Eye Spy:The residence permits stink!

[BAK]

Eye Spy:The residence permits stink!

Adam Lusekelo
THIS DAY
Dar es Salaam

TANZANIA, it is understood, has reservations on the move on free labour movement in the EAC. Maybe I should warn those who sit on behalf of Tanzania in all those endless conferences don't you dare!

Why are people still harping on about 'fast tracking' the integration? Let's face it; we are not going into this deal with great and holy intentions. I have already said it countless times, our 'friends' are simply eyeing our lands in Tanzania.

If you let our 'friends' come to fence off miles and miles of our land in Tanzania, by scheming signatures you sure will have instant results. You are going to force the wananchi in Tanzania to go to towns. No jobs, no land, no hope. That equals to skyrocketing crime and even a war or two. People will be forced to fight for their lands which have been signed off by all those modern day 'chiefs' for a few shangingis and bottles of whisky .

The last 40 years have bred people with an attitude in all these countries. Interviewed by the CCN Kenya's Prime Minister Raila Odinga said that since independence Kenya has been massively radicalised. There are the disgustingly rich Kenyan minority and the hopeless and desperately poor majority.

When the majority tried to remove the minority through the ballot box they were robbed even off that. So the people grabbed their machetes and started cutting off heads. The rich had stolen the vote.

That is happening everywhere in our beloved East Africa. Presently someone is trying to steal the elections in Uganda, ruling through the rich and the armed forces. In Bongo the story looks remarkably the same. The rich have bought off the ruling party and are now plotting to rule the country forever with a lot of help from the very partisan armed forces, of course.

As if that is not enough, some fat cats in East Africa are talking of fast-tracking our love story. As a rule one should be wary of a partner who wants to fast track love. I mean you simply cannot go to bed with a partner you've just met this morning in a daladala! That's not what decent parents teach their kids. Take time to know him or her.

What is the hurry? We have to take time to know each other. Why rush it? Personally I am highly suspicious of anyone who once held me in contempt suddenly turning and saying that she is in love with me. One forgives, but one should never forget. If you do that then you must be a very stupid someone.

Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs, Wills Masilingi, said Tanzania must take a gradual approach on the matter, stressing that there was no need to rush.

''I do not understand why some people want to rush this issue while others are not ready,'' he said.

He said once the issue is brought to his committee, they will advise the government appropriately. He said most Tanzanians were worried of competition from neighbouring countries, adding that the integration could be at the expense of Tanzania if it is not looked into keenly.

I love to watch those wildlife series on telly. Lovely herds co-existing out there in the wild. But all animals are constantly vigilant, while predators are on the prowl. If any animal lowers its guard, it ends up as another animal's dinner.

Think of the entire world like a giant Ngorongoro Crater. The animals (humans) look beautiful. But they are constantly on their guard while others prowl. One mistake and lower your guard and this animal called Tanzania could quickly be eaten. The world is a jungle out there!

mbwene2@yahoo.com

 

[BAK]

Dar move on work permits a major boost for EAC

By FRANCIS AYIEKO
THE EAST AFRICAN

Posted Sunday, October 5 2008 at 10:45

Work permits, a major hindrance to free movement of labour within the East African Community, will soon be a thing of the past after Tanzania last week became the last country in the region to lift restrictions on the right of residence.

Tanzania, considered to have the most restrictive immigration rules in the region, announced the move during the third round of the negotiations on the EAC Common Market Protocol held in Bujumbura.

The eight-day meeting in the Burundian capital was attended by members of the High Level Task Force from the five partner states of Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi.

However, the country, the largest in the region, maintained a hardline position on articles of the draft protocol regarding access to acquisition of land by nationals of other partner states.

Tanzania's move revives negotiations, which some observers had started saying were likely to bogged down by disagreements over right of residence as well as free movement of persons and labour.

Such fears seemed real during the second round of the negotiations, which took place in August in Nairobi, when the delegates referred a number of issues, including the right of residence, for further discussions in the specialised committee.

According to Article 27 of the model protocol on which the Community's Common Market is being negotiated, the right to reside in a host partner state will be granted to any East African resident seeking employment or to carry out an economic activity in a member state.

Currently, one must obtain a work permit to reside in any EAC partner state for up to six months. Article 27 seeks to address cases of those who want to reside - for gainful economic activity or employment - in another EAC partner state for more than six months.

Granting of a residence permit will depend on the status of the citizen - whether employed as a worker, self-employed or retired.

The right of residence will be extended to the family or dependants of the worker or self-employed persons. This means family members or dependants of the person will also be entitled to residence permits.

Under Article 27, residence permit will serve merely as proof of the right of residence. Once issued, a residence permit will not be withdrawn even when the person has become incapable of work through illness, accident or involuntary unemployment.

Tanzania's relaxation of the residency restrictions is seen as a major breakthrough in the EAC economic integration.

Seen as the most stringent in applying immigration restrictions in the region, Tanzania has over the past few years thrown out several Kenyans over not having work permits even when they were working for Kenyan firms with investments in Tanzania.

But the negotiations in Burundi seem to have injected new life into this second stage in the integration of the EAC.

"The Bujumbura round was the entry point for negotiations on some of the most crucial issues and critical requirements of a Common Market, including the outstanding issues on the right of establishment, right of residence and free movement of services," Burundi's Vice-Minister for East African Community Affairs, Nduwimana Deogratias, said in a statement.
The negotiations were proceeding "with very encouraging indications," said Mr Deogratias.

After Tanzania lifted its objections to the inclusion of the right of residence in the proposed Protocol, the article on the right of residence was reinstated.

The delegates also reached consensus on a number of provisions that will govern the right of establishment within the Common Market.

They provided in the draft protocol that the partner states abolish all restrictions on the right of establishment based on nationality of companies, firms and citizens of the partner states.
Such rights shall be subject only to limitations justified on grounds of pubic policy, pubic security or public health.

With reservations that were recorded by Tanzania, for further consultations, the delegates provided in the draft protocol that, among other things, a national of a partner state shall be enabled to "acquire/access and use land and buildings situated in the territory of another partner state for purposes of establishment."

The specific issue of "acquiring/accessing" land and buildings was referred for further deliberations in the ongoing negotiations process.

But Tanzania maintained that the "acquiring/accessing" clause in the article be deleted, arguing that "it is not a Common Market issue."

This now remains among the matters bracketed for further consultations and resolution by the negotiating parties.

Under free movement of services, members of the task force agreed on the provision that the partner states shall progressively remove existing restrictions and should not introduce any new restrictions that impede trade in services among the partner states.

The EAC Secretariat, which is providing support services to the task force, told the meeting that a study is being undertaken within the framework of Community's Economic Partnership Agreement negotiations on the state of play of the services sectors within the partner states.

When completed, the study will be made available to the task force to inform some of the deliberations on trade in services.

The Common Market is scheduled to come into force in January next year.

 

[PatPending]

Opening up a can of worms I say