ASEAN single-visa scheme sought

MANILA, Philippines - Two lawmakers have filed a resolution urging the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to call for a single-visa scheme among the 10-member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Siblings Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez and Abante Mindanao Party-list Rep. Maximo Rodriguez co-authored House Resolution (HR) 1313 which will allow non-ASEAN nationals to enter ASEAN states using a single visa.

The proposed measure is similar to Europe's Schengen visa which allows a holder to travel to 25 member countries using a single visa.

The lawmakers said the single-visa scheme would boost the country's tourism industry, with the ASEAN Economic Community being viewed next year.

"So when you have a single-visa, the tendency for tourists, for example, is to say, I'm in Thailand but my visa is good for 10 countries, so I might as well go through all the 10," Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez Jr. said.

The scheme would mean that the Philippines will honor visas issued by other ASEAN member countries including Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Jimenez noted that getting other ASEAN countries to accept Philippine visa would mean that the country has a system at par with others and not all countries are prepared to do so.

"Establishment of such a visa will not likely occur in the next five years due to barriers of technology, political issues, concerns of sovereignty and security and the different visa systems in the member-states," the Tourism Secretary said, noting that the scheme benefits the ASEAN Tourism Plan 2011-2015.

The resolution, meanwhile, cited an article on the Philippine Star written by Tony Katigbak entitled "United we stand, divided we fall," which discussed the repercussions of having a single-visa scheme.

"Again, much like in Europe, I think multiple countries could benefit from this as far as tourism goes. After all, if you are visiting a country with a visa and you know your visa is valid for 9 other places, you automatically think you may as well visit them too like several tourists do while in Europe," Katigbak said.

READ: United we stand, divided we fall

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