An Indian man who traveled from American Samoa destined for Fiji, but was held by Samoa Immigration for improper papers, was able to leave for Fiji after all.
Chief Immigration Officer Peseta Dennis Fuimaono explaind to KHJ News that American Samoa never made a request to Samoa Immigration to authorize the traveler to stay in Samoa to await a ticket to travel to Fiji and on to India as the Samoa Observer story reported.
He said the man’s papers were in order..he had an onward ticket to Fiji and he was cleared to depart the territory.
The Indian man left on Samoa Airways flight to Fagalii at 12:30pm Monday but at Fagalii he was stopped by Samoa Immigration
He was put back on the 2:30 flight from Apia to Pago Pago.
Samoa Airways here, after discussions with their counterparts in Samoa, put the man on the last flight to Fagalii on their 4:30 pm Monday flight.
The man was able to fly to Fiji the following day, after presenting an onward itinerary to India from Fiji.
Peseta was disappointed with the reporting by Samoa Observer on the case which seemed to put the blame on American Samoa Immigration.
He said his office had no reason to stop the man’s travels as his papers were in order and there was no request to Samoa to allow him to wait in Apia for his ticket to travel home to India as the Observer reported.
The newspaper reported that Samoa Immigration officials have rejected a request from Pago Pago to allow an Indian national to transit through Samoa to travel to Fiji.
The Samoa Observer quoted Assistant Chief Immigration Officer, Valavala Siaopo Pese, saying the Indian national cannot enter Samoa without proper paperwork, and he is disappointed with the request from American Samoa to allow him to transit without proper documentation.
Valavala said, “We have received two requests so far from the American Samoa Government, asking us to allow foreigners to pass through our borders onto Fiji without proper documents.”
The immigration official explained that Samoa’s immigration laws do not allow that.
“Once we accept a foreigner into our country, we are responsible for that person. In this case if we had accepted their requests, asked for an Indian resident to go through to Fiji, yet this person is not a Fijian citizen.”
The Indian national flew to American Samoa from Hawaii.
But Valavala said American Samoa Immigration authorities should not have accepted him into the territory in the first place, if his paperwork was not in order.
Had the individual been allowed by Samoa to travel to Fiji, according to Valavala, he would have been put back on the plane to Samoa.
“Then he would become a burden, for Samoa. yet this person came through American Samoa from Honolulu. Why did they accept the person in the first place?
Valavala said Samoa is “not a dumping ground for foreigners” and “not a waiting place either.”
