Sri Lankan Ambassador Ahmed A. Jawad told Arab News that there was absolutely no truth in the reports. "We have no official information from the government of Saudi Arabia on this issue," the envoy said, adding that there were no disputes between the two countries.
Waleed Al-Sweidan, the former chairman of the Saudi Arabian National Recruitment Committee (SANARCOM) who is currently its official representative at the Ministry of Labor, told Arab News that it is media speculation. "We have had no news about this ban and the recruitment flow from Colombo has been uninterrupted," he said.
SANARCOM Chairman Saad Al-Badaah was not available for comment as he was out of the Kingdom.
Last year, Sri Lanka sent 42,906 domestic workers to the Kingdom and it has sent at least 19,000 during the first half of this year. There are currently around 500,000 Sri Lankan workers in the Kingdom, including maids.
Sources at the Saudi Embassy in Colombo said employment visas to Saudi Arabia were being issued as usual.
It was alleged in one report that the ban was due to an memorandum of understanding signed by SANARCOM and the Association of Licensed Foreign Employment Agencies (ALFEA) recently, which set recruitment charges at a maximum of SR5,500 for maids. It was also reported that the Sri Lankan Ministry of Labor had issues with the agreement, as it would have cost the country an estimated $50 million.
L.K. Ruhunuge, additional general manager at the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) told Arab News from Colombo that the reports were baseless. "ALFEA is an umbrella association which has an estimated membership of around 200 out of the 800 recruitment agencies in Sri Lanka," Ruhunuge said, adding that the association had no legal authority to sign international agreements on behalf of the government.
"Even Sri Lanka's attorney general had ruled that the agreement signed between SANARCOM and ALFEA is null and void."
He added that SLBFE is not at all interested in the commissions given to the agencies by Saudi sponsors, as recruitment fees and bureau revenue is not dependent on commission.
"We are particular about the minimum monthly wage of the housemaid, which should stand at SR650.”
He added that ALFEA's agreement with SANARCOM stipulated that only organizations affiliated to ALFEA could send maids to the Kingdom. "Then how can the remaining 75 percent of recruiting agents in the island send domestic workers to Saudi Arabia?" he questioned, adding that SANARCOM should only deal with SLBFE, as it is the statutory body overseeing recruiting agents as well as Sri Lanka’s overseas workers.
SLBFE’s Act 21 of 1985 clearly states that ALFEA can only assist and advise the bureau with regard to recruitment procedures, Ruhunuge added.
