Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi has welcomed the interception of 67 Pakistani nationals at OR Tambo International Airport after they failed immigration tests.
According to a statement, the Pakistani nationals were denied entry into South Africa in the early hours of Sunday after they failed to adequately answer questions including how long their visas entitled them to be in the country.
The department said those with questionable visas were on a flight of 268 passengers that departed for South Africa from Dubai.
“This is a result of a sting operation that was put together after observing certain trends that were suspicious and did not make sense.
“They were interviewed by immigration officers and they were asked about where they were going and about the purpose of being in South Africa and where they were going to stay given that they were coming here for the first time. They provided conflicting evidence like giving names of non-existent hotels, names of alleged relatives, some of whom did not even exist,” said Motsoaledi.
The Department of Home Affairs Counter Corruption Branch, the Hawks, the State Security Agency and the Border Management Authority (BMA) led the sting operation.
The group has since been sent back to their home country at their own cost.
“Essentially, these people wanted to come to South Africa but were unable to explain where they were going and for what reason. There is no other way. They have to return to their home country. We can’t allow such people to enter the country,” Motsoaledi said.
Motsoaledi noted that some hotels have complained of an increase in the number of Pakistani nationals who book accommodation and then end up not showing up.
“This means that the hotels lose money with these dubious bookings and also on other potential visitors who are unable to book because the hotels are supposed to be full.”
He said the department has been forced to be more vigilant than ever before.
“We are extremely worried by this new trend and we have noticed that the newly acquired e-Visa system, which is meant to facilitate easier entry into the country by tourists, is being seriously abused by some nationals. We will never allow this,” he added.
Cape Times