Visa issue becoming silly

 THE Papua New Guinea Im­migration Department will send its officers to Norfolk Island to process visas for its Pacific Games contingent.

The Pacific Games Organ­ising Committee confirmed the favour the National Government was doing for the Norfolk Islanders, who would be visa-ready before travelling to the Games, which start on July 4.

The State is happy to foot the bill to send several of its officers to process the Norfolk Island Games team. From a practical stand point that is the costlier route.

Norfolk Islands sent 13 athletes accompanied by several officials/coaches to the 2011 Pacific Games in New Caledonia. Norfolk Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia, 1412km directly east of mainland Australia’s Evans Head, and about 900km from Lord Howe Island. 

The island is part of the Commonwealth of Australia, and enjoys a large degree of self-governance. 

Together with two neighbouring islands, it forms one of Australia’s external territories. It has 2300 inhabitants living on a total area of about 35km2. Its capital is Kingston.

Norfolk Island is part of Australia, it therefore falls under the same immigration rules that Australians must follow in order to enter PNG.

The situation of visa applications and approvals between PNG and Australia is a strained one because one country – Australia – has instituted a list of requirements that people from this country have to undergo in order to obtain a visa.

Some of these requirements include having proof of funds to a certain amount including a copy of your bank statement, a police report and being able to support yourself through your own means or by way of a sponsor.

While it is appreciated that these laws are in place for a reason, especially with the heightened fear of terrorism in recent years, one cannot help but feel the Australian Government was being perhaps a little too harsh on its nearest neighbour. One news story that did little to help the cause of those in the Australian Immigration department was in March 2005 when Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare was required by security officers at Brisbane Airport to remove his sandals during a routine departure security check and took strong exception to this, leading to a diplomatic contretemps and a significant cooling of relations between the two countries. 

This policy has hindered the travel of many Papua New Guineans and the waiting time after lodgement of visas has seen many miss their scheduled flights and/or been late for important engagements – whether they are for business, sports, medical, education or family reasons. After several years of putting up with this status quo, not to mention the constant complaints from the public on the difficult and time-consuming process, the Government finally decided to reciprocate and put Australians travelling to PNG under the same burden. 

What this means is that people from both countries must now apply and obtain visas before arrival.

The situation is proving to be costlier – and idiotic.

Every other country in the region, particularly those taking part in the Pacific Games, can apply for visas on arrival meaning the process they have to go through is more or less a formality.

The situation that this visa issue highlights is the lengths to which the Australian Government has gone to too make travel to its shores more difficult for Papua New Guineans while the Government has decided that what is good for the goose is good for the gander and applied the same set of rules to Australians.

The situation is obviously a political one as if it were for practical purposes then every country would presumably be under the same rules, but they are not.

Papua New Guineans cannot help but sometimes feel a little victimised by big brother as travel to Australia from other Pacific Islands is apparently done with less fuss.

The visa situation bet­ween the two nations seems to be little more than an act of political posturing from both sides and the sooner there is a compromise that makes sense the better it will be for everyone.