Tanzanian Lutheran Returns to U.S., Appears at ELCA Event

MINNEAPOLIS (ELCA) -- A Lutheran church official in Tanzania, denied entry into the United States earlier this month because of problems with her passport and visa, returned to the United States July 19 and was a presenter here at the Global Mission Event (GME) sponsored by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).
Mary Laiser, head of the Women's Department of the Arusha Diocese, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT), was to be a presenter and assisting minister for worship at the Women of the ELCA Triennial Gathering, July 8-14 in Philadelphia, and then attend GMEs in Hickory, N.C., and here.
But on her way to the women's gathering she was detained in Detroit for about six hours July 9 after arriving from Amsterdam. Laiser said she was put on a plane back to Tanzania by U.S. immigration officials. She was told she was detained because her visa extended beyond the expiration date of her passport. The visa had been granted by the U.S. Embassy in Dar Es Salaam.
Traveling with Laiser was Elizabeth Megiroo, assistant secretary for the Women's Department, Arusha Diocese, ELCT. Megiroo was allowed entry into the United States and continued on to the women's gathering after Laiser was turned back.
Delegates to the Women of the ELCA convention, unhappy with the incident, voted overwhelmingly to authorize the Women of the ELCA executive director "to lodge a protest in the strongest possible terms" to the U.S. government.
On July 16, Catherine I.H. Braasch, executive director of Women of the ELCA, wrote to U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell. "Our protest over this incident rests squarely on the fact that Ms. Laiser was turned away from this country because of an error on the part of officials of the United States, an error which could have been corrected without sending her out of the country," Braasch said in her letter to Powell. "In these times when our country is working to build cultural, economic and social bridges to peoples throughout the world, it is indeed unfortunate that Ms. Laiser could not participate in this significant event."
"We ask that you look into the matter as soon as possible in the hope that future such incidents can be avoided, and that an apology can be given to Ms. Laiser on behalf of our government," Braasch's letter said.
To date, there has been no response from any U.S. government official, including Powell, Braasch said.
For her part, the soft-spoken Laiser said she wasn't sure if she would attempt to return to the United States for the GMEs after straightening out the error when she returned to Tanzania. "But when I heard women were praying for me and supporting me, I felt I had to come," she said in an interview.
Laiser said that she pleaded in vain with U.S. immigration officials in Detroit to allow her entry into the country. While she was detained, she was not allowed to make any phone calls before being required to return to Amsterdam, Laiser said.
The reason she was denied U.S. entry was that her Tanzanian passport expires in December, less than six months after she planned to leave the United States on Aug. 6 to return home, Laiser explained. Despite the expiration date, the U.S. Embassy in Dar Es Salaam granted her a visa to enter the United States. "I thought everything was all right," Laiser said, adding she was not made aware of any problem with the passport expiration date.
When she arrived back in Tanzania -- a 16-hour trip by air -- Laiser said she applied for and got a new passport from the Tanzania government. Then she traveled a full day to the U.S. Embassy in Dar Es Salaam to transfer the visa to her new passport. Once there, U.S. Embassy officials were reluctant, but they transferred the visa after Laiser "insisted," she explained.
Laiser arrived July 19 in the United States, and joined the conclusion of the GME in Hickory, N.C. She plans to return Aug. 6 to Tanzania.
Laiser expressed unhappiness with U.S. immigration officials in Detroit and with the U.S. Embassy staff in Dar Es Salaam. "It wasn't my fault. If I had known about this, I would have gotten a new passport," she said.
No one has apologized to Laiser for the immigration foul-up, she said. "I'm hoping for one (apology)," she said. "They made me waste a lot of time. Ten days is a lot of time."
Laiser was one of four women from Tanzania who were presenters July 26 at the GME here. Joining her were Sister Judith Bukambu, the Rev. Elieshi Mungure and Megiroo. The four discussed the roles of women in the Tanzanian church and society, and the daily challenges they face.

For information contact:
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