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VISA PROCESSES STIR CONTROVERSY
BY GEOFFREY CRAIG
When Egypt’s foreign ministry summoned ambassadors from EU member countries on August 12, the meeting had a simple message. Ahmed Quwaisini, then assistant to the foreign minister for consular affairs, told the audience that European consulates must improve their treatment of Egyptians applying for visas.
A week earlier, the foreign ministry had sent European consulates a memorandum on the same issue. The ministry had complained before, but this was the most strongly-worded statement, according to the state-run news agency.
It singled out “bad methods their employees follow, such as evasion... and ambiguity about what visa applicants require,” and encouraged Egyptians to avoid traveling and spending money in countries where they aren’t welcome.
In an interview with Business Monthly, assistant foreign minister Ahmed Rizk, who recently replaced Quwaisini – now serving as ambassador to Indonesia – said that families of Egyptian diplomats have also faced difficulties obtaining visas.
“It doesn’t mean that we aren’t concerned with the ordinary passport holders, but now the trend has become very disturbing,” Rizk says. “That’s why the minister directed the assistant for consular affairs to summon the ambassadors and inform them in very clear terms [about] our protest, and dissatisfaction [with] this behavior.”
The foreign ministry had received similar complaints related to non-EU embassies, but said that Europe represented the bulk of the cases. Most complaints were related to the application process. “Issuing a visa sometimes takes more than three months, and without any further justification they say your application is rejected,” Rizk says. “We don’t know the criteria they are working on... They are applying measures arbitrarily,” he adds.
A European diplomat, who was present at the August 12 meeting and spoke to Business Monthly on the condition of anonymity, said that European embassies were aware of the frustrations that many Egyptians felt with respect to the visa process.
The problem is the Schengen visa, which allows holders to visit 15 western European countries, and therefore entails stricter criteria, the diplomat said.
Egyptians must submit documents showing their financial resources, employment status and travel insurance coverage when applying for visas to visit EU countries.
“These Schengen rules apply worldwide. [Questions asked in the process include:] Why are you going? Do you have proof that you’re going to look after yourself? What are you attending? Do you have a job to come back to? If I was going to the States, then they’d want the same sorts of assurances that people coming in are going to spend some money and then go home again.
“We have some countries in Europe where migration has become a hugely divisive political sore point, so there are governments which have shown to be rather robust on the matter. But Schengen is Schengen, so it’s a common system for all the countries. Whether it’s bureaucratic or not, it’s there; that’s the system there is,” the diplomat added.
Instead, the focus between EU member states and Egypt has been on facilitating the visa process under the European Neighborhood Policy, a framework agreement signed between Egypt and the EU in 2004.
The goal is to create a working list of Egyptians from business, academia and non-governmental organizations who travel frequently to Europe on business. The list would then be distributed to EU member states, and used to expedite the visa application process, according to the diplomatic source.
“That’s where we believe the real discussion is, and that’s where we are engaged, and continue to be engaged on visas,” the diplomatic source added. “It’s not going to be whether there is a discourteous consular staff member, though I hope they would be courteous.”
The EU is Egypt’s largest trading bloc, and citizens from member states represent the majority of foreign tourists who visit the country. It’s unclear whether slow visa procedures have damaged business or tourism between the two sides.
Rizk is concerned about the possible economic impact. “Our volume of trade [with the EU] comes as the first [priority],” Rizk says. “We don’t want many businessmen to lose their opportunities because of [any] delay in [obtaining a] visa.”
He says people with legitimate business in Europe have complained to the foreign ministry about having their visa applications denied. But European sources say that such incidents are rare. EU embassies meet regularly to discuss consular affairs, and the consensus is that the system is working.
“I’m sure there are individual cases, instances where there’s a good reason for being upset or outraged, and you’ll get individual cases in everything, but the system itself, I think, is designed to protect both our interests,” the diplomatic source said.
One morning last month, Egyptian visa applicants streamed in and out of a European consulate on a quiet, downtown side street lined with travel insurance companies. Several told Business Monthly that they consider the visa application process to be stressful and time-consuming.
Nagy Badir, who works for a local telecommunications company, said he was trying to get a visa to spend five days in Europe with his wife on the return leg from a vacation to Brazil. He had managed to secure an interview date, but was concerned that the visa would come too late, if at all.
The process had been “humiliating,” he complained. “They make you feel ashamed to be an Egyptian.”
Meanwhile, other applicants at the same consulate said they hadn’t had any difficulties securing a visa. Usama Khalaf, who expected to receive a visa that afternoon, considered the service “very friendly.” He was planning to travel to Europe as part of his work for an escalator inspection company.
Essam Gouda had lived in Europe for four years as a university student. During that time, he said he never experienced any problems obtaining a visa. Now an assistant professor in urban planning at Al Azhar University, he applied for a visa to spend a few months in Europe to conduct independent research. He didn’t think it was going to be possible to get a visa.
“The consulate told me to come back in four months for an interview,” he said. “Four months is too long to wait for an interview. I’d rather go to Singapore or Turkey.”
Both sides say they are hopeful they can reach a compromise soon. “These problems can be solved,” Rizk says. “We don’t want to exaggerate. It can be considered by the European side, and be solved by the European side, because I know that Europe is also very keen to have good relations with the Egyptian people.”
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