Australian Embassy taken to task

Australian Embassy taken to task

From Media Indonesia

I am really exasperated with the Australian Embassy in
Jakarta. I have applied for a visa to visit Australia four times
and all of these applications were rejected. As a matter of fact,
before these rejections I had visited Australia six times.
Besides, I have also been abroad many times over, either on
business or for holiday, and I have never had a problem with
visas.

I have a number of questions that I would like the Australian
Embassy to answer. First, about the Rp 280,000 which an applicant
must pay when applying for a visa. This fee is not returned if
our application is rejected. In my case, the fourth time I
applied for a visa I had a guarantee from my boss, who is a
permanent resident of Australia. Still, the application was
rejected.

As dozens of people apply for visas at the Australian Embassy
each day, you can imagine how much the embassy earns merely from
this activity. As a matter of fact, it is not the money that has
upset me but the fact that I have received no explanation as to
why I was denied a visa. At other embassies, an applicant will be
told why their visa request was rejected. Take the American
Embassy, for example. This embassy will interview an applicant
and tell them whether their visa application can be fulfilled or
not. In this way a human being is treated with dignity.

In the case of my application for an Australian visa, I only
received a letter saying that I did not have enough money for a
week's holiday in Australia. So, what is it that makes them
harbor such a suspicion? In the letter of rejection it is even
handwritten as follows: "We are not satisfied that your visit is
genuinely intended."

HIDAYAT SALIM

Jakarta