By: Dwight Links
Turkish authorities have detained a Namibian student for 11 days now at Istanbul Airport because of the Covid-19 red list that has categorised the southern African country as a hotspot.
Linda Nambili (38), an international relations student at Lesya Ukrainka Volyn National University, Lutsk, says she was in transit to Moscow when the authorities held her at Istanbul airport.
Nambili also says she had a negative PCR test that was only eligible for two days. This has already lapsed while being stuck in the terminal.
She cannot leave the airport because to do so Nambili must make a booking via TURKIY E-VISA for a hotel reservation.
Nambili claims that this too is not working because her passport has been withheld to stop her from leaving the airport.
Nambili says she has experienced embarrassing public humiliation.
“I cannot properly wash myself because the toilets are not ideal. I am not allowed to buy toiletries as the officials are preventing me from leaving this area of the airport.
“I see this as a racist act, violation of my human rights and the ill-treatment for a fellow human. I have not violated any law of the land,” she says.
Nambili tells The Villager that she now fears for her life because every time she tries to leave the transit area, they threaten her.
“I fear to eat anything they offer me because they are capable of doing anything. I don’t even want to collect my luggage because they might put something illegal to trap me. They removed my luggage tags,” she narrates.
According to Nambili, she has been sleeping on the seats in the terminal since the 28th of August.
“The meals here are just not normal. I am living on water at the moment,” Nambili said.
Nambili was coming from Manchester and wanted to renew her visa to Ukraine but when she presented her passport at Istanbul, the authorities treated her as if she had travelled from Namibia.
She, however, never came to Namibia, and was all this time entirely based in Europe.
“I was on holiday with a family member in the UK as the college that I attend in Ukraine had shifted our course entirely online. We were encouraged not to be on campus,” she says.
The institute where she is enrolled at, Lesya Ukrainka Volyn National University in Lutsk could not get hold of Nambili while she was in the UK.
“They wanted to remind me to extend my student visa, but the invitation letter was issued late on their part, and this was right before the UK visa would also expire,” she says.
She took a Turkish Airlines from Manchester to get to Moscow. The flight connected via Istanbul but when she got to Moscow on 27 August, the authorities denied her entry.
Moscow then sent her back to Turkey on the same airline on the 28th of August. Once in Turkey, she communicated with the Russian authorities telling that about her visa that needed to be renewed.
The Russian authorities told her that she would not be allowed into the country because of Covid-19 restrictions.
Her next move was to talk to Namibian embassy in Moscow and they also told her the same that Namibians were not allowed in because of Covid-19 restrictions.
“I was even told that Russia is currently closed off to Namibians, but this was done with the advice of one of our embassies,” she says.
Nambili then reached out to the Namibian embassy in Germany for assistance as there was no end to her ordeal, but the airport official refused to speak to anyone calling on her behalf Her last resolve was to try and make the Turkish Airlines to help her get back to Manchester but she says everybody is ignoring her pleas.
Nambili says that she was forced to provide proof of studies from her tertiary institution, residence and financial statements which she did.
If she had to return to the UK, she would have to be quarantined at a cost of 2 000 British pounds (N$40 000) for 10 days in a hotel.
“I had enough money to buy another ticket to my destination, but now I can only demand a refund.”
Nambili also misses home.
“I have two daughters. I haven’t seen them in three years but I talk to them on WhatsApp. Only a few of my family members know because I am very stressed and emotionally drained,” she says.
