Twelve foreign nationals who arrived on a Copa Airlines flight yesterday were denied entry to Guyana after they failed to satisfy immigration requirements.
According to Minister of Citizenship Winston Felix, the passengers—six Haitians, a Russian, a Colombian and four Cubans—arrived on a Copa Airlines Flight CM254 and were denied leave to land at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), Timehri.
Felix explained that the six Haitians had no visas and were carrying letters purportedly issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Guyana. These fake letters, he said, have become familiar to immigration officers.
Two Russian nationals, a husband and wife who also arrived on the flight, left after the wife was denied leave to land. According to Felix, she was believed to be part of travel that was attached to illegalities. He hinted that these illegalities may include trafficking in persons.
The Colombian, meanwhile, arrived with no visa or money to support himself here.
These eight passengers were returned to the aircraft and left Guyana shortly after their arrival.
Four Cuban nationals—two women and two children, who are three and five years old—are, however, still in Guyana after they refused to be returned to the flight. The two women were in possession of return tickets but were denied entry because they were, like the Russian female, suspected to be involved in a trip that had illegalities surrounding it.
Felix said authorities were seeking to have the Cuban nationals suitably accommodated until they leave. “Instead of having to stay in cells with two children… we are seeking to have them under safer and more humane conditions prior to their flight,” he said.
Noting that it appears Guyana is a “focal point for people on backtrack activities or involved in trafficking in persons,” Felix called on airlines operating within the country to “act responsibly” by making sure that those to whom they issue tickets are in possession of the necessary travel documents.
He called on airlines to observe International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) regulations, which he said required that they “ensure that persons arriving here have the appropriate visas and return tickets.”
“That is what airlines are mandated to do. In some cases, certain airlines seem to be deficient,” Felix added.
Veteran aviator Gerry Gouveia, however, disagreed with Felix’s assertion about the requirements which must be met for the issuance of tickets.
“There is no such regulation under ICAO guidelines; the onus is on the individual government to advise the carriers of their immigration policies,” Gouveia told Stabroek News in an invited comment.
Felix further said that “where there is a Guyana mission in the country from which the passengers originate, they are expected to visit the mission to seek the visa. The facility for visa on arrival where someone here sponsors the intended visitor is to facilitate those intended visitors who are from countries where there are no missions or the mission might be so far away it is difficult for the traveler to get there. Someone in Guyana can be utilised to apply to us for a visa on arrival in that case and the information will be at the airport when the visitor arrives.”
Last Friday, eight Indian nationals departed Guyana after being denied leave to land since July 19th. The men, who arrived on an InselAir Curacao flight, left Guyana after the government grounded an InselAir Aruba flight on Thursday. They departed on an InselAir Curacao flight.
Gouveia believes that these issues are arising because the new government is still to come to grips with some of the newer developments in the local airline industry.
“With the arrival of COPA and Insel Air to the Guyanese airline industry, we have a new dispensation with persons arriving from unfamiliar ports as some passengers opt to skip the US and UK and arrive via hubs at Panama and elsewhere in South America,” Gouveia said, while adding that the government needs to clearly state its travel requirements in order to prevent future issues.
