PROPOSAL TO REINTRODUCE TOURIST VISA FOR NORTHERN INDIAN TOURISTS HAILED

PUTRAJAYA, Jan 13 (Bernama) -- The Immigration Department has welcomed the
proposal to reintroduce tourist visas to Indian citizens from Bangalore, Mumbai
and Delhi.

Describing the suggestion by Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak as
appropriate, its director-general Abdul Rahman Othman said the department
found that most tourists from the three states were more disciplined and
law-abiding.

"For instance, most of the tourists from Bangalore are expatriates and
normally they seldom create problems," he said.

He was asked to comment on the statement by Najib that the government was
ready to consider reintroducing tourist visas to Indian citizens from the three
states.

The prime minister, who said on Jan 12 that nearly 40,000 Indian citizen
were "missing" in Malaysia after their tourist visas expired, said overstaying
normally occurred among those coming from Chennai.


Calling on all parties not to misunderstand the matter, Abdul Rahman said
the move did not mean that the government was prejudice against certain groups
but had to take action so that the problem would not go on.

Asked on what mechanism the department would use to trace the missing
39,049
Indian citizens, Abdul Rahman said the department was looking into the matter
from the immigration and emigration point of view.

"We will take action against them. Those coming into and going out of the
country will be filtered. They can't escape," he said.

-- BERNAMA