| |
Contact:
Claudia Monlouis
Tuesday, August 24, 2004 - The Cabinet of Ministers has approved
recommendations for the imposition of tighter visa entry requirements for St.
Lucia.
Speaking during his monthly Cabinet Press Briefing on Tuesday, August 24th,
2004, Cabinet Secretary, Dr .James Fletcher explained that with the exception of
the major tourism markets, such as the United States of America, visa
requirements will have to be met by visitors from countries where visa
stipulations are imposed on St. Lucians.
“The government on the advice of the Ministry of External Affairs and the
Ministry of Home Affairs have really sought to put in place a reciprocal
arrangement or visa. For example those countries with one or two exceptions
where St. Lucians are required to produce visas in order to enter those
countries, there is a reciprocal arrangement that has been put in place where
the government is requiring that persons from those countries will require visas
to visit St. Lucia,” Dr. Fletcher said.
Dr. Fletcher further implied that the new measures would assist St. Lucia in
regularizing the issuance of visas by St. Lucia Overseas Missions and Consul
Offices: “One of the things found was that no two visa stamps issued by the
Consul offices were the same, with the exception of the New York and Washington
offices. So if somebody applied for a visa to enter St. Lucia, and that person
applied from the St. Lucia High Commission in London, then the stamp they would
receive for that visa would be entirely different from the stamp that they would
receive from New York so it created a certain amount of confusion.”
The measures are also viewed as timely in light of the atmosphere of security
concerns that governments within the region are trying to address.
|
