Egyptian man overjoyed as wife’s entry visa finally comes through
A 43-YEAR-OLD Egyptian man was yesterday unable to contain his happiness after he received word that the Cypriot Embassy in Cairo had finally approved his Egyptian wife’s entry visa.
“I’m just so happy. It’s taken so long to get her here and now our ordeal has finally come to an end,” Alexandros El Meligy told the Cyprus Mail.
An Egyptian by birth, El Meligy, known as Hassan to his Egypitan friends, became a naturalised Cypriot in 2003. In December last year he travelled to Alexandria where he married 32-year-old Iman but, for reasons unknown, migration authorities repeatedly denied his wife’s visa application to come to Cyprus to be with her husband.
A desperate El Meligy, having experienced similar blackballing by migration authorities 17 years ago after he married a Greek Cypriot woman, did the only thing he thought might help and approached the media for help.
Until his story went public, both the embassy and migration authorities were adamant Iman would not be joining her husband in Cyprus. The embassy blamed the foreign ministry and said it had requested a reason for the visa denial.
Repeated letters from his lawyer to both the foreign ministry and migration department had also gone unanswered.
He said: “Then just when I was told by migration authorities [on July 7] that I would be getting a letter to explain why her visa application was being rejected, I get a phone call from my lawyer telling me migration had gone ahead and approved my wife’s entry into Cyprus. All that I had to do, the letter said, was to tell my wife to reapply for her entry visa at the embassy in Cairo.”
Because the consul was holidaying in Cyprus at the time, Iman was told she had to wait till he returned on July 31.
“She travelled to Cairo on Monday to make her application. They told her she would have an answer today [yesterday]. When she went by to get her answer today they told her it [visa] had been approved.”
El Meligy said he was scheduled to fly out to Egypt tomorrow and that he and Iman would return home together in two weeks’ time. He has not seen her since he was last over during the Easter break in April.
“It’ll be the first time she’s left Egypt so it’ll be quite frightening for her at first. She’ll need to get used to living in a new country, a new culture, and learning a new language. Even though she speaks some English, she’ll have to learn Greek. It’ll be hard at first, and she’ll need time to adjust.”
Iman will also have to adjust to being a stepmother. El Meligy already has two children from his first marriage, 14-year-old Anthoulla and 12-year-old Ioannis.
He said: “They’ve never met and Iman’s only ever seen photos of them. The children know I’ve remarried and my daughter has accepted it. She said she knows I can’t be alone for the rest of my life.
“My son isn’t as sure but I know he’ll come round once they get to know each other. I have very easy going children and I believe it’ll be okay.”
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