Turkish Embassy Suspends Visas for Somali Civil Servants Amid Human Smuggling Concerns

by: Horn Observer Contributor | 22 July 2024 00:28

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Turkish Embassy Suspends Visas for Somali Civil Servants Amid Human Smuggling Concerns

MOGADISHU, Somalia (HORN OBSERVER) - The Turkish Embassy in Mogadishu has recently suspended the issuance of visas for Somali civil servant passport holders, following the misuse of both civil servant and diplomatic passports for human smuggling, off

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Turkey Embassy in Mogadishu says it will not issue tourist visas to Somalia service passport holders over misuse by the human smuggling networks.

MOGADISHU, Somalia (HORN OBSERVER) - The Turkish Embassy in Mogadishu has recently suspended the issuance of visas for Somali civil servant passport holders, following the misuse of both civil servant and diplomatic passports for human smuggling, officials said.

Somalia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs communicated the Turkish Embassy's decision, dated July 15, 2024, to all government offices, informing them that the Turkish Embassy has stopped issuing tourist visas for holders of Service Passports, effective from July 18, 2024.

"All Ministries and Government Agencies are hereby informed that the Turkish Embassy has stopped issuing tourist visas for holders of Service Passports, effective from 18.07.2024. Therefore, in consideration of diplomatic customs, all Ministries and other Government Agencies are notified of this change and are expected to inform their staff accordingly,” stated the letter from Somalia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Similarly, the Italian Embassy in Mogadishu has rejected visa applications for over 70 service passport holders due to similar concerns. Officials in Mogadishu noted that concerns grew after a rise in the number of people applying for visas to Italy using government passports and endorsement letters issued by officials at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Human smuggling has become a lucrative business for some Somali government officials who issue civil servant and diplomatic passports to non-government employees and other smugglers alike. Hamza Haadoow, the Permanent Secretary of Somalia’s Foreign Affairs Ministry, and Sharmaarke Abukar Amiin, an employee at Somalia’s Ministry of Information and former member of Somalia’s National Intelligence and Security Agency, were involved in this visa fraud scheme, according to interviews from prople victimized by this fraud.

According to Somali immigration sources, U.S. immigration officials recently discovered a dozen Somali diplomatic and service passports discarded at the U.S.-Mexico border by suspected illegal migrants trafficked into the U.S. When questioned, authorities in Mogadishu could not trace the true owners of the passports.

However, the passports were issued to individuals identified as "Somali government officials and employees."

Human traffickers' networks continue to expand with the inclusion of corrupt senior government officials. Official sources privy to the network’s operations report instances of payments ranging from USD 4,000 to USD 15,000 per person trafficked into Europe. Finland, Italy, Ireland, Switzerland, Holland, and Germany are heavily affected by the smuggling network.

In Kenya, KTN Television and the Standard Newspaper uncovered a similar network last month involving officials at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Sports Ministry.

In Ethiopia, Russian smugglers partner with Somali traffickers to recruit young, unsuspecting individuals from Somaliland and Somalia, successfully trafficking people towards Russia only for them to end up in European countries, including Finland.

Security experts believe that the misuse of Somali service and diplomatic passports jeopardizes both the integrity of Somalia’s diplomatic protocols and national security and can pose potential threat to other countries.

The Somali traffickers operate within a complex network that extends beyond Africa, from small offices disguised as travel agencies in Mogadishu, Hargeisa, Addis Ababa, and Saudi Arabia, to shops selling clothes and beverages in Finland, Belgium, Russia, and other European countries such as Italy and Greece.