Minister of Labor and Foreign Employment Mr. Manusha Nanayakkara says that legal action will be taken against any group who collect money while leaving for Israeli jobs and an investigation will be conducted with the help of the international community and punishments will be given regardless of rank.
The minister also requested to submit complaints with relevant evidence without making accusations in this regard. He also mentioned that a complaint has been filed with the Criminal Investigation Department regarding these allegations.
The minister said this while attending the distribution of air tickets for workers who are expected to leave for nursing jobs in Israel.
Addressing the media here, the Minister also said:
‘When I was the deputy minister in the previous government, 500 people were sent to agricultural jobs in Israel. Only 10 percent returned after the end of service. The other group is still staying illegally in Israel. These people have made false accusations and criticisms about the country and the government, submitted fake documents related to them and are staying there on the basis of asylum. Therefore, the Israeli government’s firm position is that they will not provide services in the agricultural sector to Sri Lankans again. We made a request to the Israeli government to allow the group to come back. But Israel has informed us that they will not give us jobs in that field again as long as the people staying illegally are in Israel.
As a government, we still haven’t given up. We are ready to negotiate with Israel to resolve this issue. But the sad thing is that the Israeli government has not yet accepted our request. No time has been set aside for a diplomatic meeting to discuss this issue.
During the period of Yahapalana, an agreement was signed with Israel to give the government an opportunity in directing the workers and received that quota in 2018. At that time there was also the private sector. We never asked to stop private sector activities. But the private sector had complained to the Israeli government that they were charging Rs. 3-3.5 million for a nurse and Rs. 6-7 million for an employee. Accordingly, since last May, the Israeli government has taken a decision not to give the opportunity to the private sector for this.
It is not my policy to stop people from leaving for private sector jobs. I am of the opinion that the private sector should also act subject to proper regulation, with a maximum charge limit and subject to the condition of revoking the license if the limits are violated. The private sector can also work according to the agreement signed with Israel. But the Israeli government has stopped giving opportunities to the private sector. We are working on this matter at the diplomatic level. The Israeli government is still not giving it a chance. Although we have made a request, they are still taking time for it. We have to wait until they make an official notification for this discussion.
Parties who do not know the operating procedures of the Israeli nursing service are accused of charging a lot of money for this. First you need to register in the office. The group will be interviewed by the Israeli embassy. They themselves update the information of those who fulfil the qualifications on the relevant website. Then only those who win will get job opportunities through a lottery system operated only by the Israeli government. Among these winners, the appropriate person to provide their service is selected by the concerned elder. The one who was chosen can go to work near the chooser.
The allegation is that they are asking for money through phone calls from those who are chosen in that way. But the workers leaving for Israel have never said that they were spoken to or given money. But the minister, the bureau and the officials are accused of being involved in this. We ask all those people to file a proper complaint without making baseless accusations. If such a complaint is made, legal action will be taken against anyone who is accused, regardless of rank. If there is an allegation against the department or an officer, submit that complaint as well. Relevant legal measures will be taken from the moment the complaint is submitted. However, no one has filed any complaint so far, even though various absurd allegations have been made on various platforms. Therefore, we have taken a decision not to update the website who are the eligible people from the lottery.
I clearly emphasize that no one who leaves for nursing in Israel has to pay anything other than the government fees. Do not pay any money to any party. Similarly, there are groups that are sent to Israel in other illegal ways. That is human trafficking. It’s like being transported to Australia by boat. Never fall for this scam.
The Foreign Employment Bureau was informed to immediately complain to the Secret Police about these reports published regarding Israeli jobs. It was requested to conduct a full investigation regarding the allegations of taking money, and if necessary, to go to Israel to intervene at the international level or to arrest this group.
Some people in the private sector who do not like the government program may be behind these absurd allegations. If Rs. 3-7 million was charged, all the middlemen involved in this business might have earned a lot of money. That is why the government’s involvement in this has become a problem for all of them. Their source of income is closed. That’s why all those involved in smuggling come together and accuse the government’s program.
No woman above 45 years can go for Isreal. The opportunity for men to go is very limited. We accept that fact. There are still some areas that need to be completed within our program. There is also the question of when those who were not chosen from the lottery will enter again. But because the mafias and smugglers have lost their incomes, they deny the accusations made against the government program in an organized manner. We have complained to the Criminal Investigation Department regarding these allegations. Investigations are being started.
All Sri Lankans who are eager to go abroad is requested not to give any money to any broker. Don’t get caught in it and pay money and later don’t be sad. Don’t even get in trouble. If you go to a country like Japan or Korea, you must master the language of that country. Must complete the required qualifications. Otherwise, if someone asks for money saying that there are shortcuts, it’s all fakes, scams and rackets. If there are such things, please complain to us. We strictly enforce the law against them. Even if it is a registered foreign employment agency if they charge money unnecessarily, inform us about it and complain. The approved fee for all jobs is mentioned on the website. Don’t spend at least five cents more than that.” He also said.
