The Hon. Presiding Member

¶ 01 Going abroad for employment is done for the future well-being of one’s children. If a mother who has gone overseas cannot return, if her body is covered in wounds and she is subjected to cruel torture and violence, if she is made to do triple work shifts at once and is not even given a proper meal, that is truly a tragic situation.

¶ 02 Future measures for our workers abroad, including our domestic workers, are set out in the National People’s Power policy statement. Under that, we propose to merge the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; to grant voting rights to Sri Lankans employed overseas to safeguard their civil residency rights; to establish a bank by consolidating state banks to provide concessionary loans to entrepreneurs and thereby extend loan facilities to migrant workers; to provide a contributory retirement pension to migrant workers; and through District Development Committees, to look into the basic facilities needed for their children’s education. Stating that we will work for all these, I conclude my speech. I thank you for giving me this opportunity, Hon. Presiding Member.