Elian's father 'very happy' with court decision, Miami family will fight on

Elian's Miami relatives Lazaro and Marisleysis Gonzalez speak at a news conference in Miami following Thursday's court ruling

June 1, 2000
Web posted at: 3:21 p.m. EDT (1921 GMT)

In this story: 'The battle is not over with yet' 'I will keep my faith' Ruling is 'disgusting' RELATED STORIES, SITES

MIAMI (CNN) -- Speaking at a news conference in Washington, the father of Elian Gonzalez said he was "very happy" ( 786K/86 sec. AIFF or WAV sound) with the U.S. appeals court decision that the 6-year-old Cuban boy is not entitled to a hearing for political asylum in the United States .

Juan Miguel Gonzalez added that he hoped Elian's Miami relatives would cease their court battles to keep the child in the United States so Elian and his Cuban family could "finally go back home together."

The Miami relatives, however, said they will challenge the court decision.

"We will keep fighting," said Lazaro Gonzalez, the child's great-uncle. An appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court was possible, but lawyers for the family said they had not yet decided how to proceed.

The ruling from a three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta was a victory for both the U.S. government and Elian's father.

COURT RULING 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling denying Elian's political asylum hearing (June 1) Scanned version PDF version (FindLaw) (Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)     ALSO Elian saga could be over by month's end, experts say     RESOURCES Who's who in the Elian Gonzalez case    VIDEO U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno weighed in on the ruling. QuickTime Play Real 28K 80K Windows Media 28K 80K Attorneys for Elian's Miami relatives spoke to the media after the ruling in English and Spanish. QuickTime Play Real 28K 80K Windows Media 28K 80K INS agents remove Elian Gonzalez from his great-uncle's Miami home at 5 a.m. Saturday. (April 22) QuickTime Play Real 28K 80K Windows Media 28K 80K    SEARCH WARRANT Search warrant obtained to seize Elian on Saturday, April 22     MESSAGE BOARD US/Cuba relations

Boy in the Middle: Legal background on the Elian Gonzalez case · CASE FILE · TIMELINE · DOCUMENTS     Web Guide   Consumer Center Select a topic Bankruptcy Discrimination Divorce Estate Planning Landlord-Tenant Personal Injury Taxes Law Dictionary

He is barred from doing so during a 14-day appeal deadline period set by the Atlanta court.

But because the final outcome of the custody case might not be decided in within that time frame, the Miami relatives sought an emergency injunction barring Elian from leaving the United States.

They approached Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, who handles emergency matters from the 11th Circuit for the nation's highest court. Kennedy has the authority to act on the request himself, but he was expected to refer it to the full Supreme Court.

There was no immediate public comment from Juan Miguel Gonzalez, who was meeting in Washington with his U.S. lawyer, Gregory Craig.

'The battle is not over with yet'

In Miami, protesters upset by the appeals court ruling screamed and cried outside the Little Havana home where Elian lived for five months with his U.S. relatives before armed federal agents seized him on April 22.

Overall, the scene was calm, however, and police said they were optimistic that any protests would be peaceful.

Ramon Saul Sanchez, leader of the Democracy Movement, a Miami-based group opposed to Cuban President Fidel Castro, said the Cuban-American community was disappointed by the appeals court ruling.

The ruling affirmed a lower court decision that the INS acted properly in rejecting the asylum application filed on behalf of Elian by his Miami relatives.

The judges ruled that because no federal law addresses whether a child as young as Elian can seek asylum against the wishes of his or her parents, the INS was required to come up with a policy dealing with "the extraordinary circumstances" of the case.

The judges said it is up to the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service -- not the courts -- to determine the best policy.

But Cuban-Americans argued that Elian's wishes were not being considered. "The voice of a child should be heard," Sanchez told CNN.

'I will keep my faith'

"It is not over yet -- God is with us," said Sandra Linar, a 40-year-old homemaker. She held a sign with a photo of Elian and his mother, who died on a voyage to flee Cuba.

Elian has been in the United States since Thanksgiving Day, when two men out fishing found him clinging to an inner tube off the coast of Florida. In addition to Elian's mother, 10 other people died after the boat capsized.

"We will keep fighting so that Elian can live in a free country like his mother wanted," Lazaro Gonzalez said in Spanish at a Miami news conference. "We believe in the laws of the United States."

Standing at his side was his daughter, Marisleysis ( 767K/36 sec. AIFF or WAV sound) , who helped care for Elian during his stay in Miami. She said that she still believes God will not allow Elian to be returned to Cuba. "I will keep my faith and I think the battle is not over with yet," she said.

"I hope the laws of this country favor him and give him the opportunity to seek asylum," she said. The young woman also said she hopes the courts will order Elian's father to allow her and her family to visit the boy. "I love him and am looking forward to seeing him once more," the cousin said.

Since the raid, Elian has been living in the Washington D.C. area with his father, stepmother, half-brother and an entourage of playmates, all of whom came to the United States from Cuba pending the outcome of the case.

Elian's maternal and paternal grandparents also live in Cuba.

Ruling is 'disgusting'

The Miamians want to block Elian's return to Cuba, arguing that the boy would face a life of oppression and brainwashing if he returned to the communist island nation.

It's the position of the both the federal government, and Elian's father, that Juan Miguel Gonzalez -- as the boy's sole surviving parent -- should make decisions about Elian's future.

Jose Basulto, leader of Brothers to the Rescue, a Cuban exile group, said he did not expect Cuban-Americans to hold protests during the appeals process. "I don't think a demonstration at this point is justified," he told CNN.

Calling the federal government's support of Elian's father "disgusting," Basulto said Cuban-Americans would take their revenge during the presidential balloting in November. "I believe the Clinton administration and Mr. Al Gore will pay for this at election time."

Justice Correspondent Pierre Thomas, Correspondents Susan Candiotti Bob Franken, Gary Tuchman and Mark Potter contributed to this report.

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