Beware new immigration laws in Singapore - My day of incarceration Nov '16

Visa-runs are a common practice here in Asia for non residents. Every month or two (depending on where you are) one must leave the country, get the passport stamped, turn right around and come back. A bizarre but necessary ritual if you wish to live in Asia for any length of time. And to be frank, it is about nothing more than money.

During my year living in Thailand's beautiful city Chiang Mai, I did this every 60 days on a bus to Myanmar, which was actually quite fun but still took the entire day and wasn’t so cheap.

So what's the story with Singapore?

Here in Bali I am on a one year (multiple entry) Business Visa and I have been obeying the law by doing my business outside of Indonesia (in Singapore, Hong Kong & China) at intervals no longer than two months apart. Yep, my passport is quickly running out of space for new stamps.

On this occasion I was due to meet a friend and potential client at the airport in Singapore. I was going to be there for 8 hours, so we agreed upon a restaurant in which I would set up camp and meet him whenever he was ready. I had plenty of work to do, so was happy to get on with this undisturbed in my restaurant till he arrived. A rare privilege now that I am a father!

Upon arrival in Singapore I was asked the usual questions at immigration but instead of stamping my passport, they escorted me to a desk at which a stern looking man in a military-like uniform asked me endless questions about…well, pretty much everything!

I answered his questions politely but when I was unable to provide him with the telephone number of the friend I was meeting.... my fate was sealed.

I was escorted to a small locked waiting room...where an hour went by. Eventually a policeman arrived and told me to follow him to his 'office'. I asked no questions and followed him into the basement of the airport to an area which did appear to be the office space for the airport police.

My day of incarceration

First I had to hand over my laptop bag and contents of my pockets. Second, they took my fingerprints and third, they led me to a holding cell with a large TV on the wall. They told me I could sleep if I wanted in a separate room. Triple bunks, freezing cold air conditioning. No thanks.

Initially they couldn't tell me how long I was going to be in here, so I settled down and tried to make friends with the group of 5 other inmates, all glued in silence to the animation being shown on the big TV - The Secret Life of Pets - which I have already watched over 100 times with my 19 month old son. And to make matters worse, they were playing it on a loop, over and over...

...the MADNESS was setting in!

Thankfully there was one other person in there who spoke english, a young Philippine woman who had been there for two days already and like me she had no idea why. She and I were both very grateful that we were able to communicate in order to pass the time. She actually shared some very personal stories with me and it is my intention to stay in touch with her and say hello when we make it to the Philippines. I had to memorise her email address as they wouldn't let me have a pen & paper.

Why was this illegal?

It occurred to me at this stage that I had not asked them the simple question 'Why am I here?'

Upon asking the question, I was handed a small piece of paper with an email address and told that I may or may not be given the answer to this question if I wrote to the immigration department. Apparently the 'airport police' are prohibited from communicating with the immigration department on my behalf.

So, I asked if I could borrow a computer in order that I could communicate directly with immigration. They responded saying that I could not and would have to do this from my 'home country'.

So, how was I to find the answer to my question? Unless I am mistaken, I do believe it is illegal to incarcerate someone without telling them why. Unless I was a suspected terrorist? Which hopefully I am not!

During my 8 hour stay in this windowless basement, bathed in a strange green light, I asked why I was being held there many times, growing every more frustrated not only with The Secret Life of Pets but also the clear infringement of my human rights.

Vegan complications

They told me that lunch was on the house! So I thanked them for their kind offer and asked for a vegan meal...as is my usual way. They looked at me like I had just asked something REALLY complicated and said they would do their best. A few minutes later someone came back with some biscuits and a packet of instant noodles, prawn flavour. I checked the ingredients on the noodles and was pretty horrified by what I saw. I happen to have done a fair bit of research on the effects of certain E numbers and if I was a lawyer, I could successfully argue that they were they were trying to poison me. Lucky for them I am not a lawyer.

