A new scheme to provide five-year US visas for young unskilled people in disadvantaged areas of Ireland, North and South, has been discussed at a meeting between Irish and US politicians on Capitol Hill.
The Irish delegation of 10 TDs also discussed increased US economic aid in support of the Belfast Agreement and the need for a large vote in favour of it in the referendums on May 22nd.
The Irish group, led by the Ceann Comhairle, Mr Seamus Pattison, was assured of President Clinton's continued support for the peace process in the aftermath of the agreement.
Republican Mr Ben Gilman, chairman of the International Relations Committee in the House of Representatives, told the group: "We here in Congress stand ready to continue US support for the north of Ireland, whether it be moral support or increased economic assistance to serve as a `peace dividend', provided it promotes and fosters economic justice."
Congressman Jim Walsh, who is also chairman of the Friends of Ireland group in Congress, said later the proposal for US "transitional visas" for Irish immigrants was coming from the Irish side and had been raised "over and over" by the Irish politicians.
The idea would involve "bringing young people over for a brief period of time, giving them an opportunity to learn a craft, get a job and also experience the diversity of the United States, which would be very helpful in the return to a more diverse society under the new agreement" in Northern Ireland, Mr Walsh said.
Mr Brendan Smith TD (Cavan-Monaghan) said the visas would be for five years to enable "predominantly unskilled people" to get a new range of skills and so help regenerate the economies, North and South. The areas which would qualify for the visas would be all of Northern Ireland and the six Border counties in the Republic.
The group met Senator Edward Kennedy and a senior official at the State Department yesterday before flying to Boston for a series of meetings with Massachusetts officials. The group returns to Ireland tomorrow.