Glastonbury organizer calls for immediate action to ‘fix’ Ukraine’s visa system
Glastonbury co-organiser Emily Eavis said the visa system for Ukrainian refugees “simply doesn’t work”.
he festival boss, 42, is among thousands of Brits who have pledged to provide shelter to those fleeing the Russian invasion under the government’s Homes for Ukraine scheme.
Eavis wrote on Twitter that her family pledged last month to host a Ukrainian woman and her family at Worthy Farm – the Eavis family home and site of the music festival.
However, Veronika and her family are stuck in the capital, Kyiv.
Eavis wrote: “We need to fix the UK visa process for Ukrainians as it just doesn’t work.
“17 days ago we were introduced to Veronika and her family and promised to welcome them here at Worthy Farm.
“Their visa applications were submitted through the Homes for Ukraine program the same day, but they have still not been approved. Veronika’s family is stuck in Kyiv.
“We need our Government to take immediate action so that the many thousands of UK residents who are desperate to help people escape a war zone can actually do so.”
The festival takes place in the fields surrounding Worthy Farm (Aaron Chown/PA)
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More than 200,000 people have expressed an interest in opening their homes to a Ukrainian refugee under the program.
However, there have been concerns that the matching system has left people turning to strangers on social media and vulnerable to exploitation by would-be traffickers.
The speed with which visas are processed has also come under criticism.
Emily’s father Michael, a dairy farmer by trade, co-founded the festival in September 1970, while her musical and political influence has grown steadily since 1999.
https://www.independent.ie/entertainment/music/glastonbury-organiser-calls-for-immediate-action-to-fix-ukrainian-visa-scheme-41530327.html Glastonbury organizer calls for immediate action to ‘fix’ Ukraine’s visa system
