Stop mothers who have children under five years from leaving for foreign jobs: Geetha

The government's decision to grant permission for mothers with children more than two years of age to leave the country for foreign employment should be amended to a maximum of five years, Women and Child Affairs State Minister Geetha Kumarasinghe said.

The actress-turned politician told media that a bill was passed in parliament in this regard, while not allowing mothers with children under two years of age to leave the country for foreign employment.

"This is a huge injustice for these children. Two years of age for kids means that they cannot even talk. "Therefore, we should request the president to get involved in revising the age limit of children to enable their mothers to leave the country for foreign employment," she said.

Most of the children of those families were abused by their own family members, even by their own fathers. She said the mothers are also stressed after leaving their children alone in the country.

"Our country will get dollars through their jobs overseas, but we should not betray our own children for getting foreign exchange. Therefore, as a government, we should stop mothers leaving for foreign jobs who have children under five years," she reiterated. (Chatuanga Samarawickrama)