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Home / News - Contact Congress on Visa Waivers for Slovaks
Contact Congress on Visa Waivers for Slovaks Dear Friend of Slovakia, Slovakia is a free, democratic society and a member of both NATO and the European Union. However, because Slovakia is not yet included in the U.S. Visa Waiver Program (VWP), Slovak citizens are still subjected to a lengthy and costly visa procedure for travel to the U.S. and are too often barred entry. Meanwhile Americans travel visa-free to Slovakia. This asymmetrical visa barrier for Slovaks:
The VWP was established in 1986 to promote better relations with US allies, eliminate unnecessary barriers to travel, and stimulate tourism and people-to-people contacts. Currently 27 countries participate in the VWP, including many of the European Union countries - even those that haven't supported the U.S. in the war on terrorism as actively as our Central European friends. Yet Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Poland, and others aren't included. Over the past two years FOS has been active in pursuing ways to inform the U.S. public and members of Congress regarding the impact of the exclusion of our allies in Central Europe, including Slovakia, from the Visa Waiver Program. In February 2005 we held our first Capitol Hill Forum on the Visa Waiver Program in cooperation with American Friends of the Czech Republic (AFoCR) and the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Authoritative commentators traveled from Slovakia and the Czech Republic to provide expert witness to the negative impact our restrictive visa practices towards these NATO allies are having on public opinion in their countries. On March 5 this year we again co-sponsored with CSIS and AFoCR a well attended Congressional Forum on the current prospects for extension of the Visa Waiver Program to our Central European friends and other countries helping us in the fight against terrorism. We are now happy to report a possible breakthrough and an opportunity for change in this area. On March 13, 2007, the U.S. Senate passed a bill denoted as "S.4," and titled: Improving America's Security Act of 2001. S.4 contains provisions (Sec. 501) to modernize the visa waiver program by extending visa-free travel privileges to nationals of foreign countries that are allies in the war on terrorism and meet other requirements. If enacted into law, S.4 will bring closer the day Slovaks can qualify for visa free travel to the U.S. based on lowering Slovakia's visa refusal rate and the frequency of overstays by Slovak visitors and expanded collaboration with our efforts to enhance the security of international travel. In order for S.4 to become law, a bill containing similar provisions has to be passed by the House of Representatives as well. The challenge we face is that many members of the House are not fully aware of the impact of the current double standard in U.S. visa policy and the damage this is doing to our relations with our Central European friends. Nor is it clear that the supporters of this legislation can overcome the serious objections of those who simply want to tighten up on or even eliminate the visa waiver program entirely. Only with the support of your elected representatives can the necessary bill be passed. They will support it only if those who favor less restrictive travel for Slovak citizens to the U.S. tell their members of Congress that the Slovak Republic's participation in the VWP is important to them. So, therefore, if you are concerned about the current visa waiver program and support making it easier for Slovaks and other European allies to enter the US, you now have the opportunity to contact your Senators and Representative. The following is a suggested message: Please make this information available to your friends and family so that they can contact their Senators and Representatives as well. Note that you can find the mailing addresses and public e-mail addresses for members of Congress on the internet. All Representatives and Senators are listed on www.house.gov or www.senate.gov. You can find your Representative by entering your ZIP code. As we all know, the Slovak people has made tremendous progress since the Velvet Revolution of 1989 and Slovakia's independence in 1993. Friends of Slovakia supported Slovakia's joining NATO when they finally qualified for membership and now supports expanding the Visa Waiver Program to give Slovaks the same opportunities to visit the United States enjoyed by the citizens of "old Europe." The Slovak younger generation now has the opportunity to travel freely within the European Community. They are still interested in visiting the United States, but are deeply offended by the difficulty and sometimes impossibility of doing so. We do not want to alienate friends in a country linked to us by ties of kinship and democratic values which the United States worked so hard to free from a totalitarian regime and encourage to rejoin the trans-Atlantic community. Please consider what you can do to inform your elected representatives of your views on this important issue. Sincerely, Joseph Senko
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