STATE Minister for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Senator Leslie Campbell has recommended that Jamaicans living in the Diaspora register with the country’s diplomatic offices abroad.

Senator Campbell said that the problems raised in trying to repatriate the 20 Jamaican students who were flown home from war-torn Ukraine on Wednesday night showed that there is a need for the registration of all Jamaicans living abroad.

“We are concerned about the welfare of the children who returned home last [Wednesday] night. Twenty of them returned. [Jamaicans overseas need to] have some kind of registration with us that, in the unlikely event that we have more situations like this, we can readily find them,” the minister said.

He was responding to questions raised by Leader of Opposition Business in the House of Representatives Anthony Hylton, who was concerned about what would be the next step for the students now that they have returned home.

Campbell was representing Foreign Affairs Minister Senator Kamina Johnson Smith, who was unable to attend Thursday’s meeting of the Standing Finance Committee of the House of Representatives reviewing the 2022/23 budget because of duties with Caricom’s 33rd Inter-Sessional Meeting of Heads of Government in San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, Belize.

Campbell noted that the ministry had looked at the list of Jamaicans residing in Russia, which has invaded the Ukraine, and found that, instead of eight, the number was much more.

“Initially, we were of the mistaken impression that there were eight persons, now it turns out that the most recent number we have is 21. If the students in the Ukraine were registered, we could have had ready access to them,” he pointed out.

Last weekend Johnson Smith said that the ministry had indications that Jamaican students were in Russia and surrounding eastern European countries, and could have been impacted by the violent conflict.

On Thursday, the foreign ministry advised Jamaicans, including students, in Russia to consider making arrangements to leave as soon as possible, in view of the growing impact of sanctions on Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine.

“We are aware that some students are already making plans to leave, and we encourage others to do the same. The fact is that, with the announcement by several countries of the imposition of restrictions on flights entering their countries from Russia, alternative routes out of that country will have to be explored. Students and their families should try to be proactive as this may become more difficult as more sanctions are applied and as they tighten,” Johnson Smith said in a press release.

In the meantime, Johnson Smith is reminding Jamaicans in surrounding countries in Eastern Europe to explore opportunities for safe passage to alternative locations in order to establish relationships with relatives or friends that may be of assistance in securing resources and ensuring their safety.

The ministry may be contacted via e-mail at consular@mfaft.gov.jm or at consularassist@mfaft.gov.jm.