German immigration stupidity

Just when you thought that the United States had the dumbest immigration policies up pops the Germans:

The scandal concerns new rules on issuing tourist visas in Ukraine and Belarus that were drawn up in the year 2000. The basic rule was: if in doubt, act in favour of the freedom to travel.

The German media has reported that mafia gangs developed a business of paying unemployed Germans to pledge to support visiting tourists.

The German authorities did not check to see if these Germans were financially capable of doing so.

The result was nearly 300,000 visas granted by an overwhelmed embassy in Kiev to Ukrainians ostensibly travelling to admire the beauty of Cologne cathedral.

The opposition alleges many of those who came started working illegally, while others were women forced into prostitution.