Well I made it to Sharm El Sheik, Egypt. What a day! I finally got confirmation on my ticket here at 3 yesterday and I flew out at 6 this morning. It's only a 2 1/2 hour flight to Cairo which is really nice and about the same flying time from Khartoum to Darfur. But I got to Cairo and the Immigration guys gave me a hard time about visa requirements and were very rude about it - a trend that I am starting to see in Egyptian men. So in my 'I NEED A BREAK' state of mine - that didn't go very well. So a little break down in the Cairo airport and then on my way to the desert oasis. So far I am shocked at the beauty of this place. There are beautiful mountains in the middle of the desert with the Red Sea surrounding it all. It's amazing what you can create with a little water and money in the middle of the desert. I'm staying at an amazing all inclusive hotel with three swimming pools and more than five restaurants. Ya - the tough life of an aid worker in Sudan. But I have gone through every emotion that I think is humanly possible today. Plus I am in tourist mecca so that adds to some frustration and annoyance. I know that I am one of them right now but that doesn't make anyone else less annoying. Of course I am the perfect tourist, respectful of the culture and not treating people like my personal slaves.
So I don't think anything went well today. Issues in Cairo and then the airport suttle didn't pick me up, then I arrived at the hotel and it was total caos with rude people yelling at people behind the desk. I had second thoughts about this whole trip and really wanted to crawl back to comfortable Darfur. I know I think I'm really messed up. I'm reading this fiction novel today and it's about this guy that gets his memeory erased and is told a bunch of things to make him think that he is someone else. It got me thinking about how comfortable we get in our surroundings. Either physical, mental or emotional. Right now I know that I need a break from everything happening at work but yet all that stress is comfortable. In this book this guy is put in a dark room for days on end dealing with extreme temperatures and horrible conditions. But when he gets out of his room he wants to go back because that is what he knows. His conditions in that room are not good for him but he becomes accusome to it and begins to desire it when he needs something safe. It just got me thinking that even though time of the beach is much better for me in so many ways, many times today I wanted to head back to Nyala - to something I know and seems safe. It started more thoughts on how we get comfortable in situations that may not be good for us but are comfortable and secure. But there is an oasis waiting for us that will rejuvinate us and gove us more strength and energy for what lies ahead of us. Just food for thought....
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Monday, February 26, 2007
And I'm Off!
Well I finally have a ticket and a hotel reservation in Sharm El Sheik for tomorrow so that means that I am really going! I even have an exit visa in my passport! This is the only country that I know of that requires a visa to exit the country. Before that can happen I need my residence visa and for that to happen here are the procedures listed below. HAC is the government department that deals with all the NGO’s.
The process to get an initial visa into Sudan consists of :
1) Approval by HAC Director General and Approval by HAC Security Dept was
1 day to several weeks is now 3 weeks to I month (cost still free)
3) Approval by Immigration was 1 - 2 weeks is now 3 days (cost was US$ 50
now US$ 46)
4) Approval by Foreign Ministry was 1- 2 weeks now 3 days (cost still
free)
5) Visa stamp in passport in Sudanese Embassy (US$ 55-100)
Once a temporary visa is granted and staff arrive in Khartoum NGOs need to
change this to a longer term stay visa and work permit. These have to be
renewed each time the ?Moratorium? is extended and requires the following:
1) Initial Registration Dept of Interior still 1 day (cost was US$ 30 now
US$ 41)
2) Approval by HAC Director General and Approval by HAC Security Dept was
1 day to several weeks now 7 days (cost free)
4) HIV/AIDS test or exemption for first time only still 1 day.
