By Rod Ohira
Advertiser Staff Writer
It doesn’t matter to Immigration and Naturalization Service officials that celebrated Honolulu restaurateur Chai Chaowasaree owns a $3 million business, employs 70 people and is described by friends as a "model citizen."
"We don’t have discretion to make exceptions," INS district director Donald Radcliffe said yesterday of the move to deport Chai back to Thailand. "The law is very specific, and our job is to enforce the law."
Chai, whose real name is Vichai Sae Tung, has been fighting deportation since December 1993 through appeals. But when he left Honolulu on Jan. 20, 2000, to visit his seriously ill father in Thailand, Chai "essentially deported himself," said Radcliffe.
When he left the United States, Chai gave up his temporary-resident status, Radcliffe added. While his appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals had placed his deportation on hold, his departure legally voided that appeal ö and triggered provisions that prohibited Chai from returning to the country.
Chai was met by INS officials at Honolulu Airport on Feb. 5, 2000, upon his return from Thailand.
He was allowed to remain in Honolulu while agents investigated allegations by Chai that an INS official approved his travel aboard.
According to federal court documents, Chai says he sought permission to leave by filling out forms to obtain advance parole.
"When he returned with those completed forms, however, the Honolulu agent advised him that advance-parole forms were not proper in his case because Chai was a permanent resident," the document states. "Instead, he should apply for a temporary alien registration card, which he did."
Chai was issued a temporary green card, which he tried to use to get back into the United States.
The INS did not misdirect Chai, Radcliffe said.
"Mr. Chai failed to tell the information officer what his status was," Radcliffe added. "We don’t have a crystal ball. If he had asked to talk to our legal staff, we would have advised him not to go. His own lawyer told him not to go."
U.S. District Judge David Ezra granted a temporary restraining order Feb. 12, ordering the INS not to deport Chai until Feb. 26. On Feb. 16, however, Ezra denied Chai’s petition for a preliminary injunction barring his deportation. He is being held at the O‘ahu Community Correctional Center without bail.
"I understand that he is a model in the community, but he should have been gone a long time ago," Radcliffe said. "There are tens of thousands of people in the Philippines, Korea and Mexico who are also model citizens that have been waiting 10-15 years for their visa number to be called. They haven’t tried to defraud the United States, and they’re obeying laws that Mr. Chai apparently feels does not apply to him."
Chai’s sisters, Saowalux "Joy" Saetung and Saowanit "Nicki" Garcia, already are involved in the operation of his two restaurants, Chai’s Island Bistro and Singha Thai Cuisine, and will keep the business going.
"There’s an incredible commitment to continuing Chai’s commitment to entertainment and Hawai‘i cuisine," said John Delaney, manager of Chai’s Island Bistro. "It will be business as usual."
Chai’s situation shocked his friends.
"This is a sad day for Hawai‘i," said Bethan Nishijima of Nori’s Saimin and Snacks, who flew in from Hilo last week to see Chai. "Instead of getting bad guys like drug dealers and criminals, they pick on Chai. They put him in a cage; this is bad."
Added Doug Lum, executive chef of Mariposa restaurant at Neiman Marcus: "A person of his demeanor should be held (here); he’s not going to be skipping town.
"... He’s just a really, really good person. This is not the type of individual that should be treated as a criminal."
Prominent chef and restaurant owner Alan Wong said, "He has lots of workers, he pays taxes, he works hard and gives back to the community. "It’s outrageous that they’re going to pack him up and send him home."
Chai, who came to the United States in August 1985, married a American, Victoria Dubray, the following year. In 1991, the INS moved to deport Chai after determining the marriage was a "sham." The couple had not lived together for years and gave conflicting information about addresses, bank accounts and their relationships with others during interviews with INS officials, court documents said.
Advertiser staff writer Joan Namkoong contributed to this report.
Correction: Honolulu restaurateur Vichai Sae Tung has adopted the name Chai Chaowasaree. Chaowasaree was misspelled in a previous version of this story.
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