{"id":240521,"date":"2025-01-13T12:54:47","date_gmt":"2025-01-13T07:24:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/?p=240521"},"modified":"2025-01-21T19:05:24","modified_gmt":"2025-01-21T13:35:24","slug":"sri-lankan-expats-the-missing-vote","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/sri-lankan-expats-the-missing-vote\/","title":{"rendered":"Sri Lankan Expats: The Missing Vote"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"p2\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><b>By <a style=\"color: #ff6600;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/?s=Mohamed+Ajiwath\">Mohamed Ajiwath<\/a> &#8211;<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_210893\" style=\"width: 126px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-210893\" class=\"size-full wp-image-210893\" src=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Mohamed-Ajiwath.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"116\" height=\"147\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-210893\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mohamed Ajiwath<\/p><\/div>\n<p class=\"p1\">Last year Sri Lankans participated in both Presidential Election and Parliamentary Elections. In 2025, the country is likely to face two more elections: Local Government and Provincial Government elections. However, a significant portion of the Sri Lankan population residing overseas \u2013 working hard to provide food and a better living condition for their families and loved ones back home, continues to be<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>denied their voting franchise. Does anybody care about them? This is a million dollar question the new government and relevant authorities must answer.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><b>Attempts at Reform<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Efforts to grant voting rights through various committees, rights groups, NGO\u2019s and political activism. The Author has previously written on this subject in <em>Colombo Telegraph<\/em>. ( See<span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"> <a style=\"color: #ff6600;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/expats-right-to-vote\/\"><span class=\"s1\">Expats Right To Vote &#8211; Colombo Telegraph<\/span><\/a><\/span>). However, without amendments to the election law, the Election Commission remains unable to further progress.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">The Election Commission deserves credit for reminding the then-incumbent president regarding this matter during a press conference following the conclusion of Presidential Elections. (Watch from 2:07:00 to 2:09:00 video below).<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/MQ1xw7DIRTA?si=whYwfxb4S57UHazJ\" width=\"900\" height=\"500\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Anura Kumara Dissanayake\u2019s acknowledgement of the Election commission\u2019s request by way of his signature smile is stark reminder of<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>why such reforms are urgently necessary before any future elections are scheduled. His government has more than the adequate majority in parliament to enact all required reform.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><b>Relationship between JVP \/NPP and Expatriates<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Minister Sunil Handunneththi during his visit to KSA (in 2017) told <i>Arab News<\/i> that the expatriates should be given voting rights. On another occasion he urged the then Government to provide a pension plan and voting right for all Sri Lankan foreign workers. He also spearheaded to collect<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>signatures of Sri Lankan expatriates from<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>Middle Eastern countries such as Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Saudi Arabia, which were submitted as petition<span class=\"s3\">. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">JVP\/NPP are traditionally enjoys strong support amongst expatriates. Many expatriates have financially supported NPP\u2019s election campaigns and some have even travelled to Sri Lanka for casting their vote. In fact, there was criticism from one of the ex-minister of expat\u2019s undue influences in the election process which the author has denounced. (See <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><a style=\"color: #ff6600;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/expats-voting-rights-why-rajitha-senaratne-is-wrong\/\"><span class=\"s1\">Expats Voting Rights: Why Rajitha Senaratne Is Wrong? &#8211; <em>Colombo Telegraph<\/em><\/span><\/a><\/span> <span class=\"s3\">)<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">However and despite the perceived support for expatriates, NPP government has thus far failed to introduce any significant legal reforms or consultations to address the voting and other rights of this demographic. The silence of NPP (and in particular ministers like Sunil Handuneththi), is both hypocritic and mirrors the<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>lethargic approach previous governments!<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><b>Elections and Constitutional Reform <\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">The new government has reportedly undertaken a major project to draft a new constitution which includes the removing the executive presidency. This is welcome step, and the author proposes<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>that voting rights of expatriates (at their respective overseas locations) be enshrined as a fundamental rights. Additionally, all necessary legal framework and<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>amendments to facilitate expat voting must be enacted without further delays.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><b>Electronic Voting Machines (EVM;s) and Indian Assistance <\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">India, the world\u2019s largest democracy, successfully employs<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>EVM\u2019s for all it\u2019s elections. Implementing of EVM\u2019s in Sri Lankan should be a straightforward task. Given the strong ties between the Sri Lankan and Indian Governments, seeking India\u2019s technical and financial assistance to deploy EVM\u2019s would not be out of place. Sri Lankan Election\/IT experts could ensure the Integrity and Transparency of the new system making expatriates voting even more feasible.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><b>Passport Renewal Challenges<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Due to<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>shortage of the passports, Sri Lanka now requires online appointments for renewals \/ replacement passports. However, the system mandates submission of an electronic photo through authorized studios, which are not available outside Sri Lanka. This creates a significant obstacles for expatriates who need urgent or one day passport services. While embassy applications are an alternative, they are time-consuming and cumbersome. The waiting time for online appointment is another disappointment the expats facing with. In some cases, expatriates facing delays in renewing their passports risk losing employment or missing critical travel opportunities.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><b>Conversion of Driving Licenses<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Motor Traffic Department previously allowed conversion of overseas driving licenses to Sri Lankan licenses , but this practice has reportedly ceased. Obtaining an overseas license often involves substantial costs, sometimes running into thousands of dollars. It is unfair to deny expatriates to convert their licenses upon returning to Sri Lanka. The new government and traffic authorities should re-visit and restore this service.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><b>Access and cost of Higher Education<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Expatriates appreciate the University Grant Commission (UGC) for allocating a Quota for overseas-educated children to enter Sri Lankan Government Universities under a self-paying scheme. However, the cost is prohibitive for many middle-income generating expats. For instance, an MBBS degree will cost $12,500 per year for five years &#8211; a substantial financial burden. With increasing<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>redundancies and job losses among expatriates in selected countries, many families find it challenging to sustain such payments.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">The UGC \/ Government think of alternative proposals. This may include conducting Sri Lankan public exams (GCE (O\/Land GCE (A\/L) in overseas locations, similar to how Indian exams are conducted in Middle Eastern Countries. Another alternative is to provide fee exemption \/ relaxation for deserving families on a case-by-case basis<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><b>Way Forward <\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">The author acknowledges that most of the challenges highlighted above are result of actions or rather inactions of previous governments. However,<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>this cannot excuse further delays in addressing these pressing issues. The Author remains optimistic (and request) that the new Government will take swift actions to resolve these challenges, meeting the high expectations of both expatriate and common Sri Lankan population.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><strong><em>*Author is a migrant worker for the last three decades and advocates for expat rights. The opinions are his personal unless quoted with references. He can be contacted through email: ajiwath@gmail.com<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p> [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":930,"featured_media":238559,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,46,8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-240521","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-colombotelegraph","category-constitutional-reforms","category-editorial"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Sri Lankan Expats: The Missing Vote - Colombo Telegraph<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/sri-lankan-expats-the-missing-vote\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Sri Lankan Expats: The Missing Vote - 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