Ana & the system


So, last weekend has been probably one of the most testing ones since I've been in Malaysia. And I owe that all to the beautiful Immigration Office in Malaysia! A glorious institution, whose officers do not know their own rules and that made me fly all the way to Sabah, only to be stopped by immigration, sleep in the airport and then go back to KL the next day.

To start in the beginning – my visa was expiring the 5th February. SOLS (my organisation here) had applied for an extension 3 weeks in advance. I had planned to go to Sabah and climb on Mount Kinabalu on those dates (with a friend that could only make it on those dates). So I asked whether extensions are generally problematic. I received the “no, it always goes smoothly with extensions” answer. So I went and planned away – was supposed to fly to Sabah on the 4th in the afternoon, climb on 5th and 6th and come back on the 9th to KL.

Obviously, the extension had not come through by last Monday. So I called SOLS and they said not to worry! There is a pass you can get for a 2 week visa pass while they are processing my extension request. And that this can be obtained one day before my visa expires, hence 4th February. Needless to say that at 8am on Thursday I was at the Immigration Office in Putrajaya. After the appropriate waiting Where a nice lady explained to me that my extension was actually approved in the system, just that the stamp on my passport will be done next week. But that I can definitely travel to Sabah – that it counts as a visa run, so I would anyways get a 90day tourist visa when I come back to KL. To my amazed question of “But it's the same country! How it can be?”, the lady went on a “Yes, but there's different regulations for East Malaysia. No worry. They anyways can see in the system that your visa extension was approved”.

So there I was, fairly relieved on my way to Sabah. The flight was smooth and I was super excited to arrive when...they stopped me at Immigration. Apparently they did not agree with the KL people...I could only stay in Sabah only until 5th February, when my visa was expiring. My desperate “but it's in the system” thing met with “we have a different system, we cannot see that”. And with a complete refusal to let me in more than one day.

Now, I will spare you my anger, frustration and also desperation! I don't generally panic easily but I really kind of lost it then. It all came together and collapsed at that moment! The fact that their own people completely misinformed me and let me fly all the way to Sabah just to go back! The fact that I did not know what to do – to go on visa runs from Sabah was super expensive (it's not really a world wide flying hub!!), and to go to KL seemed pointless and a complete waste of my holiday time! I literally just wallowed in that airport for about 2 hours until I finally could pull myself together and think constructively of what to do. I ended up with the latter option since it was the most money efficient one, and I booked myself on the first flight back to KL in the morning.

I had not spent a night in an airport in a long time so this was like a blast from the past...the cold (in super hot countries the aircon in places such as the airport is turned on to an insane level!), the sleep or lack thereof, the lack of any decent food, the stares that go with it. But I had my sleeping bag and two books so all in all, it all went by in a fairly reasonable manner.

So here I am the next day, back in KL and going straight to the Immigration Office, where a guy from SOLS was waiting for me. And where again, the unbelievable happened. Another lady told me that still my visa was approved but that the stamp in my office will come only a week later. Until then, I need to carry around a letter of approval (which she gave to me), in case I want to travel or there's random police checks. To my “but why didn't the lady yesterday tell me this?” and “what is the procedure to file complaints here?”, the lady just stared at me blankly and could not understand why I was so amazed (and annoyed at the situation). The SOLS person then proceeded to tell me confidentially that I should file my complaint only after I get the visa!!!!!!!

I am generally of the opinion that things happen for a reason. And despite all of the above, I did end up spending a lovely weekend in rather different circumstances (more of this to follow). But I still cannot yet grasp the full logic of why I could not climb that mountain! Ah well...I will get to it at some other point I guess!