Stuck in Guangzhou Hell

[chuckandshuping]

What a week this has been! My wife went for her interview on 2/16. She stood in line at the consolate for 5 hours just to be told that she would have to come back at 1:00 that afternoon. OK no problem. We go eat and go back. She is back in line at 1:00 and gets in pretty quick this time. Comes out at a little after 2:00 waving her white slip! WAIT! It gets better!

 

We are overjoyed about getting the white slip and she tells me about the interview. First she tells me she is interviewed by a black woman. I thought, oh crap and you passed? Anyway, she was asked my name, my birthdate, how many times I had been to China, if I have any kids, if she has any kids, and when my first wife died. That was it! Never wanted to see any of the supporting documents or the I-134. I had a bad feeling but did not say anything at this point.

 

Next day we returned to the consolate at 4 to get her visa. she was called at the beginning and went to the window. Instead of a visa, she got a blue slip! The yellow slip was attached and said they wanted to see supporting evidence of a bona fide relationship. We were both in shock and then the anger started to build. If I could have only spoken to this woman... you get the idea. This was on Thursday. The consolate does not accept overcome documents on Friday. Then I find out that they are closed Monday too. Geez! These people have it made. So it is tomorrow before I can take all the evidence that she had with her to begin with at the interview. Best case...she gets a visa on Thursday. Too late because our plane tickets are for Wednesday night. I cannot change mine. Maybe we can change hers for a later date but not sure yet. I have every possible piece of paperwork they could need along with video tapes, cd with 8 months of chats, and a ton of pictures. I don't know what will happen but I will try to let everyone know when I get back home.

 

Bottom line here is, it ain't over till your SO has that visa in her hand. Even then, maybe they will come and take it away. This is the most cruel thing they could ever do to anyone. And this consolate is the most poorly run place I have ever seen. Almost none of the guards speak English. The security is a disaster. And these so-called lawyers pouncing on every poor soul they see with a blue slip. My wife is convinced that these people buy off the consolate to get people visas. I would not be surprised if some of that goes on here but I really do not think that is the case. I think that these "lawyers" just help people try to get their overcome documents in order and then collect a huge fee. They thrive because all Chinese believe that every government is totally corrupt. These nuts should be stopped.

 

Yes, we did everything right.

Yes, we waited patiently.

Yes, we jumped through all the hoops.

And YES, we got screwed!

Maybe we will prevail. Time will tell.

If she does not have a visa in hand by the time I get home, I am selling out and moving to China. We will be together and I will not wait on our government any longer. Sorry for the negative post, but I know many of you want to know what happens over here. I will also say that we saw many blue slips that day, and most were issued by the same VO.

 

Off to Guangzhou so we can be at the consolate at 9 tomorrow morning. Good luck to everyone waiting and I hope yours is a lot smoother than ours.

[cosmiclobster]

Wow, another one gets raked through the coals!!!

Sorry to hear about your bad news and doubly sorry that you have to kill another 4 days and get worked over by the airlines also.

Try to remain calm and know that in the end, you will prevail.

 

I would recommend to everyone else that they allow a few extra days in GZ just in case something like this happens. We had to because our interview is also on a Thursday.

[nooneufo]

This just reinforces my thinking, that where there is no oversight, or clear and reasonable recourse on the government worker, especially in a foreign country, there is likely to be corruption. I have no doubt in my mind that down the road it will come out that this consulate will be investigated and result in a scandal. I am only sorry that people must suffer before it happens. There is nothing that can convince me anymore that they are trained, or just doing their job. I am sure there are some that are, but clearly there are those who should be under full investigation.

I hope this ends quickly for you, and you will be together.

[beijingjenny]

Wow, that's incredible. I've no doubt you'll get it when you take in the evidence, but what a fiasco. Geez, our interview's a Wednesday and we only have one week to leave the country (well, I do). If that happened to us, we'd be seriously screwed.

 

It is pretty amazing because I've read so many stories of people also not having to show much and not having this prob getting the visa. Wonder what goes wrong?

[olemanoman1950]

As I sit here and read this I can't help but worry as our time draws nearer that all things that can go wrong will go wrong. But we'll go with our heads held high knowing everything about our relationship is True and we have a Love that No one person will ever break up. If push comes to Shove the Company I work for has a Factory in Qindao and they are building another one in Shanghai.

