Libya bars entry to eight Maltese

Eight Maltese nationals were refused entry into Libya, which stopped issuing entry visas to most European citizens following a spat with Switzerland.

One of them, an accountant who has been doing business in Libya for the past 25 years, had to spend about 20 hours in a room before catching a flight back to Malta.

"They treated us like hostages, not even allowing us out of the room to stretch our legs," the passenger, who did not want to be named, said on his return yesterday.

He arrived in Tripoli on Sunday evening, leaving the island just before Libya decided to refuse entry to people from Schengen countries. It was reacting to Switzerland's decision to blacklist 180 Libyans, including Muammar Gaddafi and members of his family.

Another three Maltese passengers on that plane were refused entry to Tripoli and 14 were allowed out of the airport.

However, a female passenger who was given the green light to enter the country decided to stay with her father who was not allowed in, George Cassar, Malta's Ambassador to Tripoli, said.

A number of other passengers from Italy, Austria, Portugal and Ireland, who were among the plane's 61 passengers, were also blocked from setting foot inside the country. Even those who were finally allowed into Libya spent some four hours stuck at the airport until Maltese diplomats persuaded the Libyan authorities to grant them permission to enter, Foreign Affairs Minister Tonio Borg said when contacted.

In a similar incident, four Maltese and two Italian passengers, arriving on yesterday's Air Malta flight, were stopped from entering Libya. A total of 45 people were on that plane.

"I hope common sense prevails and we can reach an agreement at the earliest," Dr Cassar said.

It is not clear why some people were allowed to enter Libya while others were turned back. One of the persons who returned to Malta is an employee of Saint James Hospital Group, which opened a hospital in Tripoli in 2005. "This took us completely by surprise," Jean Claude Muscat, the group's director in charge of overseas operations, said.

The group regularly sends administrative and medical personnel to the North African country to oversee work at the Tripoli hospital and conduct business meetings and staff training.

Mr Muscat admitted that their work would be made very difficult if Maltese were not allowed into Libya: "It is impossible to run a business if you cannot be hands-on."

However, when asked whether the company would consider closing its Libya operation if the visa problem persists, Mr Muscat was positive, insisting that "we are hopeful a solution will be found".

Dr Borg said Libya's decision to refuse entry to people from Schengen zones, including the Maltese, was in reaction to the Swiss decision. This meant those on the blacklist could not get a Schengen visa to enter any country forming part of Schengen.

He said Malta did not agree with Switzerland's decision to blacklist the Libyans, saying this could even go against Schengen rules. He said he would be raising the incident at the EU Council meeting for Foreign Ministers on Monday because the diplomatic problems between Libya and Switzerland were also affecting other countries, including Malta.

He said the only exception Libya made was to those who were in possession of a residence permit.

Dr Borg said he had been in contact with Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini and Libyan European Affairs Minister Abdallah Obeidi in a bid to resolve the issue.

He said the Libyan government had organised a meeting for ambassadors of countries in the EU to inform them about the developments European Home Affairs Commissioner Cecilia Malmström yesterday said the European Commission deplored the "unilateral and disproportionate decision" by the Libyan authorities.

This was affecting travellers in possession of a visa legally obtained before the suspension measure refused them entry upon arrival.

The issue would be discussed before the end of the week by the European Commission, member states and the Schengen associated countries within the framework of the visa group, which would consider the appropriate reaction, she said.

Meanwhile, the Foreign Affairs Ministry is urging Maltese travellers to consult the Libyan Embassy in Malta before travelling to Libya because no assurances for entry to the country are being given, even to those who are already in possession of a visa.

Attempts to contact the Libyan Embassy in the afternoon were futile.