Greener pastures?

At least five Sri Lankans were reported to have been arrested while working in several fast food outlets in South Hampshire in the latest swoop by the British police to nab illegal immigrants.

British business too had been warned that they would face massive fines if they hired illegal immigrants. The Lankans had been employed at KFC restaurants, a usual source of employment for immigrants.

Another report on our front page yesterday said that China had detained three Lankans suspected of having entered the country by boat from the gambling enclave of Macau across the channel. Three Bangladeshis who were in their company too had been taken in for the same offence.

We often come across reports of Lankans being nabbed abroad for illegal entry or overstaying visas. This phenomenon of course is not confined to Lankans. Large armies of people from Third World countries are living on the fringes of the law in Western countries today. They have been driven to the West to seek their fortunes for which there is no scope in their impoverished countries.

Illegal migration had been a common phenomenon even in the past and the trend has not seen a decline even with all the stringent laws that have evolved over the years.

The large scale human smuggling at present too had aggravated the problem coupled with political and economic refugees has posed a severe challenge to the law enforcement authorities in Europe and countries such as Japan.

The more there is an inequitable distribution of wealth between the West and the rest of the world the flow of economic refugees cannot be stopped.

It is economic reasons that drive persons to migrate illegally to the West which offers unlimited opportunities for those in Third World countries. So long as economic disparities exist this phenomenon is bound to continue.

Some even take desperate measures to take flight at the first given opportunity. There were numerous cases reported in recent times where hoards of Lankans were nabbed on the high seas in makeshift vessels while trying to smuggle themselves into countries like Italy risking their lives.

It is those who lack opportunities in their countries to lead a life of economic fulfilment who resort to such desperate measures and are forced to seek the pot of gold with no thought to the risks they undergo.

Therefore, developed countries in the West would be able to contain this problem by loosening their purse strings a bit more liberally to the developing countries. They should also help by creating more legal immigration avenues for people from the Third World.

The South Hampshire episode no doubt is only the tip of the iceberg. There are bound to be an army of illegal Lankan immigrants in Britain who had sneaked in to that country to better their lives.

It gives Sri Lanka a bad name when its citizens are arrested in this fashion. Presently Britain is vary of its migrant population in the wake of the increased acts of terrorism on its soil and is bound to tighten immigration laws further in the coming months.

They are also particularly alert in respect of the Lankan community vis-a-vis LTTE terrorism. These factors are bound to make life harder for the even the legitimate entrants to Britain.

China too has now become a haven for illegal immigrants with its rapid Westernisation and would soon overtake Japan in the number of Lankans trying to enter that country.

While we cannot blame anybody for trying to better their prospects in another country we should not allow incidents that could besmirch the image of our country in the international arena.

The decamping of Lankan sportsmen during foreign tournaments abroad could not be justified by any yardstick since they were sent to be standard bearers of the Lion Flag.

We have had entire contingents including some coaches too giving the slip to the authorities in the host countries bringing shame and dishonour to their motherland. With the coming Olympics the Government should issues instructions for extra vigilance on the part of the officials accompanying teams to ensure all is well.