NO ROOM AT THE CHECK-IN

Sarah Whitebloom reveals a surprising new category of suspected illegal entrant to Britain ST AUGUSTINE was fortunate to have made his epic voyage from Rome to con- vert England to Christianity 1,400 years ago — and not just because it earned him his place in British history.

Today, some priests of the universal Church are being made considerably less welcome than Pope Gregory's emissaries when attempting to visit these shores. Some have been denied entry while others have been subjected to intense questioning and expressions of disbelief about their plans to spend periods of a few weeks in British parishes this summer.

Had the early missionaries received the same reception, they might have found them- selves turned back at Dover on suspicion of trying to sponge off the social security budget. We could still be wor- shipping trees and stones if the current situation had pre- vailed in 597, particularly if the African-born St Augustine of Hippo rather than his Ital- ian namesake of Canterbury had been leading the party. This is because the clergy who are known to have been inter- rogated or refused visas by Foreign Office entry clearance staff have been African, Indi- an or South-east Asian.

In an apparent return to the days of the Reformation, these ordained priests, some of whom are members of reli- gious orders such as the Carmelites, report being cross-questioned about whether they plan to work/say mass in this country and whether they intend to take over parishes (as if that were possible under the disci- pline of the Church). They have faced incredulity about their motives for coming here and suggestions that they are only interested in taking advantage of the British welfare state.

Confusion surrounds the reasons for this sudden restriction on 'third world' clergy entering the country. There has long been a tradition of priests from overseas staying in British parishes in order to give the resi- dent clergy a break and to allow them an inexpensive holiday; an essential when you are a non-salaried Catholic priest.

According to one British supporter of these priests, Fr Kit Cunningham, rector of St Etheldreda's church in Holborn: 'These men are subject to discipline and to their superiors. The way they have been treated, you would think they were going to disap- pear and set up as tobacconists in Luton. It's ludicrous.'

Reports of such behaviour towards for- eign priests appear to hinge on the han- dling of visa requests by the British embassy in Brussels. It is not known if the problem is more widespread. A spokesman for the archdiocese of Westminster said there were usually no such problems encountered by visiting priests.

But the affair is already threatening to prove highly embarrassing for the govern- ment, with British clerical support for the overseas priests growing, and action being demanded of the Home Secretary Jack Straw.

The cases which have come to light have aroused considerable anger, particularly because of the priests' anecdotal reports of the experiences they have suffered at the hands of embassy officials. `We are asked humiliating questions and our honesty and integrity as priests are questioned when we present facts about ourselves at the embassy. We are not treat- ed in this way in other embassies,' said one Indian priest living in Belgium. He prefers not to be named because he is still hoping to be allowed into the country. He said he took along numerous letters and docu- ments proving that he was going at the invi- tation of a priest in this country and was told by an immigration official, 'The facts are not convincing.'

Such treatment has out- raged the Catholic clergy in this country who were hoping to be hosts to the men. 'It is not just that they have been turned down for a visa,' said Fr Dennis Maher of St Paul's church, Hyde, Cheshire, who had invited an overseas priest to stay with him 'They have experienced awful prejudice . . . Some who have been turned down simply don't want to go near the embassy people again.'

An Asian priest who attend- ed an interview at the Brussels embassy some time ago said, `I got a visa after a gruelling interview that made me sick, and I decided I shall never ever meet this person again. I have been invited many more times by my parish priest friend in England but have declined because I do not want to go through another harrowing experience.'

Meanwhile, an Indian cleric, who planned to visit relations in this country while helping out in a parish, is convinced he has been denied an entry visa because he is a Catholic priest. 'As a priest, he hon- estly said he will be saying mass in a parish. He cannot deny the fact . . . so he was denied entry,' said one of his colleagues.

Mr Straw is now facing demands to explain why these men are refused entry and whether this is part of a new policy directed at Catholic clergy from distant parts of the Church. The Home Office is responsible for British immigration rules, and these include specific guidelines on clergymen entering the country. But the Foreign Office is responsible for adminis- tering the regulations overseas and the problem is likely to end up in Robin Cook's in-tray.

Members of Parliament and MEPs, incredulous at the situation, are also being enlisted in support of the priests and are lending their backing to the campaign.

In the known Belgian cases the priests concerned are fully ordained clergymen, completing a variety of post-graduate courses at the Catholic university at Leu- ven. They will be returning to their native countries in order to teach or carry out their ministry after their studies have ended. They are not in a position simply to uproot themselves and take over a parish in this country — even if that were their intention.

