Visitors from certain European countries should be required to obtain a visa before visiting South Africa, in the same way South Africans are required to get a visa before visiting their countries, says the Freedom Front (FF).
It called on government on Monday to institute such visa requirements for visitors from European countries that practised what the party called ”blatant double standards and discrimination”.
”The FF proposes new visa requirements for some European countries if they persist in discriminating against South African citizens,” FF leader Pieter Mulder said in the National Assembly.
Visitors from France, the Netherlands or Belgium currently did not need a visa to visit this country, but South Africans had to apply for a Schengen visa, a complicated and costly exercise.
Citizens from other countries, such as Australia and New Zealand, no longer needed a Schengen visa to visit Europe, so why was it still necessary for South Africans, he asked.
”I suggest that the Department of Home Affairs investigates introducing visa requirements for tourists from these countries until they stop discriminating against South Africans.
”Maybe we can force these countries to change their one-sided visa requirements against South Africans,” Mulder said.
A Schengen visa allows the holder to travel freely in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. – Sapa