refused entry into the US. They have four children. Together the six of them are on the run in South East asia. Her spousal visa was applied for in Jan of 2005, they have been married more than five years. Their four children have US passports and are residents of Oregon as American Citizens. But without their mother they will not come to the US.

After a silence of seven months US Immigration finally said there was not enough evidence of marriage. However, the Akha woman was married in a traditional village ceremony, and witnesses at that ceremony filed a notarized statement to their marriage. A woman with a Thai passport will loose her right to land if she marries to a foreigner, so few marry officially in Thailand. The Akha do not register their marriages with the Thai government.

US Immigration is claiming they are not retaliating against anyone. They said that since there isn't sufficient proof of marriage, kids are not enough, that they must remarry somewhere and file again for a spousal visa and pay a new fee and wait all over again.



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Gimme a break.... The US govt at its finest guys
immigration laws are strict, i'll acknowledge that, but they have to be nowadays, especially after the 9/11 attacks. we cant just let anyone into this country. there are laws they have to go by. if they dont wanna abide by them, they are just stuck out.

the laws WERE abided by. she is being kept out for political differences, which is bullshit. and im SURE that when she is remarried, their documents will be expedited with much haste

she opposed the war on drugs? that looks suspicious as hell.

are you for real?
did you even read the article?

there is the crux of the argument...if it isn't seen as an official marriage then they really dont have a leg to stand on...sad...but true

Bah, it wouldn't surprise me if her immigration was turned down for political reasons, but sadly it seems like there is little she could do. If I was in that predicament I would say "fine then, bugger you, I'll just immigrate somewhere else, like New Zealand" or something.

Originally posted by bilb
http://www.indymedia.org/en/index.shtml

Akha Activist, Wife of United States Citizen, and Mother of Four Denied US Visa

An Akha woman activist who opposed the US War on Drugs in Thailand that saw many of her people brutally murdered and is married to Oregon activist Matthew McDaniel of the Akha Heritage Foundation has been refused entry into the US. They have four children. Together the six of them are on the run in South East asia. Her spousal visa was applied for in Jan of 2005, they have been married more than five years. Their four children have US passports and are residents of Oregon as American Citizens. But without their mother they will not come to the US.

After a silence of seven months US Immigration finally said there was not enough evidence of marriage. However, the Akha woman was married in a traditional village ceremony, and witnesses at that ceremony filed a notarized statement to their marriage. A woman with a Thai passport will loose her right to land if she marries to a foreigner, so few marry officially in Thailand. The Akha do not register their marriages with the Thai government.

US Immigration is claiming they are not retaliating against anyone. They said that since there isn't sufficient proof of marriage, kids are not enough, that they must remarry somewhere and file again for a spousal visa and pay a new fee and wait all over again.



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Gimme a break.... The US govt at its finest guys

Guess cause of 9/11. Immigration laws got strict from then on

nice site found mate .

Tis indeed unfortunate that she isn't registered married anywhere, but the government could've been a little more compassionate...
Besides this whole war on drugs bullshit makes me sick when the CIA were/may still be importing/profitting from controlling sales of Heroin and other opium products on one hand and then they castrate the shit out of people morally and politically who speak out on wanting the very product they deal in.....!!!! Crazy.... Business markets huh...?

Actually the US has a big drug war operation in Thailand and Laos where the aid and weapons are used for extrajudicial killings, forced relocations, land seizures, and imposed poverty. Few Americans know what is going on and maybe they don't care, no offence intended.

But the actions behind the miles that cloak the facts explain a lot of the dislike of the US by people in other countries.

What a strange bump :-)

Originally posted by akha
Actually the US has a big drug war operation in Thailand and Laos where the aid and weapons are used for extrajudicial killings, forced relocations, land seizures, and imposed poverty. Few Americans know what is going on and maybe they don't care, no offence intended.

But the actions behind the miles that cloak the facts explain a lot of the dislike of the US by people in other countries.
I don't trust any of these "overseas operations" our government does... due to our long and documented history of backing the worst kind of dictators and actually removing democracies.