And it behooves us to vigorously press the point. particularly in this era of socalled openness or glasnost. Mr. Speaker. the evidence is clear that for those wishing to visit relatives in the Soviet Union. the process can be quite lengthy despite the new visa regulations which came into effect on January 1. 1987. As with any visitor to the U.S.S.R. individuals must submit the application for a visitors visa. Too often applicants have had denials. especially among the emigre community. The new Soviet regulations suggest that such applications should be reviewed within 1 month while visa requests for funerals. family illnesses. or other emergencies would be reviewed within 3 days. Because Soviet citizens are prohibited to have foreigners staying in their home withour permission. a private visa must be obtained prior to departure. should the visitor wish to stay with relatives. In 1986. less than 1.000 Americans were allowed private visas by Soviet officials. The new regulations look good on paper but results have been disappointing. The cumbersome. bureaucratic delays and thousands of rejections are especially frustrating for Soviet citizens seeking the necessary exit visa to travel outside the U.S.S.R. As an example. for the past 11 years. Yelena Sofronitskava. an 87yearold woman living in Moscow applied for and was denied an exit visa twice each year. She was unable to come to the United States to visit her daughter and grandchildren. Finally. after several rejections. her daughter was granted a tourist visa allowing her into the Soviet Union. Nonetheless. unable to obtain a private visa. the daughter was forced to stay in a nearby hotel instead of in her mothers home. Mr. Speaker. unfortunately there have been thousands of other similar stories.
Keywords matched
visas visa