Immigration officers friendlier with white visitors at ports of entries, caller claims
BVI News Staff - Thursday, January 26th, 2012 at 1:39 PM
A US immigration officer.
A caller to the Speak Your Mind talk show on Saturday, January 21, alleged that certain immigration officers at ports of entries in the territory are biased towards visiting Caribbean nationals and often deal with such persons in a gruff manner, while on the other hand put on a friendly face for “other” visitors.
The caller told the hosts: “You know where the problem starts? Right there with immigration. I have been in the line several times. Of course yes we know that most of the Caribbean foreigners they come to the BVI and call it vacation, but we know that at the end of the day they are looking for jobs. But I have seen where they have white and black – no disrespect to the white folks – either is one love for everybody, but I have seen white people go up there, they make jokes to the immigration officer, they laugh whatever; the Caribbean people in the line behind me, the black Caribbean people, they so scared, they frightened they can’t make a joke with immigration they ready to kick them out.”
“No we have laws in place give the person the limited time they are supposed to get; if they get caught doing what they are not supposed to do well then you deal with that. Let immigration give that smile that we get from everybody else when we travel, treat the people well.”
The caller added: “We have a serious problem with immigration some of them does be barking, everybody got the same right man they need to cut that out. This is the most stressful thing.”
Host Courtney DeCastro agreed with the caller and said “we need to have that straight, front and first contact that people get at the immigration.”
Copyright 2012 BVI News, Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or distributed.
54 Comments
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You should not be cracking jokes with an immigration officer anywhere, unless he/she initiates it. I agree that everyone should receive the same treatment but not that said treatment should involve smiles and laughs. They ought to be serious about what they’re doing without being rude. That’s my take.
ITS NOT ONLY THE IMMIGRATION OFFICERS LIKE THAT THE HOTELS ARE LIKE THAT ALSO THEY ACT LIKE BLACK PERSONS ARE NOT SUPPOSE TO HAVE MONEY BUT IF YOU GO TO OTHER PLACES ITS DIFFERENT ONLY HERE THEY DO THAT
Hey the immigration officers has grown more friendlier over the years,but to me its an individual thing,not all are hostile to black people,but again it’s not only black immigration officers that gives the white skin people more attention and smiles.Been in an offices to pay a bill and patiently waited while the clerk was on the phone for time past,when she finally put the phone down I went to the counter as being the first there,but she ignored me and ask the white lady, how can I can you mam?I was like ok and smile,but the white lady then let that clerk know I was there first,I simply said thanks to her.So please its a contagious thing with some black locals bebind the desk.
I for one am glad that the story says “some immigration officers” …. yes its true to keep the line moving they cant make jokes and smile with everyone. maybe your turn for a joke has not arrivedd as yet!..patience is a virtue. Not all officers are hoogish, unmannerly and down right rude, there are those that say good morning, call you sir/ ma’am and say have a nice day. My worries is that the news never print stories whenever someone has something nice to say PERIOD!!… anything that will cause confusion is the headline…people need to stop judging a whole tree by 2 bad apples!.. for the nice immigration officers that are out there, i imagine that they have to try EXTRA hard because of how people brand the whole department. if people want to bash officers, CALL NAME!!
Big UP to each and every one of you immigration and customes officers. YOu keep our borders safe everyday. Thank you. I am only sorry you could not send back these trifling, ungrateful expatriates who want to run our country for us. They very well know that their immigration officers and customs are far worse in their own countries but they have the audacity to complain while being a guest in ours.
I recently travelled to the US on my way to Eurpoe and those immigration guys are rough actually worse than I have ever seen. I dont hear the Americans complaining? Nor all those who travel to and from the US or Europe for that matter. Why do we have to complain when the immigration officers and customs do their jobs? Like one other poster said they are not host and hostesses.
I have concluded that what the expatriates want is to take over this country. They want us to leave it for them.
To be honest with you guys, I live here on Tortola and yes I am from HERE!!!! And these immigration/custom officers are HOGS! They are so rude and lack social skills. Yes they are not there be anybody’s friend BUT they are not there to scare the visitors away.
I have friends coming over from st.thomas and they always bitch about the officers here. I travel to very frequently and i’ve not had a bad experience with anyone yet. Business is Business they do a their jobs and once in a while you’ll find one cracking a joke with you. Why cant it be the same here????
You come here and as if you just some bitter ex boyfriend/girlfriend,mad at the world for who knows what! talking to you like you’re an animal. And when blondie steps up to the counter its Mr/Ms HAPPY . THATS WRONG!
Clearly you dont know the role of a immigration or customs officer. Further, those from STT have the heart to complain when they are known to be very hostile?
