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JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake hits out at the Government, charging that it had failed to repatriate stranded Lankan migrant workers

As expected, COVID-19 was again the dominant topic of debate when Parliament met for its first sitting week of 2021.

Issues related to the pandemic such as vaccine distribution, repatriation of stranded migrant workers, the pilot project to bring in tourists from Ukraine and the controversy regarding the Government’s “cremation only” policy of COVID dead figured prominently during the week, with fiery exchanges at times between Government and Opposition MPs.

It was also a week in which the coronavirus hit MPs themselves, as State Minister and Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) General Secretary Dayasiri Jayasekara became the first Parliamentarian to test positive for the virus.  Mr Jayasekara did not attend Parliament sessions this week but several MPs who had come into contact with him earlier have been advised to self-isolate and get tested.

The first order of business when Parliament convened on Tuesday was for the Ven. Athuraliye Rathana Thera to be sworn in as an MP to fill the National List slot seat allocated to ‘Ape Janabala Party’ (AJP). His swearing in marked the end of a lengthy dispute among senior members of the party over who should fill the seat allocated to the AJP. This was the fourth time that Rathana Thera was sworn in as an MP, having being elected to Parliament in 2004 for the first time.

On Friday, the Opposition moved an adjournment debate on the prevailing situation in the country. Opening the debate, Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) Kalutara District MP and former Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne took the Government to task for its mishandling of the pandemic. “It is more than 10 months now since the first COVID patient was identified from the country. The Government, however, has yet to successfully resolve any of the many issues that have arisen as a result of this pandemic,” he told Parliament. The MP also took aim at the controversial Ukranian tourism project spearheaded by Udayanga Weeratunga, one time ambassador to Ukraine and close relative of the Rajapaksas. “The Health Ministry has put in place 83 guidelines to be followed by foreign tourists when visiting the country. None of these guidelines applies to these Ukrainian tourists,” Dr. Senaratne charged.

He also attacked the Government on its cremation-only policy on COVID deaths, alleging that it continued to ignore advice from world-renowned experts who had repeatedly stressed that burial of COVID victims was safe.

The day before, Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi insisted in Parliament that bodies of COVID-19 dead would continue to be cremated as that was what the expert committee appointed to look into the issue had recommended. She, however, added that the Government was awaiting further recommendations from the main expert committee. In answer to a question raised by Ahila Ilankai Thamil Congress (AITC) Jaffna District MP Gajan Ponnambalam, the minister said the Government was going by the recommendations of the expert committee. “We will not change such decisions based on political, religious, social, personal or any other grounds.”

The Health Minister claimed that the report that was now in the public domain was submitted by a group of virologists recommending both cremation and burial of COVID dead, but this was the report of a “sub-committee” that had met informally with COVID-Prevention State Minister Sudarshini Fernandopulle and the report had been referred to the main committee. Minister Wanniarachchi said she was awaiting the main committee’s response to the report.

Explaining the Government’s planned vaccination programme regarding the pandemic, Minister Wanniarachchi said the Government was not solely relying on obtaining vaccines through the World Health Organisation’s COVAX facility but was also in talks with countries such as India, Russia and China on obtaining vaccines. The Government is due to hand over its National Deployment of Vaccination Plan (NDVP) to the WHO by January 15 and 60 percent of the plan was now complete, she told Parliament. The plan would be submitted to the WHO on January 12. About 155, 000 frontline health workers would receive the vaccine first, followed by other priority groups including frontline tri-forces personnel and people over 60 years of age, she said.

National People’s Power (NPP) Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake, meanwhile, took the Government to task for what he called its alleged failure to repatriate Sri Lankans stranded abroad due to the pandemic. He highlighted the plight of migrant workers stranded in Middle Eastern countries. “Many have lost their jobs and are living in parks or empty warehouses. There are long queues outside our embassies. This is an issue that the Government should look at in a humane manner. Some countries have repatriated their nationals from these countries for free, but here, SriLankan Airlines has increased its normal ticket prices to these destinations by threefold. Our citizens have been stranded abroad for more than 10 months but the Government has opened the borders to Ukrainian tourists.”

Mr Dissanayake also alleged that repatriated Sri Lankans were then exploited by certain infamous businessmen close to the President, with those returning being forced into quarantine at certain selected hotels which charge exorbitant amounts from these persons who have already been left helpless by the pandemic.

Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva rejected the accusations, telling Parliament that the Government had so far repatriated more than stranded 61,750 Sri Lankans. About 69,000 Sri Lankans in 137 countries were still hoping to be repatriated, and this included 41,452 registered migrant workers in 15 countries, he added. From January 10, there would be at least one scheduled flight operating every day to bring back Sri Lankans stranded abroad, he said. The minister also claimed that it was not mandatory for these returning Sri Lankans to go into paid quarantine at hotels.

Mr Dissanayake, though, said while the process might not be mandatory, the returnees were being pushed into going for paid quarantine as authorities emphasised that there was insufficient room at Government-run quarantine centres. He queried why returnees could not be sent to spend 14-days’ quarantine in their own homes as was now the case for close contacts of those who test positive for COVID-19.

Parliament will reconvene at 10.00am on January 19.