NEWSFLASH

RP TO PROTEST CASH BOND FOR UK-BOUND PINOYS

Manila, July 9, 2000 - Immigration Commissioner Rufus Rodriguez asked the Department of Foreign Affairs yesterday to protest a proposal by the British government to impose a cash bond on Filipinos traveling to the United Kingdom to ensure their return to the Philippines.

Rodriguez called the proposal of the British government "prohibitive, unreasonable and discriminatory," as it insults the dignity of Filipino travelers.

He urged the DFA to reciprocate the measure by imposing a similar bond on British nationals entering the Philippines or to bar UK visitors to the Philippines altogether to signify Manila's strong objection to London's proposal.

The DFA had asked Rodriguez to comment on the UK proposal to require Filipinos to post a cash bond of 3,000 sterling pounds (P198,000) as a guarantee that they would leave before the lapse of their authorized stay.

The British government also announced plans to impose a financial bond of 5,000 to 10,000 sterling pounds on Filipino "borderline" applicants who are likely to be refused a visa to the UK.

Barbara Roche, UK's immigration minister, was quoted in a London newspaper as saying that the bond scheme will be introduced as a pilot project that would last for six months.

Roche also said the bond would be required on a selective basis, particularly on matters where their consuls doubt the real purpose of the visa applicants going to the UK.

Rodriguez said there is no valid reason for London to implement the bond scheme in the Philippines since Great Britain is not known to be a favored destination of Filipinos.

He pointed out that despite the UK’s hardening policy on Filipino immigrants, the Philippines continues to admit visitors from Great Britain even if they do not have a visa, adding that the Bureau of Immigration has been very lenient in extending the stay of British tourists.