Appeal to Extend Amnesty for Sri Lankan Violators

The Sri Lankan government has requested to its Kuwaiti counterpart to increase the amnesty period for Sri Lankan residency violators up to May 30. Sri Lankan Minister of External Relations Dinesh Gunawardena presented the request. The minister had a meeting with the Kuwaiti ambassador to Colombo Khalaf Bohdhir recently.

The Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment also declared in a statement that it had sent an official appeal to the Government of Kuwait, urging to it to review the period of the amnesty granted to Sri Lankans, in particular those who have violated residence, in order to surrender themselves in preparation for their deportation without paying penalties.

The statement appreciated the hospitality of the Kuwaiti amnesty, which drops all penalties for violators who turn themselves in, as well as providing them the opportunity to return to Kuwait in the future.

So far, only 320 expatriates of Sri Lankan citizenship out of 16,000 violators have reported to the Ministry of the Interior. The majority of the residency violators are in problem due to the outbreak of coronavirus as they are unable to find any job due to lockdown.

Source: Arab Times