Hopes of delivering her baby back in Sri Lanka shattered, a 25-year-old woman heavy with child is distraught and desperate in Kuwait. H.L. Poornima Prasadari, along with her husband, two-year-old son and father from Kandy had gone on holiday to Hawalli, Kuwait on January 26, where her mother was based as she was working there. [...]

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Desperate cry for help from Lankan mothers-to-be stranded in West Asia

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Hopes of delivering her baby back in Sri Lanka shattered, a 25-year-old woman heavy with child is distraught and desperate in Kuwait.

H.L. Poornima Prasadari, along with her husband, two-year-old son and father from Kandy had gone on holiday to Hawalli, Kuwait on January 26, where her mother was based as she was working there.

At that time, they did not know what awaited them. Poornima was due to fly back home on April 26, but the new coronavirus made sure that this journey was not to be, as the airports were closed.

Now Poornima is nine months pregnant and her second baby’s birth is due on June 20. Her mother had lost her job on March 15 and the family living in a flat is finding it difficult to pay the rent and also the water and electricity bills.

“We spoke to the embassy but have not got any help so far. They said there are no flights,” said Poornima, while her mother, Shanthi Perera, added that she lost her job three months ago.

“Our electricity and water are being disconnected frequently. The only thing that the embassy did was to give a letter to the hospital,” she says.

Shanthi said that even now they are ready to come back. It is difficult to live and her daughter’s delivery would cost anything between Rs. 450,000 and 500,000 (when converted to local currency).

Echoing similar pleas were many pregnant migrant workers in West Asia, some of whom have gone on social media.

“I am 5½ months pregnant,” says a woman in Dubai, who was planning to return to Sri Lanka on March 20, but was left helpless because the BIA was shut down just two days before.

Day by day, life is getting harder. Her legs have swelled up, she has no one to help her, she says, lamenting that she has not been able to get a scan done yet. Even though some generous organizations which are helping her tried to send her back on June 6, it did not work out. She fears that if there are delays, she would be too far into her pregnancy which would prevent her from boarding a flight.

Another, also in Dubai, is five months pregnant with her first baby. She too had planned to get back in April. “My husband is working but he is receiving only half his monthly wage and it is not enough to pay our rent and the hospital expenses are very high here,” she says.

The third voice too is from Dubai, a migrant worker who is 5½ months pregnant. She and her husband have lost their jobs, while their visas have also been revoked. “We are helpless. We live in a room for which we have not paid the rent in the past three months,” she says.

A man and his wife who is seven months pregnant, also living in Dubai, have been advised by the doctor that in a month she would not be able to travel. She had lost her job five months ago and her husband works only three days a week.

“We have financial issues and even for a normal delivery here it costs a lot,” the husband adds.

Box please

Around 196 expectant mothers from Dubai and the northern Emirates have registered at the Consulate General’s office seeking repatriation to Sri Lanka, said Dubai Consul General Nalinda Wijerathna when contacted by the Sunday Times.

They belong to different visa categories – professional, dependent and visit visas and all of them are migrant workers or spouses of migrant workers.

Pointing out that some of these women have lost their jobs due to COVID-19 related developments, he said that some of their spouses have also lost their jobs, are on half-pay or are not being paid.

There are some who are on visit visas but employed illegally, who have also lost their jobs. Some are finding it difficult to pay for their accommodation and doctor consultations. The Consulate General is working with the relevant government authorities to organize repatriation flights, on which these expectant mothers would get priority.

“They would not be allowed on flights in late pregnancy and in the case of those who do not have insurance, we will mediate on requests on a case-by-case basis to get some concessions on their hospital bills,” he said, adding that they are also providing dry rations on request.

Meanwhile, a Sri Lankan Embassy source in Kuwait said that the Kuwaiti government had declared an amnesty for migrant workers classified as illegal and Sri Lanka’s Foreign Ministry helped facilitate their repatriation.

There are still over 1,000 migrant workers including 10 pregnant women awaiting repatriation. Of the 10, three are at the embassy safe houses and the others with their sponsors or families.

There is one woman who has delivered her baby and is currently being looked after in a Kuwait government shelter, while the embassy sees to the needs such as clothing and pampers of mother and child, the source said, explaining that the embassy also helps them with letters they can submit to hospitals as they are not nationals of that country.

Another hurdle is that these expectant women would not be admitted to hospital if they cannot produce a marriage certificate. The embassy will help these unmarried women who are pregnant to get back to Sri Lanka, the source said, adding that discussions are on when the next repatriation flight from Kuwait will take place.

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