U.S. suspends visa processing

U.S. suspends visa processing

JAKARTA (JP): Two hundred people applying for visas at the United States embassy in Jakarta complained yesterday that embassy was refusing to process their applications.

Craig J. Stromme, the United States Information Service (USIS) attache confirmed that the embassy has suspended visa processing due to a lack of U.S. government funding authority and the consequent furloughing of personnel.

He told The Jakarta Post yesterday that no visa applications will be accepted until the funding authority is restored.

Applications for visas before and on Dec. 15 had been processed normally, he said.

This is the second suspension of visa processing by the U.S. embassy in Jakarta since the White House and the Republican-led congress failed to resolve differences over the federal budget in the middle of last month. The circumstances forced U.S. embassies and consulates all over the Asia-Pacific region to issue statements regretting the suspension of services.

Sources at the U.S. embassy in Jakarta said yesterday that after last month's suspension almost 600 people applied for U.S. visas every day.

In related development the United States Commercial and Information Center said in a release yesterday that USIS Jakarta has decided to relocate its information Center/Zorinsky Library from Wisma Metropolitan II to the USIS office at Medan Merdeka Selatan No. 4 after a close examination of its budget.

The release signed by Kathleen J. Brahney, Information Center Director, said the new facility will be called the Zorinsky Research and Information Service (ZoRIS).

"In order to facilitate the relocation of our services, the Zorinsky Library at Wisma Metropolitan II will close as of Dec. 19, 1995. We expect our new facility to be operational in mid to late January, 1996," the release said. (bsr/03/sur)