[carhil24]

Chuck, if I understand correctly, you are there in GZ. If so, I would go inside there and raise holy hell. It doesn't matter that the guards can't speak English. Show them your passport and demand to be let into the consulate as an American citizen. I was prepared to do that if I had to, especially since our flight left the next day, but luckily for me I didn't have to. But that is one of the purposes of being there with your SO. Sometimes with government workers, you just have to throw your weight around a bit, and demand some assistance. It worked for me the time I was in Shanghai, were trying to find out the status of our case. I got tired of waiting on the normal line, and finally called the other number which gets you to a receptionist, and told her that I was an American citizen in China, and I demanded to talk to a VO. All of a sudden it was possible for me to be connected to the right department, no matter how many times she told me that it was impossible before. And it worked the same way when immediately afterwards I called the DOS in Washington DC and demanded to talk to someone who could help me. All I did was tell them I'm an American citizen in China, and I have a problem. Next thing you know I was talking to AS (the old-timers will remember him), and the rest is history. No matter who they think they are at times, the one thing they can never deny us is our rights as American citizens. Oh, they may try to trample us down sometimes, make us feel insignificant and worthless, and yes, they do have a lot of power, but in the end, you hold in your hands the rights as an American citizen. And whether they remember or know this, one of those rights is to have the government serve you as a citizen and a taxpayer. Sometimes it is a lot of work, but it can be done. Please keep in mind that it won't work if you get all emotional and lose your temper, just be firm and committed and make sure they understand that your are not going anywhere or quitting until you get a satisfactory answer or outcome. And each time you reach a person who seems to be an obstacle, don't get angry, just request their first and last name, and then ask to talk to their supervisor. Eventually, you will work your way up the chain and speak with someone who is willing to help you. Remember, the VO's, although they seem to have a lot of power, they are basically just clerks much like those at DMV. They have to answer to someone, and their superiors have to answer to someone else, and so on. And in reality, all of them have to answer to you as an American citizen. I'll never forget how much pressure was put on the personnel in the consulate, at DOS, and many politicians during the old days of this forum, and we were always counseling everyone to keep their cool, but don't give up. All lot of us became a thorn in the side of quite a few government employees, and they probably still wake up with nightmares because of it!

Good luck, and I wish you and your SO the best. Don't give up, it only gets better after this!

 

Carl & Hongyu

[Luo_Bin_&_Jialu]

Good luck man! This type of thing is scary as hell as we all wait too damn long anyway. I will pray for your speedy turnaround...

[pingme]

i read this story, and wonder, isn't there some person or place where this sort of behavior can be reported?

 

chuck and shu ping wait for endless months, finish the interview and get a white slip. then on the following day its changed to a blue slip?

 

how can the VO change her mind after completing the white slip that now maybe she wants to see something else?

 

at the time she wrote the white slip either:

- that is what she intended and it should not be changed. period.

 

- she was high or drunk and did not remember things clearly. after getting sober she realized she wanted to see something else.

- she just plainly was not doing her job and someone else noticed and said to change it to a blue slip.

 

do we have the right to sue a particular VO we get for the interivew? or sue a guangzhou consulate?

 

if it were a private company, and because of their mismanagement, their misconduct, or miscalculation we would have some recourse. we wait months/years, with untold expenses (travel, documentation, etc) only to find that because of their mistakes, things take even longer or cost more.

 

i'm still months aways from the interivew time, but i will certainly tell my fiancee to try to get the VO's name. if the interview goes well, i will write him or her a nice letter thanking them for doing their job in a professional and kind manner. if we get raked like this, i will be sure to write a letter to them and their supervisor letting them know it is a disgrace to their consulate operations and a disgrace to the US and its citizens.

 

i hope things get resolved quickly and you and your wife are out of there!

 

- ping and me

[tywy_99]

This is not the first time something like this has happend but I feel that Chuck and Shuping can clear this up soon and receive the visa. There's not much a couple can do at this point but to comply to the VO's request. To act otherwise would only mean to be marred in a heap of bureaucratic red tape for months and nobody wants that.

Now is the time to just give them what they want and be done with it. Get the visa and start the new life together.

 

-good luck to you two. I will be optimistic and say things will work out just fine.

[hank]

I would agree with tywy_99. Give them what they want for now, and see what happens. If you don't get the visa, then raise hell through the right channels.

