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Lankan’s death in Korean factory: Authorities confirm industrial accident

29 Jul 2021

BY Pamodi Waravita The Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) yesterday (29) said that it has received a letter from the Sri Lankan Embassy in South Korea regarding the death of a Sri Lankan male at a factory in South Korea which has refuted media claims that the deceased had been working for 18 consecutive hours prior to the fatal accident. However, the letter has acknowledged the death being due to an industrial accident. “The information we have received shows that he was killed due to an industrial accident. However, the cause of death (CoD) has not been officially stated yet. The company has also unequivocally denied that the boy was working for 18 hours before his death and that it is an unsubstantiated claim,” SLBFE Chairman Maj. Gen. Mahinda Hathurusinghe told The Morning. However, international news media claimed that the 33-year-old Sri Lankan worker who had been working for 18 hours, starting the day prior to his death, had died due to an accident at the factory. Reportedly, the victim had been working with two others who had immediately informed the manager of the factory (who had however not been present in the factory at the time) and the emergency services when they had heard the victim’s screams. The victim had been a new worker with only three months of experience. Many critics have pointed out that South Korean industries are exploitative and highly harmful to the reportedly 200,000 strong migrant worker cadre employed in them.


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