I explained that I don't eat sugar or poisoned noodles. And asked for raw vegetables or fruit. Again, they looked at me like I had just asked for something REALLY complicated and wandered off back through their security door.

Two hours later they arrived with some plain fried rice and told me it wasn't going to get better than this! So, rice it was.

Marina Bay Sands Hotel

Back to the question - Why was I being treated like a criminal?

Simple answer to that question is I have no idea. Because despite asking over 100 times, no one seemed to know.

I suspect it was due to a recent clamp-down on visa runs to Singapore. They aren't happy with this because people don't leave the airport and spend money in what happens to be one of the most expensive cities in the world.

Had I been staying for a week, they would have let me in without hesitation. They want their tourists to spend money in the endless modern shopping malls, rather than just buy a few coffees and a meal at the airport.

Here you can see one such mall I wandered through on a previous trip.

Despite not being able to tell me why I was in there, they were eventually able to confirm that I would be let out at the end of the day and an alternative flight had been arranged for me back to my home country... England. I explained that I no longer have a home in England and that I live in Bali with my partner and baby... who were waiting in a hotel near the airport for my return! Thankfully after my plea for mercy they decided not to send me back to England in the end and agreed that I could return to Bali. They could not however confirm if I would have to pay for this flight. My previous flight home had been cancelled the moment I was denied entry to their country. Apparently this is the law.

This is a section of the only piece of paper they gave me at the end of my day with them.

My secret photography/filming

Naturally I was not permitted to film or photograph any part of my experience. I was however able to catch a few moments on camera using some old distraction tricks I picked up back when I used to make money as a magician. On my way out of the holding cell, after being returned my possessions I was able to snap this one shot.

Notice the strange looking map in the centre of their logo. This is a FLAT EARTH map. I asked everyone I could find there why this would be the logo of the International Civil Aviation Organisation, but no one could answer the question. One person suggested that it was the view of the earth from above... but if this were the case, the southern hemisphere wouldn't be visible.

It just so happens that I have been researching the Flat Earth subject for a few months now and will go into more detail about this in a future post. Because it happens to be something I find very interesting.

So I was pretty surprised to see it on the wall in full view of everyone, and wondered for a moment if perhaps I was in there because I had been watching too many youtube videos on this subject!

I was also able to film the policeman who escorted me from my holding cell to my seat on the plane.

He was actually very polite and the only one who suggested the idea that it might have been because of the latest Singapore clamp-down on one day visa runs.

Thankfully Air Asia decided not to charge me for another return flight, which I understood through my policeman friend, would not have been the case if I had booked with any other airline.

A tired looking me!

I was the last one to board the plane, sat all alone in the back, watched constantly by the staff. And I was very aware that my passport was still in their hands and it had not been stamped to prove I had left Indonesia.

Upon arrival in Bali, I was told to wait till everyone had left the plane. At which point I was escorted by another policeman to a waiting car which drove us directly to an interrogation room - VIP treatment one could say!

The Balinese immigration were far more understanding and responsive to my questions. They advised me to avoid Singapore on my next business trip and suggested I do some business in Malaysia! They stamped my passport and (finally) handed it back to me.

And that was that. I was free to go.

In conclusion

It was a surreal experience to say the least.

Topped off by getting dropped at the wrong hotel at the end of the night. It turned out there were two 'Sunset' Hotels in the same area, and naturally after a day like the one I had just experienced, I picked the wrong one!

Haha. If you can't see the funny side of life, well you're screwed basically ;)

But to conclude on a more serious note, one must be aware now that visa runs to this airport are being monitored carefully. Perhaps a bit too carefully! Because I do not believe what happened to me was lawful.

Still, I survived the experience and lived to tell the tale. So all is as it should be :)

Hope you enjoyed. And learned something too!

Keep following for my never-ending international life adventure. And I leave you now with a more calming view of the place I currently call home. Bali.