The government is working to find a solution for around 7,000 Sri Lankan migrant workers facing deportation from Israel after moving to jobs outside the employment categories under which they entered the country, Deputy Minister Arun Hemachandra told Parliament today.
The issue was raised by MP Chamara Sampath Dasanayake, who said around 30,000 Sri Lankans are currently employed in Israel.
Dasanayake said approximately 7,000 Sri Lankans who had travelled to Israel for employment in specific sectors had subsequently taken up other jobs and were now facing deportation after seeking refugee status.
He questioned whether the Sri Lankan government could intervene on their behalf, citing reported interventions by India and Bangladesh in similar situations.
Responding, Hemachandra referred to information from the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) and raised concerns over the manner in which some workers had been recruited and sent to Israel under the previous government.
He said former Labour and Foreign Employment Minister Manusha Nanayakkara had sent a letter to the SLBFE instructing it to forward a list provided by him to Israel’s Population and Immigration Authority (PIBA).
Hemachandra said this had occurred while the SLBFE was already selecting workers for foreign employment programs through the required procedures.
According to the deputy minister, some of the workers recruited for the agriculture sector had not been properly briefed about their employment categories before leaving Sri Lanka.
“I don’t believe this is the fault of the migrant workers,” Hemachandra noted.
He said some of the workers subsequently took up employment elsewhere and sought refugee status. Israeli authorities had later provided an amnesty period to address their status, he said.
Hemachandra alleged that the previous government had failed to make the necessary intervention during that period to secure relief for the Sri Lankan workers already in Israel.
He further alleged that authorities at the time had instead planned to send another group of around 6,000 workers to Israel to replace those already there.
The deputy minister also alleged irregularities and corruption surrounding the recruitment process, claiming money had been collected in connection with plans to send the replacement group. He levelled allegations against the former minister and other individuals over the matter.
Hemachandra said the current government was working to address the issue and would seek a fair resolution for the affected Sri Lankan workers. (Newswire)
