Migrant workers who return to Sri Lanka are provided quarantine faculties free of charge in 14 hotels across the country chosen by the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE), Labour Minister Nimal Siripala De Silva told Parliament last week.

De Silva was responding to a question raised by the opposition about quarantine regulations for Sri Lankan arrivals being relaxed prior to Minister Basil Rajapksa’s recent return to the island from the US and allowing paid hotel quarantine only after that.

Main opposition Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB) MP Thushara Indunil Amarasena said the rules imposed – from PCR tests to quarantine – could cost repatriates about 300,000 rupees.

“Migrant workers are given accommodation facilities and quarantine facilities free of charge in 14 hotels chosen by the SLBFE and recommended by the Sri Lanka Army,” Minister De Silva said.

“Using SLBFE funds, 25 migrant workers in a Dubai safe house were brought back and quarantine facilities were provided for them while 20 from safe houses in Saudi Arabia and Oman were also brought back similarly,” he said.

“The SLBFE will work on bringing back more Sri Lankans in safe houses once airport restrictions are relaxed,” he added.

Last week, Sri Lanka imposed a restriction on inbound passengers from six middle-eastern countries as a large number of returnees tested positive for COVID-19 on arrival despite airlines clearing their documents. The countries were Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait.

However, within 24-hours this directive was revoked and a new directive issued in its place.

As per the new directive issued June 30, passengers from the six countries are permitted to arrive subject to mandatory hotel quarantine or travel through Sri Lanka Tourism’s “bio bubble route”.

Minister De Silva said that most migrant workers, especially women, are in safe houses.

“Safe houses are maintained to give protection and security to ‘housemaids’ who were subjected to various hardships, who were not paid salaries and who had finished their service period or those who are expecting to return to Sri Lanka,” he said.

According to the minister, the SLBFE maintains safe houses in 10 Sri Lankan missions in Abu Dhabi and Dubai in the UAE, Riyadh and Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Cyprus and Qatar.

“The safe houses have enough space but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, additional allocations were given to Sri Lankan missions in Oman, Kuwait and Cyprus to rent out alternate places to give temporary accommodation when there was not enough space in the safe houses,” he said.

The minister said that women in safe houses are brought down according to a priority list and as and when their documents are cleared. By June 15, 2021, there were 122 housemaids in the safe houses and 69 by July 5.

“The National Operations Centre for Prevention of COVID 19 is working on bringing back all Sri Lankans including migrant workers. For this, the Foreign Ministry, Sri Lankan missions abroad and SLBFE provide the required assistance. They are repatriated based on a priority list and capacity of quarantine centres,” he said.