Justice Minister Dr. Wijeyedasa Rajapakshe said yesterday (30) that the government has decided to follow a benevolent policy in terms of providing police clearance for youth going abroad for work.
The Minister further stated that the decision was taken considering the impact on the future of the youth due to recording minor mistakes in the clearance reports.
He requested officials to follow this lenient policy.
In response to a query from the media about the delays in terms of issuing clearance certificates to those going abroad for work, the Minister stated that the Justice Ministry had received various complaints in this regard.
“There are delays since every fact should be recorded in the report. If a court has imposed a fine or punishment on a youth for a minor offence, it is also recorded in the clearance report.
The future of a young person can be ruined due to this reason. Therefore, we intend to consider the non-recording of minor offences such as traffic offences or offences committed three or five years ago.
I will hold a special discussion for this purpose with the Attorney General and the Inspector General of Police this week.”
The Minister stated that he believed that the benevolent policy regarding the clearance certificates would be successful.