 

After waiting an entire year or more, these heartless bastards have the nerve to deny people without even looking at the evidence. It makes me wonder about the country that I'm living in.

 

And even after I get my visa, it still sucks to know that other people are facing such a hardship. It's not right. And after visiting China two times, I'm not so sure that it would be a bad place to live. My so isn't concerned about where we live, as long as we are together.

[MarkandLeigh]

Good luck! You will prevail. They don't care a whole lot about their holiday schedule, or airline arrangements. I was glad I had scheduled flights out the following SATURDAY (she interviewed on a Friday). There was Martin Luther King day, and she got her visa at 4 PM on a Tuesday. I allowed the extra days just in case we had to go through the hell you are going through.

You will prevail!

Mark

[carhil24]

It's not right.  And after visiting China two times, I'm not so sure that it would be a bad place to live.  My so isn't concerned about where we live, as long as we are together.

We both agree here as well. My wife has been here almost 2 years, and we are still kicking around the idea about returning to China and finishing up our lives there. But it's not the country we live in, and it's not all of the people that live here, and it isn't even all of the people who have government jobs. It's only those who have government jobs and believe that this entitles them to some sort of power over the "common" people. They seem to forget who pays their wages, and they aren't really concerned about how well they do their jobs, because it basically takes an act of Congress to get one of them fired. If any of us who are in business for ourselves ran our companies that way, we would be down the tubes in no time at all, if we even were able to get out of the starting blocks. That's why I tend to believe that a letter thanking and complimenting these people is a waste of time, if you could even reach them with one anyway. Unfortunately, they do not have to depend on their customer service skills in order to draw repeat business, nor do they give a hoot if you ever come back again anyway. They have no interest whatsoever in producing a quality product nor do they have much pride in what they do. I tend to believe that some of them actually try their darndest to refuse a visa (one VO in particular comes to mind), because of their own personal agenda or beliefs. Obviously we will never be able to prove it, but I don't think that this is as far-fetched as we may think. At least in China they have it right, if you need something done, grease the wheels a little bit and it will be done accurately and promptly. Our government gets on their big white hypocritical horse and won't dare take a bribe, but allows their employees to perform their duties in a manner that would have them fired from any other private sector job. And unfortunately, we have to live with it. But that's all right, guys and gals, play the game, get through the process, and then tell them to shove it up their asses! Just make sure your SO is here and in your arms, without any chance of being sent back before you do so!

[mike_m]

Wow, what a story... I can't imagine what it must feel like to have that happen. The worst part is.... wait a minute, there is no worst part. It's all bad!

 

I hope that you've had a chance to calm down a bit. Remember, no matter what you think of GZ or the people working there you must do it their way. Yes, it was terribly unfair for them to issue the white slip and then a blue slip the next day, particularly when they would be closed the next two business days...

 

As Mark Twain said, when angry count to ten, if very angry, a hundred. Maybe you should look towards a thousand.

 

However, you must still follow through with the request for more information.

 

But, don't tee-off on them just yet. Wait until after you get the visa. THEN letters to Cousulate, Ambassador and Secretary of State are definately in order. I would certainly try to have the name of the visa officer that gave the white slip and then the blue instead of a visa. If I was sure I had the right name I wouldn't hesitate a minute to put it in the letter. Although it probably doesn't matter very much because an investigation would reveal the visa officer.

 

I think this same thing happened about a month ago also. What was that person's name? Alex? Has anyone heard about his case ? I haven't been here enough lately to follow it.

 

Actually, I hope and pray that all of this is not needed. I hope that your wife goes back today (?) and gets the visa without a problem.

 

THEN it's the right time for you to attempt some action to find out what went wrong. I'm convinced that the people reviewing these types of problems have little or no idea the pain that is caused by these simple administrative mistakes. Unless one of them convinces me otherwise I will continue to believe that they don't know or care about us and our wives and fiancee`s.

 

Good luck with everything.

[animatormark]

Definitely go in there yourself and raise hell! You are an American and the consulate is American soil. Personally I would not leave until she has that visa. Even if you have to spring for another flight. There are plenty of cheap flights out of Guangzhou. You will have much more power over the situation when you are there. Exercise your rights as an American. Those guys need to be investigated!

[njbernie]

Chuck, Sorry to hear about your story.

 

Write to your congressman and/or senator, they are the only ones that can check up on these guys. The more compaints the more chances they can investigated.