Immigration finds 36 bogus visas

JAKARTA (JP): The immigration office has discovered this year at least 36 bogus Indonesian visas allegedly produced by a well- organized syndicate overseas.

The immigration's control and supervision head Zaiman Nurmatias said in a statement on Tuesday that the fake visas, mostly for 30-day tourist visits, carried official seals of the Indonesian government. The documents appeared to have been issued by Indonesian embassies in Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and Beijing.

He said most of the seized visas enabled the holders to enter Indonesia as an embarkation point before heading to other countries, such as Australia, to look for jobs.

"From Indonesia, such as at Kupang (East Nusa Tenggara) they (the foreigners) could continue their trips to Australia without having their documents examined at the (official) immigration point," Zaiman said.

Foreigners apprehended with the fake visas when arriving at local airports and seaports included individuals from Bangladesh, Malawi, Nepal, South Africa, Liberia, China and Iraq.

All the foreigners, except for the stateless citizens, were returned to the most recent country they had visited.

"Most of the bogus visas were 'issued' by Indonesian embassies in Kuala Lumpur," he said.

In an effort to cope with the crimes, the immigration office is currently preparing a new type of visa which would carry a photo-identity of the bearer in the form of a sticker, he said.

"We hope to implement the new form this year.".(jun)