From: Rodolfo de Sousa [EMAIL PROTECTED]
My dear Jose, Thank you so much for your small line on my "Visa Woes". Of course, I did tap the right door/s, in fact I'm still doing it today but no one seems to open. To go back to the basics, which will give you a better picture: In 1995 I left Germany (where I'm residing since 1963)to visit my family in Goa, as is so usual for expats. But at the Dabolim Airport I was stopped, checked and then put on the same plane and packed off back to Germany. The immigration officer (Mr. Alan de Sa) found nothing untoward with my self or my papers but he had to do his duty. Only a Goan can imagine the pain this could bring, to see Goa right before your eyes and then being stopped and then being told to go back to where you came from. Try it! Since then (1995) I've written nearly about 30 letters to all the higher-ups from the President of India to Mr. Pratapsingh Rane the then, and present Chief Minister of Goa, asking them what was the matter? I am a peaceful citizen and have never committed a crime or belonged to any wxtremist or anti-Indian organisation I told them. Till today I haven't received a single word to any of my letter or petitions from any one of these gentlemen. To get a balanced picture, however, it must be said that from the year 2000 I did manage to receive absolution and get temporary visas but only after interminable delays & uncertainties. In order to unravel the mystery behind all this "slow virus" that's eating into my frail health, I approached our then Hon'ble MP Mr. Eduardo Faleiro last year through whose intervention I got an instant visa last year but no clarification as to what my sin was. I had also approached our present Hon'ble Chief Minister Dr. Willie de Souza last year who also intervened on my behalf and said its a shame that such things should happen to a "son of the soil". Lovely words these were but hasn't helped me to get the asked for visa this yet. To get to your main point. Did I apply to the Embassy here in Berlin? Of course, I did. With all the details. And was told kindly to apply to the Consulate General here in Frankfurt with the addendum advising me to approach any Court in India if I had anything to redress! They (Mr. Reddy)couldn't help me from Berlin. So I approached the Consulate General here in July, 2005 as I did in the year 2000 and am again awaiting absolution, this time I don't know through which patron's blessings or for which sin I shall NOT be getting it. As Mr. Faleiro tells me, he's no longer MP and so he cannot help me. Basta! The emails I send to Dr. de Souza, too, begging for his intervention, remain unanswered to this date. So, there you are. My visa application made to the Indian Consulate General here in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, in July 2000, remains collecting dust. So, dear Jose, if you can one-up our two Goan stalwarts, Faleiro and Willie, who did help me then, then you surely deserve to be our next CM. I give you the following data in case you wish to follow up: The Consul General (Mr.Ram Singh) Friedrich-Ebert-Anlage 26, 60325 Frankfurt am Main; Tel: 0049-69-1530050; Fax 0049-69-554125;e-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]; Visa Info: 0049-69-15300546 I would certainly be highly thankful if you could see a way to help me. Or at least find out what the case is behind my case. Any or all questions, I'll be only too glad to answer. Regarding your last sentence if appropriate to be put before the public, that I leave upto my Goan brethren. Aiz aum, falea tum. Kind regards, Rodolfo de Sousa Date: 4.10.2005 ====== Dear Rodolfo, this must be an error of some sort .....and NOT one which cannot be sorted out. Here are some thoughts 1. Please understand that Dr. Willie may or may not have seen to your email. When a ton of e-mail reach one, there is a possibility that the said email may not have been read. Besides, please do not believe that everyone is as email-hooked as we are. 2. If Dr. Willie has seen your email - he should have - as Cornel suggested - responded to you; even if it was to say Faleam or Write to someone else. Please email Eduardo Faleiro again. He is in a much better position today than a year ago. 3. The advice given to you by the Consulate General here in Frankfurt that you approach any Court in India for redress ..... from my info, amounts to Judicial Review. This I am informed is normally done within a 3 month window period after the decision to deny you a Visa. So, unless you apply again, have it freshly denied, I cannot see you being in time for Judicial Review. 4. IF however you are a German citizen, you may wish to get a German lawyer to sue the Indian Embassy for discrimination in Germany. At the same time, you would do well by writing to your Minister of Foreign Affairs. As per the EU Human Rights directive/convention, you may have a right to know WHY you are being denied entry into your place of birth. if I were you, I would do this pronto. Whatever the technicalities, once the German Foreign Ministry gets involved .... in a situation of wrongful denial of visa to a German citizen ......things just might change. BUT ..... do all the applications through a lawyer in Germany....and please copy the previous Visa stamps et attach to your note to the Foreign Ministry. 5. There is another route ..... that I will post in private post to you immediately after this post. I wish you all the best jose