The Miami Herald from Miami, Florida • 15

fV fut- ft sf 1 )- FLORIDA NEWS 53 WEATHER 3B DEATHS 4B COMICS 6B SECTION WEDNESDAY AUGUST 4 1993 Eljc iHiarni Herald wv MBWaUflrfldHMWMM! Cuban foundation criticizes administration over pilot I 3k I dez cited recent reports of renewed immigration negotiations with Cuba But he said the case was particularly disturbing because of cooperation with Cuba in gathering evidence A Clinton administration official said witnesses against pilot Carlos Cancio had already arrived in Miami from Cuba to be interviewed by US prosecutors and perhaps appear before a By ALFONSO CHARDY And RACHEL LSWARNS Herald Staff Writers The Cuban American National Foundation publicly criticized the Clinton administration for the first time Tuesday saying plans to indict a Cuban pilot who diverted to Miami a planeload of defectors suggest that Washington is softening its stance against Havana are starting to get concerned about a pattern of ges- Carlos Cancio brought his plane to Miami ivith 52 people aboard Dec 29 tures by this administration toward Fidel said foundation President Francisco Hernandez Among other gestures Hernan JON KRAL Miami Herald Staff Cancio is at the center of the case 1 CAUSE FOR CONCERN: Carlos SIGN OF THE TIMES: Edline I i St Jacques 18 draws attention to anti crime poster made by a friend in AL DIAZ Miami Herald Staff her north Miami neighborhood LIZ BALMASEDA New immigration plan responds to wrong pressures If not for the layers of appeal and the power of independent review a young Chinese refugee named Ho Guo Xiang might be back in his country by force running for his life President new immigration plan of exclusion for asylum seekers would do away with most of the layers and built-in safety nets But that surprise anyone who has monitored this take on immigration (Remember it took a federal order to free the Haitians from Guantanamo) The line appears to be: Do politically correct and do it quick Never mind if it fair These days alarmist talk about immigration is kind of PC in DC In announcing his proposals last week Clinton responded not to the real problems with the immigration system but to a misdirected rising chorus that aimlessly rants about just too many refugees The core of plan involves how this country deals with those who seek asylum the first problem with it Immigration experts agree asylum cases are a drop in the bucket compared to greater more complicated immigration violations But easy Easier than tracking an anonymous population of nonrepressed nonpolitical cases that gush through daily undetected on tourist visas or fraudulent documents But why search for them when you can wait for them to come to you? Remember asylum seekers have to ask for asylum before they even enter the process And according to plan when they do ask for asylum there will be little time or space in which to present a case The policy would give immigration officials the power to exclude asylum seekers after two-hour reviews It would allow one immediate appeal handled by US Justice Department lawyers The plan would eliminate the critical option of independent judicial review no wonder that in the eyes of immigration lawyers like Joan Friedland these expedited hearings amount to summary exclusions a disgraceful policy It undermines the whole asylum system in this country an easy fix that can be devastating to legitimate asylum she says typical says the Miami lawyer for people who flee their countries in desperation not to have their documents in order Ironically it is these cases that are likely to face the highest risks of deportation for lack of proof If not for the time and opportunity to present his case one of clients might be back in China right now Ho Guo Xiang a 27-year-old Chinese fisherman who fled political persecution attempted suicide last year and was nearly deported because of an immigration error The day before his asylum hearing officers at the Krome Detention Center mistakenly told him he was to be immediately deported The refugee slashed his wrist with a razor To subdue him doctors gave him a dose of Thorazine and Benadryl The next morning he was forced to go through with his asylum hearing groggy and confused No one told the judge or his lawyer about the drugs The judge ordered him deported But the refugee got a second chance after a federal judge in Miami ruled that immigration authorities had abused his rights and ordered a new hearing which is pending Under new plan Ho Guo Xiang would be out the door because the plan responds to political pressures Unfortunately they are not' the political pressures that forced Ho Guo Xiang to seek asylum PLEASE SEE PILOT 2B Lease may hurt bid to keep Heat clause protects Miami Arena By JOANNE CAVANAUGH Herald Staff Writer A clause buried in the Miami Arena's lease with the city could undermine a crusade to keep the Miami Heat and the glow of NBA basketball in downtown Miami Searching for a better venue the Heat has pressed for a newer bigger arena downtown Metro and Miami officials are considering ways to build one But about 50 words in section 111 of the lease could bar the city from building any large-scale indoor facility that would compete with the Miami Arena At the least officials expect the recently discovered clause to complicate negotiations we cannot have a new said Miami City Manager Cesar Odio But he noted that if all parties were willing the lease could be renegotiated Under the 1986 lease agreement signed by the city by the Miami Sports and Exhibition Authority and by the builders the city agreed not to in any manner a facility that shall compete with the So far Miami cannot afford to build a bigger home for the Heat But there has been talk that the city could help Metro build such a facility by donating land at Bicentennial Park or along Bis-cayne Boulevard The Bicentennial Park site under review by Metro