DHAKA: Lebanon is deporting locally born children of migrant workers of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Ghana, South Sudan, and Madagascar in some cases their mothers, nine nongovernmental organizations working in Lebanon said Wednesday.

A recent decision by General Security, Lebanon’s security agency in charge of foreigners’ entry and residency, to deny residency permit renewals for a number of low-wage migrants who have had children in Lebanon and for their children disproportionately interferes with the right to family life.

Since May 2014, nearly a dozen female migrant workers, many of them longstanding residents of Lebanon, reported to human rights groups that when they went to General Security to renew residency papers for themselves and their children, they were turned down.

 Some were told they were not allowed to have children in Lebanon and given a short period of time to leave the country. In some cases, they said, they were given as little as 48 hours.

“Under General Security’s new directive some families are being torn apart while others are apparently being denied their livelihoods simply because they’ve had children in Lebanon,” said Nadim Houry, Middle East and North Africa deputy director at Human Rights Watch. “The Lebanese authorities have not given any justification for this new policy and should immediately revoke this directive as it interferes with the right to family life.”

Under Lebanese residency regulations, certain categories of low-wage migrants, particularly domestic workers, are not allowed to sponsor residency for their spouses or children. However, in the past, Lebanon-born children of the migrants could apply for year-long residency up until age four and then could apply for residency if they enrolled in school.

Sources within General Security have confirmed to nongovernmental groups that the agency has a new directive regarding the renewal of residency permits for Lebanon-born children of low-wage migrants and their migrant parents.

Despite written requests from the nongovernmental groups to receive a copy of the directive the agency has yet to respond. Activists say the directive was apparently adopted in January 2014, but has been applied more stringently since May and has resulted in the expulsion of some family members of migrant workers.

In one  case, a 13-year-old Sri Lankan boy who was born in Lebanon and had lived there all his life and his mother were issued deportation notices by General Security in June even though the boy was enrolled in school. His father, also from Sri Lanka, was not expelled from Lebanon.

Someone at the Lebanese General Security said that they were not issuing visas to children anymore. We only had two days to leave. I had had a residency permit in Lebanon since I was born. I never lived in Sri Lanka before. My mom and I are now in Sri Lanka. My mom has no work here and is trying to go back to Lebanon. My dad is still in Lebanon. If she leaves, I will have to stay here and live with my cousins.

Most of the migrants who reported the problem have lived in Lebanon for more than a decade. All had given birth in Lebanon since moving there to work. None said that they previously had any problem getting residency permits for themselves or their children.

The migrants affected told the organizations that their children have few or no ties to their home country and many do not speak their parents’ native tongue, making the potential for successful integration in schools back home very difficult.

 It is unclear how many families have been affected, but certain migrant community leaders reported that the decision has affected many of their members.

Migrants who remain in the country unlawfully risk arrest and prolonged detention before deportation and are unable to safely access public services. Migrant children are required to have a residency permit to enroll in public schools, human rights activists said.

Based on research by the organizations, all migrant workers interviewed who were affected by the decision so far appear to be women who are Category 3 and 4 workers under Lebanon’s labor regulations – low-paid workers in industries such as sanitation, agriculture, and domestic work.

Although foreign workers in these categories are not allowed to sponsor the residency for their spouses or children, until recently, women in these categories could extend their residency permits to include children born in Lebanon.

Human rights lawyers told the organizations that these women would be able to get a series of year-long residency permits without charge for children born in Lebanon up to age four. Once the child enrolled in school at age four, the mother could apply to extend residency to the child provided that she remained lawfully in Lebanon and produced necessary documents verifying school enrollment.

Source: HRW
BDST: 1524 HRS, SEP 03, 2014