BEIRUT, October 2019: Ambassador Shani Calyaneratne Karunaratne paid a courtesy call on Minister of Labour of the Republic of Lebanon Camille Abousleiman on 09 October 2019 at the Labour Ministry premises.
Conveying his appreciation on the contribution of Sri Lankan migrant workers in Lebanon, the Minister warmly welcomed the Ambassador.
He recalled the conditions prevailing presently in Lebanon with regard to the migrant domestic workers and said that further discussions are in progress on the amendments proposed to the existing Standard Unified Labour Contract for Migrant Domestic Workers. The recommendations of the Evaluation Committee in this regard are to be implemented in collaboration with the Directorate Generale of General Security (Department of Immigration).
Minister Abousleiman mentioned that he takes a strong position to change the Kafala System, and prefers to establish a standard framework than individual bilateral MoUs with labour exporting countries.
Ambassador Karunaratne discussed the present status of Sri Lankan domestic workers, given that Sri Lanka is Lebanon’s most preferred labour exporting country. The Minister further said that his office is of zero tolerance on any mistreatment associated with migrant workers.
Minister Abousleiman spoke about the aftermath of the Easter attacks in Sri Lanka, particularly its impact on the tourism industry, and Ambassador Karunaratne provided an update on the progress made by Sri Lanka.
The meeting was attended by Acting Director General of the Ministry, Marleine Atallah, and Head of Chancery, Second Secretary, Chathuri Perera.
