Iranians to undergo BI scrutiny

Immigration authorities at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport adopted Monday a policy to subject Iranian nationals to strict primary inspection following confirmation of reports that they are using the country as a jump-off point to Japan.

Senior immigration intelligence officers Cresencio Ablan and Rudy David disclosed that the Iranians pose themselves as Europeans and present Netherland and Italian passports to immigration officers for admission as tourists.

"But we have excluded a big number of them for the past few days after we have found out based on our profiling that they were not Europeans but Iranians," Ablan said, adding that the figure on arrivals of Iranians at the NAIA posing as Europeans appeared highly suspicious."

The Iranians, who are considered restricted nationals, try to enter the country by posing as European tourists with no return plane tickets after which they leave the country for Japan ostensibly to work, "if not for something else."

The two immigration intelligence officers said in their report to Immigration Commissioner Rufus Rodriguez that the three groups of 12 to 19 Iranians nationals whom they have barred from entering the country "more looked like military men than ordinary tourists."

"And why would they pose as European tourists and armed with Netherland or Italian passports if they are not up to something," noted David.

The immigration intelligence officers also said that based on their initial investigation, the Iranians who were able to enter the country as European tourists left for Japan after a few days stay in Manila.

Ablan and David said that the fake Europeans come to Manila to pick up their plane tickets for Japan raising their suspicion that an Iranian-based human smuggling syndicate with contacts with a local group was behind the deployment of restricted nationals from the Middle East to Japan.

The Iranians, according to the BI, have tried their best to look like Europeans by sporting earrings and coloring their hair to hide their true identity. – Rey Arquiza