officials has already been questioned by park advocates who say a sports facility would take land intended for recreation With the recent discovery of the lease provision it is now unclear whether the city can donate any land in a park or elsewhere Attorneys from the city and the sports authority are scrambling to decipher the provision lease says the city can't So what does that asked Christina Cuervo director of assets management the city gives land PLEASESEE ARENA 3B will leave anchor job amicably and with mutual WCIX news director Sue Kawalerski declined to comment Hambrick entered the South Florida market in 1985 ending a five-year run with WNBC in New York and replacing South Florida legend Ralph Renick at WTVJ-Channel 4 He moved to WCIX in January 1990 WCIX will buy out contract which expires Dec 31 The anchor and station actually decided to part ways last December when negotiations on a renewal failed Hambrick said station understandably reached a point where it had to consider its future and the direction it was going without my Hambrick said was quite surprised they delayed as long as they did in beginning to look for someone Before going to Minneapolis Miller was host of newsmagazines in Dallas Cleveland and Oklahoma City Night out to fight crime Annual event marks neighborhood campaigns to stay involved with Crime Watch the police and each From Liberty City to Coconut Grove hundreds of residents invited neighbors over for cookies and punch or burgers and beers At the Gonzalez home in Hialeah children played basketball as adults reminisced and the barbecue sizzled we know who lived said 64-year-old Victor Gonzalez president of his Crime Watch block we know everybody and everybody knows us We haven't had any problems in this Greg Moore said his block in Oakland Grove mobilized after a friend was shot three times by a thief in front of home we have a multicultural community you know there are Haitians Jews By OSCAR MUSIBAY Herald Staff Writer About 30 northeast Miami residents gathered between cars in front of Sara house in Oakland Grove Tuesday evening to cheer a caravan of 1 5 cars led by Miami Police Chief Calvin Ross The caravan was organized to celebrate the 1 0th annual Night Out Against Crime a nationwide event that promotes cooperation between police and the neighborhoods they serve the one day during the year that decent people from around the country can join hands with their neighbors and take back' the said Miami Police Lt William Schwartz commander of the crime prevention unit are showing the bad guys that these are our streets Now up to the citizens AIR IT OUT: Joane Aristide 13 holds onto balloons at Orange Bowl festivities Anglos Jamaicans it was hard to come together because everyone keeps to he said after the incident in front of my house we met two days later and decided to form a crime watch program Once we did everyone Radon is measured in picocuries a unit of radiation The EPA has set four picocuries as its "action That means that a house with a higher reading should be modified until its level falls The cost to make a home radon-free is estimated to range from $500 to $2500 The office of radiation control has a list of contractors that have met EPA requirements or are state certified to do radon mitigation work Call (800) 543-8279 between 8 am and 5 pm weekdays In some cases homeowners can do the work themselves Contact the office of radiation control for specific instructions Beware of mail offers for radon testing and radon mitigation Some overcharge for the testing and lead you to believe testing is required by law You can check any such offer with the office of radiation control To order a radon testing kit send your name and address with a $595 check or money order to: Consumer Fraud Watch 2086 Wildridge Dr Tallahassee Fla 32303 For more information call Consumer Fraud Watch at (904) 562-8881 between 9 am and 5 pm weekdays Group offers home kit for radon testing By ALINA MATAS Herald Staff Writer a cheap way to make sure your house exposing you to cancer-causing radon: For $595 a private nonprofit consumer group will send you a testing kit that can give you the answer Nearly one in every 15 US homes is estimated to have elevated levels of the odorless and colorless gas which causes between 7000 and 30000 lung cancer deaths a year according to the Environmental Protection Agency Its presence in Florida buildings varies greatly from place to place Dade County buildings have among the highest levels in the state A 1989 study found one in every five schools in Dade had high levels of radon It is believed that radon in private residences may be as widespread trying to let people know about this because a Hambrick WCIX co By RENE RODRIGUEZ Herald Staff Writer John Hambrick co-anchor since 1990 for the 6 and 1 1 pm newscasts on 6 will leave the air Sept 23 because he and management agree on a new contract the sta-t i announced Tuesday replacement at the CBS station is Stan Miller a primary anchor at ABC affiliate KSTP in Minneapolis Miller will co-anchor the 6 and 1 1 pm newscasts with Barbara Sloan beginning Sept 26 and will do some reporting was a simple situation where the needs of the station did not mesh with my said Hambrick 53 we part ways I i I I 1 decay of uranium atoms underground It dissipates harmlessly when it seeps into the open air but it can build to dangerous concentrations inside tightly sealed buildings Fixing a home that has a radon problem is simple Improving ventilation and sealing cracks that allow the gas to seep in from the ground usually do the trick risk about which they can do said Norman Michael Gilley of Office of Radiation Control The agency is working with Consumer Fraud Watch a nonprofit group in Tallahassee to encourage homeowners to use the low-cost kits to check for radon The naturally occurring radioactive gas is produced by the.