Do your research again.
I have never yet met a gruffy Immigration Officer I didnt like and respect.
These folks are not meeters and greeters host and hostesses They are law enforcement who must not only follow Gov guidelines in issuing permission to enter. They have to also use their five senses and even their intuition to recognize differences and distinctions. Yes it is neessary that they discriminate. The welfare of their country is at stake. Past experience in the job goes a long way in their response and attitudes.
I am inclined to believe that the caller and others like him have not experienced Immigration in places such as Barbados, Jamaica Mexico Dominican Republic just to name a few( don’t even think about asking for a translator or a translation) Tolians have a reputation of being pushovers so perhaps it is their own disappointment which greets these griping visitors.
Simply put, respect these officers and their responsibility. It is not personal. If you are clean then no problem. Let it be a challenge to you in those brief minutes to leave the officer a better person just to have known you in those few minutes. Leave him with a smile on his face and joy in his heart.
Well said. I think people are missing the real reason why these officer exist!
They do it self!!! I’ve seen it countless times! always smiling and putting on accents when they see the blondies and when the blacks step up its like you take their man. So hostile and unfriendly.
OREO COOKIES….black outside, white on the inside
the caller is right.i was send to antigua on a course by the government.on arrival the immigration officer question the hell out of me and we are family,but i did’nt tell him that because of his attitude while the whites past through with know problem
I am living here for 4 years now,and am being very Honest I’ve never had a Problem with The Immigration Officers…Even when My wife Visits they Dont give her any Problem,Not everytime U will meet a Smiling Officer,But We have to Understand that they are doing a Job and its something we have to live with whether we like it or not….
Let us stop the crap we all know that when most whites come here they bring money to spend but most blacks from the caribbean when them come it is to take money out of the country. They take our jobs, drain our resources, put strain on our infrastructure and even break up our homes and families. If I was an immigration officer I would do the samething I would make every caribbean visitor to this island feel not welcomed. They are like a plague on this country. GO HOME.
YOU ARE A TOTAL JACK..!!!GO READ A BOOK AN LEARN SOME SENSE BEFORE U OPEN UR MOUTH..
Lol. This is funny. Sound like them take ur woman or man!
They probably take ur man or woman too, you just don’t know it. Pure hand they feeding you, and you dont even know.
The only complaint I have with the Immigration Offiers is that they stamped the passports and gave permision for these comlppainers and whiners to come in. As soon as they pass through they proceed to tell the BVI how they must run their own country when in fact their own officers in their country are cruel to them and everybody killing each other. I dont recall a Tolian in their land killing and robbing them or breaking into their homes and taking over their carnival an now even the talk shows Tolians hardly get a word in and we have to listen to them half the time not even understanding their lingo and their logic. They ovepowering and overbearing like a hurricane which brings plenty useful rain but included are winds of destruction
Well Said! Well Said. I would take it further and saying they bring winds of mass destruction!
who in the kitchen is the one feeling the heat.all over the world is the same ting,one day u have it good ,one day u have it bad!what a u going to do when one of those days come?
I expect a lot of excuses on this topic as to why immigrations here treats Black Caribbean visitors far different than white travellers from anywhere. YES! they have to be serious with their jobs, but so does the taxi driver, busboy, chef, maid, boat captain etc. We are constantly reminded to be friendly and courteous to our visitors. Yes! the immigration officers are not there to be any body’s friend, but yet showing friendly faces to a certain race of people is much more serious than their jobs. It sends a real bad message to who notices. If an officer smiles, or been overly polite to the white visitor in front of me (black) then switches to Mr. Hard-face and grumpy when it’s my turn at the counter, you tell me you wouldn’t take that as a race-issue. Why can’t they be friendly to whoever the visitor is? why can’t friendliness starts a our port of entries since Immigration officers are the first people a visitor is likely to encounter? The value of the US currency remains the same regardless of who is holding it.
I am Black and has visited the Vi more than once as well as other Islands and all over the World. Lawdy those Immigration/Customs Offiers in places such as Jamaica Trinidad Santo Domingo are tooo scary I mean real scary They are intimidating and make an effort to be gruff.. On top of that their Islands are like a snake pit of crime, nothing pleasant even after u leave the airports o not a chance some visitor would want to stay and hideawy work an then complain salary too low an how the BVI must do better.
BVI Immigration Officers are human. They are also native to this once upon a time Paradise. Some visitors they know to be potential problems and a destructive force while other visitors mind their business spend their money and leave when they are scheduled and they also know that garbage is not to be thrown just anywhere.
