On The Front Lines
Rutherford Urges President Bush, Warner, Webb & Goode to Cease Silence & Intervene Immediately on Behalf of Russian Immigrant Denied Political Asylum
"Gennady needs your help, and we need more than silence from you."--John W. Whitehead issues urgent appeal to President George W. Bush, Senators Warner and Webb and Congressman Goode
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- John W. Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute, has called on President George W. Bush, Senators John Warner and Jim Webb and Congressman Virgil Goode to cease their silence and intervene immediately in the case of Gennady Denisenko, a Virginia resident who has been denied political asylum. According to Whitehead, plans are already underway to deport Denisenko to Russia, where he will likely be met with hostility, given the deteriorating relations between the U.S. and Russia. The U.S. government has thus far refused to sign onto a joint motion to re-open Denisenko's immigration status. Without the government's consent, Denisenko will have no further recourse in this matter.
A copy of the letter to President Bush is available here.
"As our elected representatives, President Bush, Senators Warner and Webb, and Congressman Goode have an obligation to represent the concerns of their constituents. Their constituents are urging them to intervene immediately to ensure that Gennady Denisenko is returned to the family and community that love him," stated Whitehead. "There can be no excuse for allowing this man to continue to be subjected to the demeaning, bureaucratic and undemocratic treatment he has received."
A former prosecuting attorney representing the Soviet government in his hometown of Krasnodar, Gennady Denisenko reportedly drew the ire of local politicos by trying to practice law independent of communist dogma. He was also a vocal proponent of democracy. Consequently, he was tagged by the KGB, stripped of his right to practice law and imprisoned in a labor camp in Siberia for several years. Denisenko converted to Christianity following his release from the labor camp. Like so many of his time, he fled his native land because he feared his political and religious beliefs would result in further reprisals by the repressive Soviet regime.
Aided by an American family, Gennady defected to the United States in 1991, seeking political asylum. Unfortunately, following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Denisenko's request for asylum was rejected by the United States government, which cited a failure to show exceptional circumstances. Gennady's subsequent efforts to pursue all avenues available to him, including a request to have his asylum application be reopened and/or have his immigration status adjusted in light of his marriage to a U.S. citizen, have been to no avail.
Indeed, they came to an abrupt halt in April 2008 when the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) requested that Gennady and Melinda Denisenko appear at an office in Northern Virginia to finalize their pending status adjustment application. However, when the Denisenkos arrived for their appointment, INS agents seized and handcuffed Gennady. He has been in INS custody, imprisoned in Texas, since then. At this point, Gennady's last remaining legal recourse is to have his case reopened with the Board of Immigration Appeals. However, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has blocked this relief, refusing their consent to have the Board of Immigration Appeals re-open the case.
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