Visa Regulations: Urgent action required, not additional “task teams”
21 August 2015
Yesterday, the Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) on Immigration Regulations convened to consider the unintended consequences of the new immigration regulations on various sectors of the economy.
In spite of the overwhelming urgency by which this matter requires handling, the committee resolved to establish yet another task team, this time headed by the Director-General in the Presidency Dr. Cassius Lubisi.
The task team is now responsible for providing a “composite set of recommendations” on how to resolve the unintended consequences, which will be presented to the IMC at its next sitting, in two weeks’ time.
With all due respect to Dr Lubisi and his task team, their job is a simple one, as the work has already been done for them by the DA.
I will therefore today write to Dr Lubisi, outlining the urgent interventions that are required to immediately stop the downward spiral in the tourism industry. These are as follows:
Repeal the requirement in the regulations that makes in-person visa applications for biometrics mandatory, replacing it with biometrics upon arrival;
Suspend the unabridged birth certificate requirement until a proper evidence-based study into the scale of child trafficking is completed; and
Allocate a significant portion of the Department of Tourism’s budget to an international marketing campaign to repair the damage done to our tourism industry in recent months.
The tourism industry – which constitutes 9% of our GDP and employs 1.5 million South Africans – is critical to the fight against unemployment. According to the Tourism and Business Council of South Africa, for every 12 tourists that arrive on our shores, 1 job is created.
The DA believes that the opportunity to find a job brings with it dignity, independence, a sense of self-worth and freedom. Any policy, law or regulation that hinders this must be reassessed with the requisite urgency.
Statement issued by James Vos MP, DA Shadow Minister of Tourism, August 21 2015
