Jamila Husain 
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Govt. responds over marriage controversy
Following mounting criticism on social media as to why Defence Ministry clearance was sought for Sri Lankan nationals to marry foreigners, the government said this was due to increasing reports of foreigners arriving in Sri Lanka to reside here on spouse visas to carry out illegal activities.
Coordinating Secretary to Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, Geethanath Cassilingham, in a statement on Twitter said that he was informed by Defence officials that some of these illegal acts carried out by the foreign nationals included drug rackets and fraud through social media.
"Often it is the poor women who are the target of such marriages. Even in the Easter Sunday Commission report, it was recommended to get clearance for foreigners to marry locals to prevent extremists from entering Sri Lanka," Cassilingham said.
"Therefore if a local intends to marry a foreigner a security document needs to be handed over to the Registrar General's Department who will then hand it over to defence to get a clearance of a zero criminal record. A health certificate also needs to be handed over," Cassilingham added.
He further said that once the clearance is issued, the registrar will inform the local party and the marriage can go ahead. This procedure is followed in many countries and it is to ensure national security and the safety of local nationals, he said.
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