ZIMBABWE: CHANGES TO RECIPROCITY SCHEDULE

UNCLAS HARARE 000150 SENSITIVE SIPDIS AF/S FOR B. WALCH CA/VO/F/P FOR R. HILTON JOHANNESBURG FOR RCO KENT MAY E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: CVIS CMGT PREL ZI SUBJECT: ZIMBABWE: CHANGES TO RECIPROCITY SCHEDULE THIS IS AN ACTION CABLE. See paras 2 and 5. ¶1. (U) Post recommends two changes to the Zimbabwe reciprocity schedule as outlined below. The intent of the changes is to streamline visa processing for Zimbabwean government officials not subject to Presidential Proclamation 7524, which restricts travel of certain individuals to the U.S., and to simplify the visa schedule for Zimbabwean crewmembers by creating a combined C-1/D visa. ¶2. (U) Recommendation 1. Under Special Clearance and Issues Procedures, remove the following requirement: "A Visas Bear telegram must be submitted on all A, C-3, and G (except G-4) visa applications from citizens of Zimbabwe." ¶3. (U) This stringent requirement originates from Presidential Proclamation 7524 of February 22, 2002, which restricts travel of persons responsible for actions that threaten Zimbabwe's democratic institutions and transition to a multi-party democracy. Although the enforcement of this travel restriction has become institutionalized in the ensuing eight years, the requirement for submitting SAOs for all A and G applications has transitioned from a vehicle of enforcement into a significant impediment to visa issuance for officials whose travel is in the U.S. interest. Today, every Zimbabwe official on the U.S. Treasury Department's OFAC list has been entered into CLASS, and Post has entered P212F hits for all other Zimbabweans who are the subject of adverse information kept at Post. Of note, the remaining guidance contained in the "Special Clearances and Issues Procedures" section still requires an SAO (regardless of visa class) for all applicants potentially subject to the restriction and for all those with a CLASS "00" or "212(f)" match. ¶4. (SBU) The former opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC),is now part of government, but under current procedures we must send SAOs for MDC ministers who wish to travel to the U.S. This has occasionally resulted in hardship for both Post and the Department in trying to get approvals when visa applications were made late; on at least one occasion an MDC minister was unable to travel to the U.S. The lifting of this SAO requirement is not meant to signal any decrease in vigilance or loosening of Department efforts to enforce the travel restriction. Instead, it is aimed at eliminating approximately 100 unnecessary SAOs yearly, while allowing the Department to issue timely official and diplomatic visas to Zimbabweans whose travel is in the U.S. interest. ¶5. (U) Recommendation 2. Create a new combined transit and crewmember visa (C-1/D) with a validity of 36 months. Zimbabwean crewmembers (cruise ship and airline employees) currently require separate transit (C-1) and crewmember (D) visas. Crewmembers have one of our lowest rates of fraud and the current schedule places a significant burden on these regular travelers by requiring them to renew their D visa every 24 months. Given the large percentage of Zimbabweans working in the hospitality industry, we recommend easing the financial and bureaucratic burden on them by creating a combined C-1/D visa with a validity period of 36 months. DHANANI