I think some folks need to take a look in the mirror and have a talk with themselves and ther ccountrymen. It is their own fault that they get a cold reception. Not only here but in other parts of the World as well. San Juan , Jfk, Heathrow,, wherever, Instead of dictating to the BVI how their law enforcement should look at them , they truly need to look at themselves and try to see what others see or while here get a glimpse into the background of the majority of the prisoners.
You are obviously very illiterate…..You used such islands as Trinidad, Jamaica, and Santo Domingo as examples, but you didn’t have to go that far….right by your next door neighbor the USVI has bad officiers also. The typical traveller knows that US Customs and Immigration is the Pits….the problem with you BVI people is that you act like your country is so damn perfect and is only outsiders making things bad. For a country that answers to England and uses the American dollar and is in St.Thomas every weekend, you should learn to educate yourselves before you start bashing other caribbean nationals… I stood in Road Town immigration line and an old push his way to the front to say that he ah pickering and he could wha he want ! you all are a sickening society and will ALWAYS be dependant on someother country because you CANNOT survive on your own.
Sorry to hear of your troubles. Now having said that, I sincerely hope you don’t pass back. There is no need.
Amen.
Dat gurl … dont know if she is immigration and customs she is just nasty and rude for no reason they need a customer service class.
i quite agree with u disgusted>And everyone knows who she is>i have heard hundreds od cokplains about thet same person> An eighteen year boy who was born here came back from his mother”s country of birth because he attended the last few years of high school there >When he arrived at the couynter in Beef Island that immigration officer asked him a few questions as to his status>the boy so frightened at her behavoir told her that his birth certificate is in Virgin Gorda.her reply to this young man was.”i am in a shitty mood today and you better dont get me more shitty”" When te boy told me so i asked him what did he do to solve the proble he said he just left it as it is. That same woman told another visitor Ï just sent one lady back on the plane i dont let me have to send you back.Another boy came on vacation ,someone came to pick him up just because the guy arrived late she would not release the boy until the father had to rush from work to get the boy.And she still tels the father she has to lecture the boy because he was rude>What is more exhausting than a long flight and still has to be punished by an officer>She is very rude and apparently has problems at home or she needs to be trained.
Yeap same lady who hold up my cousin and gave me a lecture the next day when I came to pick up her paper work.
Which Girl? What port?
The caller said: Let immigration give that smile that we get from everybody else when we travel, treat the people well.”
This statement is so inaccurate. I have been around the world and I have NEVER EVER met or seen a friendly immigration officer!. They are not rude but they are very serious and they ask sometimes too personal questions but who am I to argue since I am entering their country?
I agree with you BOrder Protection. Immigration and Customs Officers are not here to be our friends.
For some reason we seem to be missing the purpose of our Border Patrol officers is all about. Yes BVI is a tourist destination but it does not mean that immigration and customs must welcome ‘all and sundry’ with open arms?- No country does that anywhere in the world!.
Remember not all who pose as tourist really are tourist-White or Black and it is up to Immigration and Customs officials to determine this at our ports of entries!
PEOPLE LETS GET REAL!!!
The immigration men looking puss so they treat all the women and metropolitan people well. The immigration women always looking to keep the women out , especially the Caribbean women, whom they believe will steal their menfolk. Ah wonder why they think so?
u sound so freakin stupid. because of the site i wont elaborate. one word for u. HO
i came for a visit and i don’t want to ever go back, the officer was rude and behave like she had no training. yet they want tourist to visit, there are many black tourist too.
I Think that if the immigration officers are doing that then it is wrong and they really need to stop, but I have been to the BVI lots of times and was always welcomed with a smile. The last time I came during the christmas holidays one of the officers told me that I needed to visit more often
They need to learn how to talk to people. Maybe they should go though some training.
I grew up in a border town Canada/USA. I travelled across that bridge every day between the ages of 6 and 13 because of a sport I was involved with. As an adult I travelled across that border to shop, even to purchase gas. I later worked for the Canadian Border Agency. From my experiences, I have to say Immigration Officers are not there to be your friend. They are not there to be your enemy either. They have an important job to do and we need to respect that. Have your papers in order, greet the officer, answer any questions and move on so the line moves along. If the officer initiates a conversation then by all means take the opportunity to respond, but don’t expect a smile and friendly banter. These people pass hundreds of persons through in a day. They can’t chat and smile with everyone.
Also, remember they are poeple too, and therefore subject to moods. I remember sitting in line-ups of cars watching different officers and how their lines moved along. The fast lanes you wished you were in, the slow moving lane with the grumpy looking woman, you’re thinking she’s got PMS so you try to change lanes, then just as you are near to the front, shift change! The other guy was letting everyone through because he was tired and wanted to go home, but that new guy, he’s fresh and grumpy to be there. Just grin and bear it:-)Welcome home!
