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Moonchild Sanelly oozes the quality of the stars. When the musicians of Africa Express – the organization I co-founded – went to South Africa earlier this year to do some recordings, they were blown away by it. A huge mop of blue hair, an endearing personality and distinctive voices, she ended up on so many tracks that a visitor joked by making her solo album. When the collective played in Johannesburg, Damon Albarn hailed an emerging superstar after she played.
But the British public has to wait to see this fabulous artist. For Moonchild is the latest African artist to fall foul of our "hostile environment" on migration, forcing him to cancel three shows planned in this country after spending nearly £ 500 for the visa application. She handed over all the requested documents, which ranged from verified bank statements to insurance details, and took two days to collect, only to appear to have broken down due to a financial discrepancy caused mainly by fluctuating rates. exchange rate
. d & # 39; unique. Obtaining visas for non-European artists coming to Britain has long been a nightmare, even for world-famous stars. Two years ago, Africa Express requested visas from 50 Syrians to visit a reformed orchestra, one of the most stressful things I've ever tried. Everything was still in the air for a tour of more than £ 500,000, just a few days before the first show, which was to be joined by Paul Weller and Rachid Taha. Fortunately, it was well worth the effort in the end. But this heartbreaking process seems to be hardening amidst a surge in nationalism and post-Brexit paranoia.
Chris Smith, director of the Womad festival this weekend, told the Radio Times that the musicians had for the first time rejected the invitations. rather than face the "humiliation" of facing the visa services of Britain. "Culture is being crushed while politicians are falling to the right," he said. "My fear is that the situation only worsens." Yet at that time, divided communities needed more than ever the soothing balm of art and the unifying power of music to reach the borders.
Exchange horror stories. Womad had to cancel an act after British officials put the wrong date in their visas and paid out £ 15,000 on emergency visas for another artist last year. The director of a famous African group was shocked recently to find charges of nearly £ 7,000 for obtaining visas for his tour – and that only three months. "It's not really worth coming," he told me sadly. This was picked up by a prominent booking agent, who said the artists were discouraged by the complexity, costs and lack of humanity in an outsourced system. "Border officers often do not know their own rules, but artists are punished," he added.
It is hard enough for pbadports to be handed out for weeks, preventing artists from working. in hotels for days after crossing continents for biometric testing. These are, keeping in mind, the people of the poorest regions of the planet who are trying to develop their careers by visiting a nation that proclaims creative leadership and a desire to improve the world. Unfortunately, they are often frozen by costs or facing condescending attitudes. I have also heard of Kenyan charity workers, Nigerian entrepreneurs and Ghanaian technicians indignant at being treated as illegal immigrants when they were seeking visas to come to Britain for business purposes. their growing countries
. rate of migrants crossing the Mediterranean in the midst of the fearful populism push. But when artists from developing countries reject the platform to perform in one of our best known festivals, this should be a warning sign. For it symbolizes the hypocrisy of politicians who boast about world-wide Britain, then tighten borders, scam foreigners and treat visitors with contempt.
Unfortunately, the message is that Britain is closed to business and culture. at least.
• Ian Birrell is co-founder of Africa Express, a collaborative music project
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