P 162148Z JUN 09
FM AMEMBASSY SAN SALVADOR
TO SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1234
DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC 0361

UNCLAS SAN SALVADOR 000550 
 
 
 
DEPT FOR CA/FPP, CA/VO/P, WHA/CEN 
DHS FOR USCIS, BICE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: CVIS KFRD SMIG ES
SUBJECT: CALL ON NEW SALVADORAN DIRECTOR OF MIGRATION 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED; HANDLE ACCORDINGLY 
 
1.(SBU) SUMMARY: The Consul General (CG), Citizenship and 
Immigration Services (USCIS) Attache, Deputy CG and Consular Fraud 
Prevention Assistant called on Ruben Alvarado, El Salvador's new 
Director of the Department of Migration (Direccion de Migracion y 
Extranjeria), on June 10. Embassy Officers reaffirmed Post's 
positive relationship with the Migration Department and reviewed the 
areas in which we have enjoyed cooperation.  Alvarado stated that 
the new GOES Administration was reviewing the U.S process for 
deporting Salvadorans and that his priorities were border security, 
trafficking in persons, exploitation of minors and treatment of 
migrants.  He said that he appreciated USG assistance to his 
department and repeatedly emphasized his intention to continue the 
mutually beneficial relationship. 
 
2.(SBU) The CG, Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) 
Attache, Deputy CG and Consular Fraud Prevention Assistant called on 
Ruben Alvarado, El Salvador's new Director of the Department of 
Migration, on June 10.  The Director was unaccompanied during the 
meeting.  An attorney by profession and still an alternate FMLN 
member of the Legislative Assembly for San Salvador, Alvarado 
expressed his appreciation for our request for an early meeting with 
him.  Embassy officers thanked Alvarado for agreeing to see them so 
soon after assuming his new responsibilities, and noted that the 
Embassy and the Migration Department have long had a beneficial 
working relationship, particularly on time-sensitive issues. 
 
3.(SBU) Alvarado said that his only prior experience with migration 
issues was as a legislator and attorney involved in oversight of the 
procedures of the National Citizen Registration Agency (RNPN). 
(Comment: The issuance by RNPN of national identity cards, known by 
their Spanish initials as DUIs, has been a contentious issue in 
Salvadoran politics, with opposing claims by the country's two major 
parties-ARENA and FMLN-that RNPN and municipal officials engage in 
fraudulent documentation of individuals to benefit the voter base of 
either party.  A DUI is also the basis for issuance of a Salvadoran 
passport. End comment.) 
 
4.(SBU) Embassy officers provided an overview of our consular and 
immigration services objectives, and areas in which we worked with 
the Migration Department:  speedy repatriation of Americans and GOES 
facilitation of exit authorizations; establishing the status of 
applicants for US immigration benefits by obtaining information from 
Migration Department databases; sharing information in fraud 
investigations; verification of documentation for visa and 
immigration proceedings; and developing GOES fraud prevention skills 
through training and use of technology. 
 
5.(SBU) Alvarado seemed very interested in learning about the ways 
his agency cooperated with the Embassy.  In the course of our 
30-minute meeting he stated four times that his boss, the Minister 
of Public Security and Justice, had instructed him to continue 
working closely with the Embassy "in areas where cooperation is 
effective." 
 
6.(SBU) The Migration Director indicated that the new GOES 
Administration was reviewing closely, among other bilateral issues, 
deportations of Salvadorans from the US, and the weekly flights into 
the country to return deportees.  The CG noted that deportations 
were handled by the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement 
and that the ICE Attache was looking forward to an early opportunity 
to meet with Alvarado.  (Comment: ICE Attache reported that Alvarado 
contacted him on June 11.  End comment.) 
 
7.(SBU) In addition to deportations, Alvarado listed his priorities 
as border security, trafficking in persons, the exploitation of 
children, and the treatment of migrants.  Alvarado said that he was 
very concerned that other Central Americans fraudulently applied for 
documentation as Salvadorans, and that "even South Americans" were 
entering El Salvador fraudulently.  The CG responded that the USG 
also had concerns in many of the areas cited by Alvarado as his 
priorities and wished to continue working with the GOES to address 
these concerns.  The Director was aware that the Embassy had 
provided assistance to his agency with document checking 
technologies for ports of entry, and training for migration 
enforcement personnel.  He said that he appreciated US assistance 
and asked about enrolling Migration Department employees, 
"especially the new ones," in an upcoming Federal Law Enforcement 
Training course offered by ICE at ILEA. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Comment: Looking beyond his allusions to the admonition 
from the Minister of Public Security and Justice, Manuel Melgar, 
that he work closely with the Embassy, Alvarado seemed genuinely 
prepared to continue our working relationship.  In referring to 
"treatment of migrants" as one of his priorities, Alvarado did not 
offer any specific examples of his concerns in this area, and during 
our meeting did not raise internal US policy issues such as 
Temporary Protective Status or changes to our immigration law.  End 
comment. 
 
Blau