Reciprocal Visa request: An exercise in pointlessness

As a recent news story points out the Indonesian Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Aburizal Bakrie has asked Australia for a reciprocal Visa On Arrival policy. Here we go again, was my thought upon reading this. Everybody having the same rights of movement sounds great but try putting it into practice and the reality is not as easy.

There is a reason Australia does not give out visas like raffle tickets. Its called economics. My wife told me the other day that her parents in Central Java pay 50,000rp per month to rent the place they live which includes the shop they work in. That is equal to about US$5.50. If people on that kind of budget managed to get a foot into Australia they would not want to leave.

It is true that VOA does not means everyone is going to get in or that standards are going to be lower, only that the point of entry is also the point of issue regarding the visa. Being a Londoner I remember what terminal 1 at Heathrow airport used to look like. International arrivals from Asia were processed there and Britain used to have a similar visa agreement with various Commonwealth countries. Needless to say when a farmer from Bangladesh arrives with his whole family and says through an interpreter that he is on holiday, it causes concern. People were backed up for days, camping out in the airport waiting to be put on the next plane home. At long last a British politician pulled his head out of his ass (takes a while over there) and changed the rules. Now you need a visa.

My advice to Mr. Bakrie: Work on your economy, stamp out corruption, deal with terrorists and the visa issues will take care of themselves.