An explanation, Jonathan
Reader comment on item: A Consulate in Jerusalem
in response to reader comment: Further obnoxiousness

Submitted by Tito Cohen (Israel), Jul 10, 2006 at 17:38

Why do you say that? I know someone who works in the Tel Aviv Embassy, and he explained it thus: They do actually process a lot of Jerusalem passports there. They ask people from Jerusalem to process at the Jerusalem Consulate b/c they are not staffed to do all of greenline Israel plus Jerusalem. So, that's why, at least according to him. He says it frustrates them when someone who lives 10 minutes from the Consulate takes a 2 hour bus ride to process there, b/c they cannot then keep up with the work in their assigned area. He also says the only people that have flat out refused to process once they are there are those who have made insulting racial comments to their staff (a few of whom are Arab), but that has only happened 2 or 3 times in the past years.

Another thing, They say the mailing back the passport thing keeps an extra ten thousand people a year out of the waiting room, and for 34 shekels most people prefer that anyway.

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