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Korean job visas on hold; plans to evacuate Lankans
View(s):By Leon Berenger
More than 90 per cent of South Korean job visas for Sri Lankans have been put on hold in view of the threat of a possible war in the Korean peninsula, Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLFEB) General Manager Harischandra Batagoda said. He said about 5,000 Sri Lankans went to South Korea every year for jobs and at present there were about 25,000 Lankans working in Seoul and other major cities.
“It is hoped that the visa crisis is only temporary and that the situation will return to normal once the tension in the Korean peninsula ends,” he said. Mr. Batagoda said the Government had drawn up evacuation plans with the assistance of international agencies such as the International Oraganisation of Migrant Workers (IOM), if war broke out in the peninsula. “There are friendly countries that have promised us ships and flights that could be used at short notice for evacuation of Sri Lankans,” he said.
Meanwhile, External Affairs Secretary Karunatilleke Amunugama said Sri Lanka’s Ambassador Nissanka Wijeratne and other diplomatic staff in Seoul were holding regular meetings with Sri Lankan workers there to apprise them on the situation and action to be taken in case of war.
North Korea that has threatened to attack South Korea has advised foreign nationals including diplomats to leave that country at the earliest for their own wellbeing.
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