The Hon. Nanda Bandara
Welcoming the motion on foreign employment, Hon. Nanda Bandara highlighted problems caused by illegal recruiters and the vulnerability of workers whose jobs or wages change abroad or who flee abusive workplaces. He said the Government should prioritize sending trained workers through state-supervised channels, with proper language and professional qualifications, and proposed establishing a dedicated institution to collect and manage information on migrant workers. He also called for stronger state intervention to protect workers of all communities and to increase remittances by reducing unskilled migration.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Mr. Presiding Member, I welcome Hon. Ravi Karunanayake’s motion. While many go abroad unwillingly due to household poverty, there are also professionals who go by choice. However, there are many illegal recruiters operating outside the Foreign Employment Bureau. Problems arise when the promised job is changed, wages are cut, or workers flee abusive workplaces and then lack protection. Many suffer greatly and then turn to our embassies.
¶ 02 We know the hardships faced by our mothers and sisters in the Middle East; men too face difficulties. This affects all communities—Sinhala, Tamil, and Muslim. As a Government, we are prioritizing sending trained workers under state oversight. A dedicated institution with responsibility to gather and manage information on them should be established.
¶ 03 Currently, interviews for Italy, Korea, Cyprus, Israel, etc., are being conducted properly, selecting only those with language ability and professional qualifications. That is good. Going forward, sending trained workers will be our priority, reducing the number of unskilled departures and increasing remittances. I value this motion and propose strengthening state intervention to ensure protection.
¶ 04 Thank you for the opportunity.
Provenance
- Source
- Hansard, Friday, 8 May 2026 ·No. 23554 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. Nanda Bandara. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 8 May 2026. No. 23554. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/22783