There have been long-standing links between the 'students' at this university and parishes in the United Kingdom, particu- larly some in the Shrewsbury diocese. This is understood to be the first year that prob- lems have been encountered over priests being allowed to enter the country for short periods of up to two months. Fr Tony Leonard, parish priest of St Peter's church, Newall Green, Manchester, said, 'This is the first year we've had any objections.'

Fr Maher added, 'We can't come up with a reason for this. We've never experienced this problem before.

Canon John Marmion, a colleague of Frs Leonard and Maher, is understood to be leading the campaign against this treat- ment of the overseas priests. As well as putting pressure on the politicians, he is considering a visit to the Brussels embassy in an attempt to discover precisely what the problem may be. Worryingly, it is possible to see why the Belgian-based priests are coming to the conclusion that religious and/or racial discrimination is involved.

The staff in Brussels have constantly questioned the applicants about whether they are planning to say mass in this coun- try — and seem to regard this as work. They are also reported to be under the impression that overseas priests can simply arrive in the United Kingdom and assume control of a parish; they presumably think they are taking work from a local person.

Professor Denaux of Leuven University was astonished when he accompanied a visa applicant to the embassy, only for the man to be refused entry. He said, 'I am involved in ecumenical relationships with the Anglican Church and am a canon of Lincoln cathedral. I have the best possible relations with the Anglican Church. There- fore this unwilling and ungraceful act from the British embassy in Brussels is doubly disappointing. It is cruel to take a 1,980 Belgian franc (around £40) visa fee from a poor student and then to refuse him a visa. Catholic priests are people who have dedi- cated their lives to service and replacing a priest cannot be interpreted as work. It is part of their theology course to be involved in pastoral activities. They do not receive a salary and hence it is not work as such.'

In one recent case a cleric, who is a member of an order of priests, produced a letter of invitation from a parish priest in England. He was nevertheless flatly denied a visa and was asked to provide details of his studies, names and addresses of friends in the United Kingdom and evidence of his scholarship. Although the letter from the potential host priest was not deemed suffi- cient, letters from academics in this country supporting the application led, finally, to a visa being issued.

But another visa application was turned down earlier this month, after several inter- views and a mountain of paperwork had been produced to support the case of the priest concerned.

The Indian churchman, who is studying for a doctorate at Leuven, had been invited to stay in a British parish. He went to the first interview at the embassy with a spon- soring letter from the British priest. In addition he produced a letter from the reg- istrar at the university stating that he was a student and was due back in Belgium by `These Alka-Seltzer overdoses always have a kinda serene look' the end of September and asking for any help the embassy could render.

The clergyman also provided full details of the theological doctorate on which he is working. On top of this he produced a let- ter from the university detailing the size of his scholarship grant. Despite all this, he was refused entry and invited back to a sec- ond interview. He was asked to prove at this meeting that the priest he was going to stay with in the United Kingdom would be in the parish throughout his visit — this despite the fact that part of the purpose of such visits is for the parish priest to be able to take a break while his overseas colleague covers for him.

In the event, the priest's application was turned down and his passport was stamped to indicate that a visa had been refused. One of the priest's friends said, 'That will cause him troubles whenever he approaches another embassy for a visa. Why this inhu- man treatment? What crime has he commit- ted? He told me he never wanted to face that ungraceful person again in his life.'

The reality is, however, that the priests of Leuven do not have such difficulties with entry to other European countries. Many already go to parishes on the Continent and others are now planning to follow them. Fr Maher said, 'They have no prob- lem going to Germany.'

Under the so-called Schengen frontier agreement operating in most of the conti- nental European Union, admittance to one country tends to facilitate visits to the other Schengen states. Britain is not party to this system, and Tony Blair has just made our opt-out permanent. Sensible though this is for an island nation, it gives rise, within European law, to a curious anomaly.

Were a Belgian priest, for example, to wish to come here, he would have the right to do so only if he intended to work, the definition of which, in the apparent think- ing of the Brussels embassy, is to say mass. The Treaty of Rome guarantees free move- ment of labour, not of people as such. Yet a third world priest admitted to Belgium has no chance whatever of admittance to this country unless he pledges not to work.

In theory, two priests from Belgium could be required to fulfil diametrically opposite conditions in order to visit: the native Belgian would agree to work, his non-EU compatriot would agree not to. To be fair, this is unlikely. Belgian clergymen would be waved through whatever their intentions. His third world friend, however, would stand a good chance of being blocked whatever undertakings he gave.

Vigilance on the part of the Brussels embassy could be seen as commendable. But someone ought to point out to its visa section that a Catholic priest is one of the least likely people to overstay his welcome: the discipline of the Church provides huge, cost-free enforcement to the immigration service's expensive attempts to ensure that visitors are where they say they are and will leave when they are supposed to.