LANKA TO REGULATE REPATRIATION OF ILLEGAL MIGRANTS

Increase in illegal asylum seekers triggers Govt.action

The Sri Lankan government was working on forming a national committee to ensure readmission of illegal migrants living abroad in the wake of an increase in number of asylum seekers leaving the island’s shores illegally.

With over 200 failed attempts by asylum seekers in the past 10 days alone, the government had sanc- tioned a National Coordinating Committee on Re-admission (NCCR), proposed by the External Affairs Minister, G. L. Peiris. “Sri Lanka has a re-admission bilateral agreement with the European Union to regulate and repatriate Sri Lankan asylum seekers who are residing in various countries illegally, and is entering into several bilateral agreements with member countries to formalize them,” said Sarath Dissanayake, Director of the Exter- nal Affairs Ministry.

Sri Lanka entered into an agreement with the European Community in 2004, according to which any Sri Lankan found guilty of illegally residing in a foreign country will be deported back to Sri Lanka. On a local level, the National Coordinating Committee on Re-admission will make a concerted effort to end human smuggling, announced government spokesperson Keheliya Rambukwella.

Any Sri Lankan found guilty of illegally residing in a foreign country will be deported back to Sri Lanka

According to the government, the police had already begun to pursue the organized human smuggling networks active in Sri Lanka. Human smuggling and illegal migration via sea to developed nations has seen a sharp increase since sea routes were cleared of battle after the end of the country’s three decade war in 2009.