By Simon Deng
South Sudan has started registering all foreigners who are residing in the capital Juba in an exercise which has registered some staying illegally.
“Today, the immigration officers got 6 Bangladesh whose passports, visas and alien registration stickers expired since 2016,” Lt. Col James Galuak Madiet, the Chief of Immigration at Munuki station said of his zone.
“They have been in Juba for almost 6 years without visas, without alien registration, without anything that may keep them in Juba,” he said.
According to the Directorate for Civil Registry, Nationality, Passport and Immigration, all foreigners in the country should turn up for alien registration.
Madiet said foreigners have been in hiding since the start of silent search in August 2021, noting that the majority of the foreigners who have no valid documents are hosted by senior government officials.
“I am here passing information to all our foreigners within South Sudan and working in the hotels in Juba to come for alien registration in all 8 zones within Juba,” Madiet told journalists in Juba.
“They are in South Sudan without valid visa and other documents because they are protected by individuals working in the government so please come to make process with immigration kololo station. Staying in hiding will not help,” he said.
“We know all foreigners are under safe haven of our generals and all other government officials, we are country with laws, please allow them to come to have their process, we know they are your people and we are not against them.”
According to 1st Lt. Joseph Undo Elisa, the Immigration Officer in the department of alien registration, there are more foreigners with expired visas.
“We are doing assignments directed by concern authorities, we got some challenges when we did silent search, there are a lot of people without support document, no visa and registration, we do not fine them for delays, we tell them to register or renew documents,” said Elisa.
