For many, leaving their country and their family behind to earn money overseas is the only option
Suvendra Mary has not changed her clothes, nor has she had a decent meal in five days.
Last week, she and six other women boarded a bus from their home town, Badulla, about 350km from Colombo, and arrived at the department of immigration and emigration in hope of applying for their passports. Since then, the women have been sitting in a queue of at least a thousand others dreaming of leaving Sri Lanka.