Uganda deports 15 Chinese over illegal entry

By Steven Candia                                                                  

FIFTEEN of the 45 Chinese nationals netted in a swoop by the immigration department late last month have been deported after being found to be in the country illegally.

Sources said the group was deported last week after they were found to be lacking valid documents following a rigorous screening exercise.

However, the other 30 were allowed to remain in the country but after formalizing their stay. Benjamin Katana the deputy immigration department spokesperson yesterday confirmed that some of the Chinese had been deported.

“They had no documents and that meant they were in the country illegally and had to be deported,” Katana said adding that the group was deported under the provision of the Citizenship and Immigration Control Act which gives the Commissioner Immigrations the power to do so.

The other 30 Chinese, he said, were found in possession of special passes. “They were advised to apply for work permits so as to formalize their stay,” he said. The 45, all employees of Lee and Gao Ltd. traders and investments distributors of Gaming machines were arrested from Munyonyo, a posh city suburb.

The deportation of the 15 comes after immigration department arrested another 350 aliens in October, a majority of them Asians of which 150 were deported. Immigration officials say the swoops are meant to curb illegal stay in the country. Many those arrested had visitor’s passes.