UAE visa restriction: We’re yet to get official confirmation, says state minister

State Minister for Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Shofiqur Rahman Choudhury has said they have yet to receive any official confirmation from the UAE government regarding visa restrictions for Bangladeshis.

"We have tried to gather all the information. We have not received any verbal or official confirmation letter about the visa restrictions. We have contacted the Bangladesh Embassy in the UAE and the UAE Ambassador to Bangladesh, but they have not confirmed any such development," he told reporters at his Eskaton office around 5:00pm today.

When asked about legal steps for the 57 migrant workers convicted in the UAE, the minister said they would not interfere in the internal affairs of that country.

"Some agents of the BNP-Jamaat staged protests in different parts of the UAE. They were convicted for violating that country's laws. By doing this, they have attempted to damage the overseas labour market and tarnish the country's image," he said.

On Friday, the UAE government convicted 57 migrant workers to various jail sentences for participating in protests expressing solidarity with the quota reform protests.

Three persons received life imprisonment, 53 were sentenced to 10 years in jail terms, and one was sentenced to 11 years.