Bali immigration rejects 10 foreigners without visas

Bali immigration rejects 10 foreigners without visas

I Wayan Juniartha and Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post,
Denpasar/Jakarta

The first four days of the new visa policy have seen 10 tourists
denied entry into the country's major tourist destination Bali,
but officials say the policy has paid dividends.

Fifty-one foreigners were refused entry nationwide in the
first two days of the scheme, which the government said had
generated over US$140,000.

Bali immigration office chief Gde Widiartha said on Wednesday
the 10 tourists could not enter the island as their countries
were among those excluded from the list of visa-free or visa-on-
arrival recipients.

"These holiday-makers are citizens of countries that are not
listed as recipients of either the free visa for short-term visit
(BVKS) or the visa on arrival (VOA). They should have applied for
visas at the Indonesian Embassy in their respective countries
beforehand," Widiartha said.

Three of the visitors were from Austria, three from the
Netherlands, two from Sweden and two from Mexico. Nine of them
arrived at Ngurah Rai airport on Tuesday, while the rest reached
Bali on Wednesday. Most of them were elderly people, who traveled
via Bangkok or Singapore.

The airlines, responsible for carrying the tourists had
informed the tourists of the new visa policy, Widiartha said.
"Unfortunately, they ignored the warning, hoping they could
settle things upon their arrival here," he said.

After two days of implementation, the government claimed the
policy was a success, generating $143,270 in state revenue.

Director-General of Immigration Iman Santoso said on Tuesday
the money was collected from entry points across the country.

Data showed about 900 foreigners applied for visas on arrival
at Jakarta's Soekarno-Hata airport and some 2,000 in Bali's
Ngurah Rai airport on the first day of the policy's application.
The number in Bali increased to about 2,700 on the second day.

Many in the country's tourist industry have expressed fears
the new policy would discourage foreign tourists from traveling
to Indonesia. They have demanded the scheme be shortened to a
one-month trial.

Under the new policy, a visa on arrival costs $10 for a three-
day stay, and $25 for 30-day stay.

Also on Wednesday, an Italian national was sent back to his
country after immigration officials decided his drunkenness was
disturbing other passengers. The man, whose identity was not
revealed, arrived at Ngurah Rai on Monday. He was taken to a
nearby health clinic, where he spent the night.

"Although he is a citizen of the country that receives a VOA
facility, we decided he might cause problems here, therefore we
sent him back to his country on Wednesday," Widiartha said.

The BVKS privilege is given to Singapore, Malaysia, the
Philippines, Thailand, Brunei Darussalam, Hong Kong, Macau,
Chile, Morocco, Peru and Vietnam, while the 21 countries that are
entitled to VOAs are the United States, Australia, South Africa,
Argentina, Brazil, Denmark, United Arab Emirates, Finland,
Hungary, United Kingdom, Italy, Japan, Germany, Canada, South
Korea, Norway, France, Poland, Switzerland, New Zealand and
Taiwan.