COLOMBO- Sri Lankan Ambassador in Kuwait U.L. Muhammed Jauhar said that 219 out of the 466 who had left Kuwait on May 19 were diagnosed positive for Covid -19 on their arrival in Colombo.
Speaking to Arab Times in Kuwait, the envoy said that there were 385 residence violators among them who benefited from the amnesty given by the Kuwait government to leave the country without paying their fines and free air tickets. The rest of them were deported who were in the deportation camps for other reasons.
He also said four Lankans refused to board the flight due to health reasons and they were hospitalized and one of them was afflicted with the virus and another died of reasons not related to virus.
A new mechanism is to be formulated to repatriate Sri Lankans who are stranded or faced with various difficulties in the wake of COVID – 19 pandemic, the presidential secretariat announced here on Tuesday.
The programme to bring back Sri Lankans who are undergoing many hardships due to the global spread of the virus commenced in last January under the guidance of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
Earlier, Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena who had a telephone discussion with his Kuwaiti Counterpart Dr. Ahmad Nasser Al Mohammed Al Sabah had agreed that the first batch of returnees, numbering approximately 460, would arrive on two Kuwaiti Airways flights on Tuesday 19 May 2020.
The Foreign Minister also said in consultation with the immigration authorities, the Sri Lanka Embassy in Kuwait will verify and issue emergency travel documents to those Sri Lankan nationals who will qualify for the Amnesty, when the Kuwaiti government reopens for them to register. The general Amnesty enables those out of status to leave with no conditions, and also to return to Kuwait for work in a legal manner.
Minister Gunawardena assured his Kuwaiti counterpart that the government of Sri Lanka is committed to facilitate future repatriation of amnesty beneficiaries in Kuwait, consistent with previous practice. However Sri Lanka would require to coordinate it carefully in a manner that is consistent with the availability of space in quarantine centers, which are limited.
The two ministers also discussed measures taken by the respective governments to face the challenges posed by COVID-19. The Minister thanked the Kuwaiti government for the support including healthcare facilities provided for over 100,000 Sri Lankans presently working in Kuwait. Minister said the Sri Lanka Embassy in Kuwait in collaboration with the Sri Lankan community and other welfare groups based in Kuwait, were continuously providing dry rations to the needy overseas Sri Lankans.