Over 5000 Tanzanian applicants got US visas last year

[BAK]

Over 5000 Tanzanian applicants got US visas last year

2009-02-05 10:47:31
By Angel Navuri​

Over 5000 Tanzanians got US visas last year, the highest since America opened its embassy in the country.

Robert Hanan, first secretary and consul at the US embassy in Dar es Salaam, told this paper on Tuesday that over 70 per cent of Tanzanians who applied for visas got them.

Hanan refuted claims that it had been very difficult for Tanzanians to get American visas.

``We have even had an increase in the number of visas issued, with the highest number of visas issued last year more than in any year in history,`` he said.

Giving details, he said last year some 5,474 people received visas to go to the US, the highest figure since 2001, the year when the September 11 attacks occurred on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon.

The issuances had usually taken a downward trend until last year.

He warned however that security still remains a major reason why not every applicant would get a visa.

``It is in our national interest to host international visitors, students and businesspeople from around the world who enrich our culture, enhance our commerce and gain a better appreciation of the American story. At the same time we must be vigilant against those who wish to abuse this welcome to reside in the United States illegally, conduct criminal acts or engage in terrorism,`` he said.

He said because of the previous terrorist attacks on the country including the August 1998 bombing of the US embassy in Dar es Salaam, the 2001 September 11 terrorist attacks, among other global terrorism activities, had compelled the country to step up security measures in admitting people to the United States.

Hanan said the law set a very high threshold for applicants to establish their eligibility for a visa.

``The main point in establishing this eligibility is convincing the consular officer that the applicant intends to leave United States and return to Tanzania. The applicant`s credibility is the more important than any other document he/she might present,`` he said.

He said some people who might likely be denied visas included those who lied in their applications, those with previous criminal records and any other indicators that would question one`s credibility or commitment to return to Tanzania.

Regarding the non-refundable visa application fee, he said it covered all the costs associated with accepting and adjudicating a visa application.

This followed a directive from the United States Congress that visa operations worldwide had to be supported by those who seek its services and not by the American taxpayer.

``The visa application fee covers all costs of operating a consular section including the substantial security measures necessary for the safety of the employees and applicants,`` he said.

Some of the security costs include running the state-of-the-art real-time security check system, which reviews biographic and biometric data information for everyone of the millions of visa applicants submitted at over two hundred Consular Sections around the world each year, he said.

``This system helps to reduce the possibility of applicants residing in the country illegally, engaging in criminal activity, or terrorism. All these costs are incurred whether an applicant establishes their eligibility for a visa or not,`` he noted SOURCE: Guardian

 

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