Philippines Imposes Lifetime Ban on American Traveler over Alleged Profanity on Immigration Form
The Philippines has permanently banned an American traveler for allegedly using offensive language on an immigration form and displaying rude behavior towards immigration officers
The Philippines has permanently banned an American traveler, Anthony Laurence, for allegedly writing "profane words" on a digital immigration form and exhibiting rude behavior towards immigration officers. According to the Philippine Bureau of Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco, Laurence was denied entry and added to a permanent blacklist due to his disrespectful conduct.
Laurence arrived at Manila's Ninoy Aquino International Airport on November 7, flying in from Bangkok, Thailand on an Air Asia flight, as stated. Upon his arrival, Philippine authorities claim that he displayed disrespect towards an immigration officer by throwing his passport and mobile phone at them while being reminded to complete an online travel form.
Laurence, a property investor who spends time living in the country on and off, challenges the immigration authority's version of events.
According to Immigration Commissioner Tansingco's statement, "Upon checking [Laurence's information] in our system, the officer found out that the passenger had provided a fictitious address in the Philippines, omitted his complete name, and entered offensive language in his submission."
The commissioner stated that immigration officers had been instructed to exhibit utmost tolerance, but the foreign national had exceeded the acceptable limits.
According to the commissioner, such conduct is not only disrespectful but also hampers the effectiveness of the system.
"Our agency is dedicated to providing a smooth experience for travelers. We require everyone to behave respectfully and follow the set procedures. Any breach of these procedures will be handled firmly," he said.
However, Laurence contradicts this statement, stating to CNN that he did not throw anything or raise his voice during the incident.
He expressed his attempts to seek assistance from immigration officers, but they rejected him due to the malfunctioning travel form on his phone.
According to him, he had tried three times to complete the form but grew increasingly frustrated. Consequently, in an effort to expedite the immigration process for his connecting flight to Cebu, he intentionally entered erroneous information. Surprisingly, his application was successful on this particular attempt.
He did not respond to CNNs questions about what he wrote on the form and whether it included any profanities.
But he said, "I immediately apologized and the immigration officer wasnt interested."
Laurence added that he had even personally written an apology to the immigration officer, but the officer showed no interest in it. He stated that the Philippine authorities had overreacted and accused them of depriving him of his right to due process. Additionally, Laurence mentioned that he was not provided with any official document notifying him of the ban.
Referring to media reports about the encounter, he stated that he actually acquired most of the government's standpoint through the articles published about him, rather than directly from them. He chose not to disclose whether he intends to go back to the Philippines, simply mentioning that he would now need to liquidate his property investments in the country.
According to the immigration bureau, it has excluded and blacklisted 44 foreign nationals it deemed disrespectful in 2023.
