After the inferno

The Sri Lankan mission in Qatar comes to the assistance of Sri Lankans affected by the fire at Al Sehiliya labour quarters:

Last months fire at the Al Sehiliya labour quarters in Doha Qatar wasn’t as devastating as the 2012 Qatar Mall inferno that killed 16 toddlers. Yet, it was a traumatic experience for the Sri Lankan workers, most of them were employees who clean construction officers coming under the purview of the Al Sehiliya company.

Timely action by the Sri Lanka Embassy in Qatar, helped relocate the workers and provide them with food, clothing drinking water and other essentials, According to the Councillor of the labour division of the Sri Lanka Embassy in Qatar, A.K.U. Rohana

Most of the Sri Lankan workers had returned to work, except for about four or five who remained in the quarters citing health reasons. They too were expected to return to work by the end of this week.

“Steps have been taken to pay compensation for the loss incurred in the fire,” the Councillor said.

“There were around 275 Sri Lankans in the quarters at the time the fire broke out. As soon as the Sri Lankan Embassy was apprised of the incident, we took immediate steps to arrange temporary shelter with required facilities to house them. Even air conditioning was provided.” Rohana said.

“We are committed to look into the well-being of Sri Lankan migrant workers when they fall into difficulty. We discussed the issue with the relevant authorities and expatriate Sri Lankans also volunteered to carry out relief work,” he said.

However, he said that some workers opted to return to the country while the others preferred to stay on. The situation has returned to normal. He said workers affected by the fire will be paid compensation.

“The state of Qatar has a legal procedure when compensation is to be paid out. At present the embassy has adopted legal steps to ensure that compensation will be given to workers affected by the fire,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Deputy General Manager of the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) public relations and media spokesperson, Mangala Randeniya said all Sri Lankan migrant workers affected by the Sehiliya Labour Quarters fire were safe and nobody was injured. They have been given new accommodation with all facilities.

Destroyed passports

“Workers must report to work and if they fail to do so they will be deemed as having struck work and legal action will be taken against them by the Qatari authorities,” Randeniya warned.

Arrangements will be made to re-issue destroyed passports by the fire. Other losses will also be considered for compensation, he said.

Except in a state of emergency or on account of illness, employees in the State of Qatar cannot refrain from working. If they do so, it will be regarded as a worker strike.

Worker strikes are strictly prohibited under the Qatar law. Workers are requested to return to duty, Randeniya said.

Meanwhile, the Counsellor of the Sri Lanka Embassy in Qatar said Lankan workers have reported to work. He also said workers were satisfied with the facilities which have been provided in the new quarters.

He refuted the claim that Sri Lankan workers had not reported to work. “ Except for a few workers all the others have reported to work. The rest he said are expected to report to work soon. The company was now functioning as usual,” Randeniya said.

Affected workers

Randeniya said a senior official from the Sri Lanka Embassy in Qatar had been assigned to attend to the issue of the affected workers.

Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister, Ajith P Perera said that the Government had decided to facilitate the safe return of Sri Lankan migrant workers affected in the Qatar fire.

‘Return to work immediately or be blacklisted’

There are 150,380 Sri Lankan migrant workers in Qatar of them 275 were employed at the Seven Group Company in Sehiliya in Qatar and engaged in cleaning work. Of them 120,304 were male while 30,076 are women, spokesman Randeniya said

They are engaged in cleaning offices in the construction and industrial sector. Some of them are employed in the marketing sector as well, he said.According to the law in Qatar, workers have to report to work and cannot stay away without a valid reason .

Meanwhile, some workers attached to the Seven Group Company have not yet reported to work and as a result have been blacklisted. This means these employees would not be able to seek employment in Qatar in the future.

“They must legally resign from their positions and must follow the rules and regulations of the Qatar Government. If they fail to do so it will hamper trade and employment relations between Qatar and Sri Lanka. We request workers who are staying in the quarters and not going to work to report for work as soon as possible and clear the good name of the country” he said.

The Minister noted that nearly 350 Sri Lankan expatriate workers in Qatar lost their lodgings at the Al Sehiliya Labour Quarters as a result of the fire.

The affected workers were safe and they have received aid, alternate shelter, food and clothing.

“We will take steps to ensure that they get their salaries and other benefits from their employers. Most workers fled he quarters as the fire broke out, with a little more than the clothes they were wearing,” Foreign Affairs Deputy Minister, Ajith P Perera said.

“We are taking steps to prepare financial, legal and other important documents,” he said. “We will make arrangements to bring them back if they request to do so,” he said.

The SLBFE issuing a statement requested Sri Lankan migrant workers in Qatar affected by the fire at the Sehiliya Labour Quarters, to report to their workplaces with immediate effect.

“We have been advised by Foreign Employment Promotion and Welfare Minister, Thalatha Athukorala to look after Sri Lankan migrant workers affected by the fire at the Sehiliya Labour Quarters”, the Deputy Minister said.

New accommodation

They have been provided new accommodation, which is better than the previous one,” h said.

“The affected workers have been given welfare payments and extra money to cover expenses in the aftermath of the fire,” he said.

“If they had lost any money or assets due to the fire, steps will be taken through the Sri Lankan Embassy in Qatar to assess such instances.

Applications will be made with respect to claims to be obtained from insurance companies,” he said.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson attached to the Foreign Ministry said that in addition to Sri Lankan migrant workers Nepali, Indian and workers from other Asian countries were also living in the same quarters.