A Facebook page recently came to life and I believe so many of us could relate to this unexpected and recent hassle. Against ill treatment of Egyptians at EU Embassies in Cairo is the name of the newest movement that aims at getting our voices to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding the way Egyptians have been left feeling abused at the EU embassies lately. From difficulty in scheduling appointments, to visa rejection without any given reason, and expecting Egyptians to pay fees in euros and not accepting the Egyptian currency.
Omar Khalifa, the page founder, is none other than the C.E.O of Shaghalni, a forum that offers countless employment opportunities. Khalifa recently shared his personal ordeal while applying for a Schengen visa and this is what happened:
“After applying for a Schengen visa to Hungary (I was supposed to travel to Hungary), I can tell you they are the worst I’ve seen in terms of treating Egyptians. Starting from the guy outside to the woman in the window. I have more than eight previous Schengen visas, here’s what happened:
Got an appointment and applied, while paying the amount equivalent to 60 EUR in EGP, the lady insisted that she receives the payment in EUR, which obviously are only available in the black market. I asked her where shall I get the EUR from? She replied: Black market, it’s not my problem. I got the money from a friend that was in the area and luckily he had EUR with him.
After applying, my visa got rejected. Why?
Lady: You lied to us and said that you’ve never got a visa rejected before, but you have one rejected form France.
Me: This is not true, I’ve never got a visa rejected before.
Lady: Then you have to appeal
Me: I appealed, and showed them all evidence that I’ve never gotten a visa rejected before, emphasizing that I already took four Schengen visas after the French one in 2012.
Two months later, my passport was available to pick up, when I went they told me it’s still rejected, because:
1) In the system you have been rejected before (still no evidence).
2) You cancelled your hotel booking.
Me: Of course I’ll cancel my booking when I didn’t receive my visa, what am I supposed to do? Pay?
Lady: Not my problem, please take this document and sign it so you can take your passport.
Me: Is there any translation for this? (it was all written in Hungarian)
Lady: No, it just says the reason you got rejected.
For how long are we going to be dealing with this shit? They treat us like slaves, not only the Embassy of Hungary, but others as well (with some exceptions).
1- Terrible treatment towards Egyptians.
2- They should translate every single document we need to sign just like we do.
3- Payment must be in local currency.
4- To get an appointment you have to wait at least 45 days and sometimes 90 days, this should be changed.
5- They may have the right to reject anyone they wish, but they don’t have the right to treat us like shit.
This is a page where we can share our terrible experiences at the embassies, we shouldn’t accept this treatment towards Egyptians any longer.
It’s about someone speaks up. We hope this is the beginning of a more realistic system.
WE SAID THIS: Check out the Facebook page if you ever had a bad experience with one of the embassies.