I agree that something needs to be done with immigration. I came home a few years ago with my spouse, he is a US citizen and was in the appropriate line while I waited in the belonger line. He was asked a question and turned to me for clarification because he did not understand the accent …. the officer was very rude and “hoggish” and my response to her was, “you guys are the first point of contact to our visitors… it’s sad that you are standing behind that counter acting like a “bore hog” and other tourists have to see your nasty attitude.” The officer that was assisting me just asked my husband to join me at the counter and he processed him through. I called and made a report to the office but I doubt anything became of it.
ayo always complaining for every damn jack thing .if u feels ur not welcome in the bvi stay out e z as 123! how the hell u think u can get a friendly immigration officer ?? NO WAY . them need to be more tuff an some u all yes , i wish i was a immigration officer …
You Damn FOOL. BVI alone you can stay i guess. IDIOT.
u is the damn fool. im sho weyeva ur anal hail from dem ain smiling or grinnin teet wid ayo even. i am well travelled and once in a friggin blue moon u may meet an immigration/customs officer who flash a smile. and note i said “once in a blue moon.” wen dem smile up wid allya next move is favours. shut da h**l up. dat is not a fool fool job. wen dem play da ass wid allya, allya lookin favours wen done.
I can tell that you are an illiterate piece of junk.
Love it !!!!!! Perfect suggestion .
I agree with the caller, they are more friendlier but they are still a bunch of hogs. They trying to get a reputation like immigration in PR but the fools don’t realize that the reputation PR immigration have is a bad one!!!
PR? Dont talk bout st thomas…..
Oh please. Boo-hoo. I’m white and been living here for decade and they always snarl at me. I’ve never known them to share a joke, especially those women officers. Sometimes I even pretend I’m a tourist and stand with a bunch of vacationers and I haven’t noticed a difference.
I have been living in the bvi for 20+ years and have always talked about the differences between bvi immigration and usvi immigration. usvi immigration will question you but they do so in such a polite manner. they are always ready to share a joke. bvi immigration always make you feel you’re not welcome hurry up and go back home we don’t want you here!
My worst experiences have been with St. Johns ..so I guess it’s all a matter of both attitudes and luck of the draw.
Have travelled quite a lot to different countries, my best encounter was in the UK and he did not smile or make a joke but he was efficent the worst was in Miami intl, second worst PR, second best toronto.
how-ever we need to say good day when we approch the officer and thank you when he is finished regardless.
I agree. My experience has been in most places that I travel, the immigration officers are stern but polite. I have heard of the reputation of the immigration officers in Tortola, but I have never had that experience. However, I did have a bad experience with the clerk at the departure tax office who was ill mannered, rude, and nasty. I walked up to the window said good morning she walked away and never responded. Through out the interaction she appeared as if she was upset with the world. I recall thinking, do they train these people in customer service. But then I did recall reading that they had paid a large sum of money to train workers in customer service. I guess it was wasted on that person.
I totally disagree with this. I travel to the USVI and BVI very often,and I can confidently say that BVI Immigration and Customs officers are way better than those in the USVI. The ones in the USVI often say insulting things to travellers and forget that the BVI travellers are keeping their businesses’ books in the black. I don’t see them smiling, in fact sometimes they don’t even look at you while processing you. They make the PR officers look like saints! Because at least they do not act like those in the USVI.
There job is not to smile with you. If you as a traveller see a US officer insult another traveller, then you should report them. It’s a US law that they cannot do that. The law clearly states that they must treat you with respect, but that doesn’t mean that they must smile with you or anything. Remember the purpose of their job is to make sure that your travelling documents(passport, green card, etc.) are legal etc. And I’m not sure what “businesses’ books in the black” means. But keep in mind that US customs and border protection is a federal job that doesn’t depend on if people from the BVI come or not.
The comment about smiling was at those who said that the BVI Customs and Immigration do not do that. It was a comparison, not necessarily something that I agree with. and yes the BVI people are keeping the USVI businesses up. And treating with respect of course means that they should respect the individual that they are dealing with . I could give you many stories that are either first hand or second hand experiences where respect was not given.In fact, I have a complaint against a USVI officer that is being dealt with right now that I do not wish to elaboarate upon at this time.
Also white and living here 10+ years, i find immigration at airport are now much better and friendlier than they used to be, maybe it is how you treat other people, i have shared a joke with lady immigration officers at airport and usually get a welcome home from them.Last few occasions i have had friends and family visit they have commented on how friendly immigration are compared to days past.
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