5) Work permit Ministry of Labour was 1 - 5 days now 7 days to 1 ?2
months (cost was US$ 75 now US$ XXX) (Can be valid for up to a year)
6) Approval by Immigration was 1 - 2 weeks now 2 weeks (cost was U$ 100)
Both with a temporary stay or a longer term visas you also need a travel
permit to get to Darfur. This requires the following:
1) Approval by HAC Director General 1 day - several weeks (Free)
2) Approval by HAC Security Dept 1 day to several weeks (Free)
3) Issuing of ID HAC card / permit in Khartoum 2 days (US$ 10) (not being
done now)
Another requirement for travel out of the country is the exit and re-entry
visa which is only valid for one trip. Each of these require the
following:
1) Approval by HAC Director General 1 day - several weeks (Free)
2) Approval by HAC Security Dept 1 day to several weeks (Free)
3) Tax clearance 1 day (US$ 1)
3) Approval by Immigration 1 - 2 weeks (US$ 87)
Should staff finish their contracts and intend to leave Sudan NGOs also
need to pay for a final exit visa
1 day ? 1 week (US$ 48)
Yet one more permit required is the state HAC card which allows NGO staff
to travel out of the state capital. This was previously issued for a year
but recently is also linked to the extension of moratorium. Recently HAC
in South Darfur has said that it needs to be paid US$ 10 per staff member
(national and international). If this is applied and extended to the rest
of Darfur would result in an additional cost of nearly US$ 130,000
I would love to say that the most difficult part of working in Darfur is the heat, the dust, the fighting, the insecurity, the living conditions or anything else that people could relate to. However, dealing with all of these procedures and the constant delays of R&R’s, travel passes (which allow us to move within Darfur) and the constant fight to just allow us to do the job is the most draining. The rest you get used to.
The process to get an initial visa into Sudan consists of :
1) Approval by HAC Director General and Approval by HAC Security Dept was
1 day to several weeks is now 3 weeks to I month (cost still free)
3) Approval by Immigration was 1 - 2 weeks is now 3 days (cost was US$ 50
now US$ 46)
4) Approval by Foreign Ministry was 1- 2 weeks now 3 days (cost still
free)
5) Visa stamp in passport in Sudanese Embassy (US$ 55-100)
Once a temporary visa is granted and staff arrive in Khartoum NGOs need to
change this to a longer term stay visa and work permit. These have to be
renewed each time the ?Moratorium? is extended and requires the following:
1) Initial Registration Dept of Interior still 1 day (cost was US$ 30 now
US$ 41)
2) Approval by HAC Director General and Approval by HAC Security Dept was
1 day to several weeks now 7 days (cost free)
4) HIV/AIDS test or exemption for first time only still 1 day.
5) Work permit Ministry of Labour was 1 - 5 days now 7 days to 1 ?2
months (cost was US$ 75 now US$ XXX) (Can be valid for up to a year)
6) Approval by Immigration was 1 - 2 weeks now 2 weeks (cost was U$ 100)
Both with a temporary stay or a longer term visas you also need a travel
permit to get to Darfur. This requires the following:
1) Approval by HAC Director General 1 day - several weeks (Free)
2) Approval by HAC Security Dept 1 day to several weeks (Free)
3) Issuing of ID HAC card / permit in Khartoum 2 days (US$ 10) (not being
done now)
Another requirement for travel out of the country is the exit and re-entry
visa which is only valid for one trip. Each of these require the
following:
1) Approval by HAC Director General 1 day - several weeks (Free)
2) Approval by HAC Security Dept 1 day to several weeks (Free)
3) Tax clearance 1 day (US$ 1)
3) Approval by Immigration 1 - 2 weeks (US$ 87)
Should staff finish their contracts and intend to leave Sudan NGOs also
need to pay for a final exit visa
1 day ? 1 week (US$ 48)
Yet one more permit required is the state HAC card which allows NGO staff
to travel out of the state capital. This was previously issued for a year
but recently is also linked to the extension of moratorium. Recently HAC
in South Darfur has said that it needs to be paid US$ 10 per staff member
(national and international). If this is applied and extended to the rest
of Darfur would result in an additional cost of nearly US$ 130,000
I would love to say that the most difficult part of working in Darfur is the heat, the dust, the fighting, the insecurity, the living conditions or anything else that people could relate to. However, dealing with all of these procedures and the constant delays of R&R’s, travel passes (which allow us to move within Darfur) and the constant fight to just allow us to do the job is the most draining. The rest you get used to.
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