an easy way to get american citizenship? become a hired killer for the american goverment! Original Article 15 in military gain citizenship Enlistment lets immigrants get that status faster By Lourdes Medrano ARIZONA DAILY STAR Thailand native Dary Sok Van, who has lived in this country since he was 3, had long desired to become a naturalized citizen. Joining the U.S. military allowed Van, who became a U.S. citizen Friday, a quicker path to citizenship while he serves his adopted country. "I wanted to join for the college benefits," Van said. "But citizenship was definitely a factor." He was among 67 people who took the oath of citizenship at the first naturalization ceremony held at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. Fifteen of the new citizens were uniformed service men and women, clearly the stars of the event. "The services are really the strength of our country, and what you do should never be far from the minds of Americans," U.S. District Judge John Roll told the military personnel. Roll presided over the ceremony, which included a videotaped message from President Bush. "We welcome not only immigrants like you, but the many gifts you bring and values you live by: hard work, entrepreneurship, love for family and love of country," the president said. D-M commander Col. Michael Spencer said 250 naturalized citizens are stationed at the base alone. "As citizens of the greatest country on Earth, we see the effect of our diverse mix of culture, race and ethnicity," Spencer told the group. "This diversity yields strength and ingenuity that makes our nation what it is today, a world power." Van, 23, listened intently from his front-row seat. The army sergeant, stationed at Fort Huachuca in Sierra Vista, later said obtaining his citizenship certificate was a momentous occasion. "It feels really good," he said. Personal obstacles and bureaucratic red tape had kept him from becoming a citizen, said Van, who has had a legal permanent residency card for two decades. He joined the Army in 2000, and applied again for citizenship about a year ago, after a 2002 executive order signed by Bush speeded up the citizenship process for members of the armed forces serving since Sept. 11, 2001. Van is one of roughly 33,000 service men and women who have applied for citizenship since July 2002. Of that number, 20,000 have become naturalized citizens, said Chris Bentley, a spokesman for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in Washington, D.C. Additional legislation enacted last year boosted existing benefits for those on active duty or recently discharged, including the elimination of cost and residency requirements. Noncitizen civilians must live in the country as legal permanent residents for five years before being eligible to apply for citizenship - three years if married to a citizen. Members of the armed forces can turn in their citizenship application as soon as they enlist, Bentley said. "We're going to move them into the front of the line, and get their citizenship as quickly as possible." For some immigrants, Bentley said, the prospect of citizenship - along with such benefits as a subsidized college education - is just another incentive to join. There are about 40,000 immigrants from all over the world in the U.S. military, he said. Most come from Mexico. For service men and women, citizenship "opens up a wealth of potential as far as where they can go with their career," Bentley said. Legal permanent residents in the military cannot get security clearance, Bentley said, and they are unable to re-enlist. They also can help family members to attain legal status, even if they die in combat. Sixty-four legal permanent residents who have died since early 2002 have been granted citizenship posthumously, Bentley noted. The prospect of dying didn't deter Tucsonan Manuel Rios, who also became a citizen at Friday's ceremony, from enlisting in the military 14 years ago. "As a soldier, that's not a concern. We've got a duty, a mission to complete," said the Mexico-born Rios, a 31-year-old Army staff sergeant who returned to Tucson in 2004 after one year in Iraq. Rios, now a reservist, said becoming a citizen was additional motivation to stay in the military. "There are definitely more opportunities for a citizen," he said. "And just the act of becoming an American, to call this country own - it's the greatest honor that we can get." Contact reporter Lourdes Medrano at 573-4347 or lmedrano@azstarnet.com.