Washington (AP) The U.S. State Department announced on Wednesday that it is resuming the stalled student visa application process for foreign nationals, but that all applicants must immediately unlock their social media accounts for government inspection.
Consular personnel will be alert for posts and statements that can be interpreted as unfriendly to the United States, its government, culture, institutions, or founding ideals, according to the department.
The government stated in a notification released to the public on Wednesday that it has lifted the May halt of student visa processing, but that fresh applicants risk rejection if they do not make their social media profiles public and submit them for evaluation. Refusing to do so, it was stated, might indicate that they are attempting to avoid the requirement or conceal their online behavior.
According to authorities, the Trump administration last month temporarily suspended the scheduling of new visa interviews for international students who want to study in the United States as it got ready to increase the scrutiny of their social media activities.
As the time for booking travel and accommodation arrangements closes before the start of the academic year, students worldwide have been eagerly awaiting the reopening of visa interview appointments at U.S. consulates.
A 27-year-old Toronto doctoral student was successful in scheduling a visa interview for the following week on Wednesday afternoon. The Chinese student intends to come to the United States for a research internship that will begin in late July.
The student, who asked to be recognized only by his last name, Chen, expressed his relief, saying he was worried about being singled out. I have been returning to the website a few times each day.
Students from China, India, Mexico, and the Philippines have shared on social media that they have been keeping a careful eye on State Department press briefings and monitoring visa booking websites to see if there is any sign that appointment bookings will start up again.
According to a statement from the government, consular officials will now thoroughly screen all applications for student and exchange visitor status under the new guidelines.
According to the statement, candidates will be asked to change the privacy settings on all of their social media profiles to public in order to expedite this screening process. We will make sure that everyone trying to enter our nation is appropriately screened thanks to the improved social media vetting.
The department stated in internal guidelines for consular personnel that they should be on the lookout for any signs of animosity toward the American people, culture, government, institutions, or basic ideals.
According to Jameel Jaffer, executive director of Columbia University’s Knight First Amendment Institute, the new approach is reminiscent of the Cold War’s ideological screening process, which resulted in the exclusion of notable intellectuals and artists from the United States.
According to Jaffer, this policy censors all consular officials and will unavoidably suppress free and fair political expression both domestically and internationally.
In the United States, international students have been subject to heightened scrutiny on a number of levels. The Trump administration quickly changed its mind after denying thousands of students—some of whom had simply committed traffic infractions—permission to study in the United States in the spring. Additionally, the government broadened the reasons for terminating the legal status of international students.
The Trump administration has taken action to prevent foreign students from enrolling at Harvard University, an Ivy League university that depends on overseas students for tuition funding and a quarter of its student body, as part of a pressure campaign against the university. Harvard should limit its international enrollment to 15%, according to Trump.
Additionally, the Trump administration has demanded that 36 nations pledge to strengthen traveler screening or risk having their citizens prohibited from entering the US. The countries have 60 days to remedy U.S. concerns or risk being included to a travel restriction that now covers 12 countries, according to a diplomatic cable sent by the State Department over the weekend.
