Chile seeks to legalize status of 300,000 migrants

SANTIAGO, April 23 (Xinhua) -- The Chilean government began on Monday a campaign to allow more than 300,000 unregistered immigrants in the country to legalize their status and seek permanent residency.

Authorities have opened offices across the country to allow immigrants who arrived in Chile illicitly prior to April 8 to be registered.

On Monday, President Sebastian Pinera visited the Victor Jara stadium in Santiago, one of the main centers made available for this process.

"Chile has always been a country open and welcoming of migration. We want it to be good, orderly, regulated, safe, to allow an improvement of the quality of life, as much for those who come to Chile to seek a new life, as for Chileans," he told the press.

According to official estimates, Chile has more than 1.1 million immigrants, of which more than 300,000 are unregistered.

This is part of the measures announced by the government on April 9, when it also announced it would grant special visas to Haitian and Venezuelan migrants and launched a reform of the 1975 immigration law, which Pinera called "obsolete."

"It is crucial that the families who come do so respecting the law, integrating into our society and bringing development," added Pinera.

This process of regularization will be open until May 23 to all those who entered Chile through illegal border crossings and can present official identification.

Equally, those living in Chile with expired tourist visas or with an application for residency will be able to register until June 22.

However, the reform also makes it tougher for future migrants to enter the country. Future Haitian immigrants will be restricted to 10,000 humanitarian visas a year, while Venezuelans will have to apply for temporary residency at the Chilean consulate in Caracas as well as have a valid passport, which has not been easy for them to obtain. Enditem