U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman

December 3, 2002

INTERVIEW

Secretary Of State Colin L. Powell
By Sergio Gomez Maseri of El Tiempo

December 2, 2002


(excerpt)

MR. BOUCHER: I hate to cut this off. Can we do one more question?

SECRETARY POWELL: We've got a swearing-in.

MR. MASERI: Yeah. There's a big movement of Colombians here and US
citizens also here that have been requesting the State Department to
grant eventually a TPS or Temporary Protection Status for millions of
Colombians that are already here. You know this.

SECRETARY POWELL: Yeah, it continues to be under review. It's really
a judgment that the Attorney General makes, with the advice and
participation of the Secretary of State. But I don't have an answer
for you now except to say it continues to be under review and I'm not
expecting a decision in the immediate future.

I think that's the right -- that's where we have it at the moment,
Richard. We understand the need for such status and we know that a
number of nations who would like to have that status accorded to them
also present their cases to us. But we have to use that authority as
it currently exists with some discretion so that it isn't seen as a
way of getting around our other immigration policies. So we'll have it
under review.

We are anxious to do everything we can to help Colombia at this time.
That's why we are pressing forward with our requests for money in the
Congress. That's why we have gotten authority so that we can do more
for Colombia with respect to intelligence, with respect to the kind of
support that we can give to different parts of the Colombian
Government. Colombia is threatened. Its democracy is threatened. And
I'm pleased that President Uribe is leading in a way that will deal
with these challenges and the United States wants to show its support of the president and his administration, which is why I'm taking this
trip.

MR. MASERI: Thank you.