Another govt official denied visa

The government said the US embassy has again failed to issue a visa to the Minister for Local Government and Environment, Colonel Samuela Saumatua.

He is the fourth senior official who has not received his visa on time with no official reply.

The others in recent times are Attorney General, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum who was supposed to attend the UN General Assembly, Chief Justice Anthony Gates who was supposed to attend a high level ICC meeting in New York and Permanent Secretary for Fisheries, Commander Viliame Naupoto who was supposed to attend a high level fisheries meeting in Hawaii.

Colonel Saumatua was expected to attend the 16th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention to Climate Change commonly known as COP16 in Mexico.

Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum said the convention provides a critical framework within which all governments can work together to carry out policies and measures that address climate change.

He said given that the Copenhagen Accord failed to lay a concrete plan to maintain global temperature rises and legally binding reductions to CO2 emissions, the high level participation and involvement of all countries and governments including Fiji at COP16 was crucial.

Sayed-Khaiyum said Fiji's Minister for Environment was unable to participate in the meeting and to raise Fiji's concerns at the meeting because the American authorities failed to issue him with a transit visa.

The Attorney General said the Minister’s application was initiated and lodged with the US embassy within sufficient time.
 
He said one wonders whether the same treatment would have been meted out by the US embassy to a senior ministerial official from a more significant state.

Sayed-Khaiyum said the action or lack of it by the embassy gives the clear impression that it does not want Fiji as a small developing country, which is vulnerable to the immediate effects of climate change, to be involved in and to address issues such as climate change.

Meanwhile the Attorney General said the US Embassy is deliberately delaying the visa approvals to key state representatives which is resulting in people being unable to attend crucial international meetings.

Meanwhile the US Embassy is yet to comment on the matter.



Story by: Vijay Narayan