A Few Thoughts

[USCONGUZ]

Reading over some topics recently posted, I see a few issues that merit comment.

 

1. The idea that certain consular officers pursue vendettas or that we, in general, seek revenge against folks who hurt our feelings is misplaced. This is an idea that is kicked around fairly often and is one that kind of puzzles me. For starters, no one's personal information is posted so there is no way (even if one of my guys gets really angry with a particular poster) to figure out which case/fiancee/spouse is associated with that poster. Then there is the issue of time. Since I don't know the name of the person I want to punish, I need to start going through files to find a case that seems to fit the circumstances of the person who made me mad, so I need to start going through files. How long is it going to take me to go through the 16,000 case files in my 221(g) file room and the 26,000 cases sitting in my pre-inspection file room in order to find that one case? Face it, I don't have time for such foolishness.

 

2. Customs delays. This is another topic that gets a lot of attention and my sense is that many feel we use this as an excuse to hide our inefficiency and sloth. Some have commented that the claim of cases held up by Chinese customs was phoney because the cases are shipped under diplomatic seal and therefore not subject to customs inspection. This is a simple one - IV cases are not shipped via diplomatic pouch. The State Department does not use DHL to ship diplomatic pouch mail.

 

3. Pre-screening/pre-judging/pre-whatever of cases. Officers do not pre-judge cases. Case files scheduled for inteview are retrieved from the file room the afternoon before the interview date. When applicants come in the next morning they go through doc check. when the applicant comes to the window an employee pulls the file from the stack set out the prior afternoon and takes in the docs. once done, the applicant goes to the cashier cage, then goes for fingerprinting. Once all of this is done the case file is distributed to an officer. This is the first time the officer will see a file. He/she will scan the file to get a sense of what it is about, punch in the numbers to get the applicant up to the window and the interview commences. That is the drill.

[warpedbored]

USCONGUZ

 

I doubt that the consulate has a vendetta approach to any petitioners but It also appears that one of our members has been singled out for some reason. To have a case denied then approved then denied again when they go to pick up the visa, have the case sent back to the USCIS then re-approved and sent back to GZ just to be jerked around some more is outrageous. I can also tell you first hand that not all the VOs behave in a courteous and professional manner. My own wife which I have been extremely happily married to for 1 1/2 years was treated very rudely by the VO at her initial interview. The interview went like this.

VO: Do you speak English?

Wife: Yes but sometimes I have a hard time hearing English.

VO says something she doesn't understand then yanks the folder out of my wife's hands rifles through it, pulls out the I-134 then writes out a blue slip. My wife then reads the blue slip asking for a video and promptly offers a video we had previously made. The VO refuses to see the video or any of the rest of our evidence of relationship and ends the interview. The woman was rude condescending and could not possibly have made an informed decision based on the evidence at hand. My wife was denied solely on the basis of her being able to understand the spoken English of the VO. The video demanded was an impossible request. She wanted a 5 minute video of me speaking and writing Chinese. I got on a plane and met my wife in Shenzhen. We made a 17 minute video speaking English and submitted it as overcome evidence. At the second interview the VO was much more profesional and very polite. Our visa was approved and we are both still very happily married.

I would suggest that the consulate take another look at how they base their decisions. You are not above error and there should be some accountability. My own pocket book was dented severely because of the incompetence of one VO. I have heard other reports of a VO making fun of a beneficiary during the interview to one of his co-workers.

 

You ask us to help you by reporting visa fraud. We would also like you to help us by taking seriously reports of abuse of power by a few VOs.

[frank1538]

From one of our members.

 

Statement 2  raises the extremely interesting question of how the National Visa Center and the Consulate are able to maintain privacy act requirements for the documents in transit if a foreign government has the ability to physically inspect these documents?

 

I do not believe that the PRC has signed a privacy act statement or would be bound by US law if they did.

 

Perhaps you would share with the CFL members where USCIS or DOS policies, guidelines or directives authorize suspension the privacy act for petitioners?

166746[/snapback]

[warpedbored]

From one of our members.

 

Statement 2  raises the extremely interesting question of how the National Visa Center and the Consulate are able to maintain privacy act requirements for the documents in transit if a foreign government has the ability to physically inspect these documents?

 

I do not believe that the PRC has signed a privacy act statement or would be bound by US law if they did.

 

Perhaps you would share with the CFL members where USCIS or DOS policies, guidelines or directives authorize suspension the privacy act for petitioners?

166746[/snapback]

166808[/snapback]

I would really like to see an answer to this question.