|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
| ||||||||||
LALKANTHA SHAMELESSLY PARROTS ANTI-WAR LOBBY SLOGANS.A.A.M.NIZAM MATARA.Lalkantha, the head of the JVP;s Trade Union Federation, the National Trade Union Centre has raucously boasted that there will be no lights, no trains, no public services and the country will come to a standstill and the Government will be forced to kneel down when members of his Trade Union body cease work on July 10th. JVP’s new found admirer and the slang-master the notorious Sunday (mis)Leader extolling vociferous Lalkantha claims that the “Labour Bomb” will explode on the 10th implying that everything will be shattered on that day. The leader of the rump-UNP Mr. Ranil Wickremasinghe, who would not hesitate to indulge in any shameless act or embrace any political desperado or join any alien to betray the nation and attempt to topple Government has also united with the chorus urging the UNP’s Trade Union (Club) JSS to join the strike action called by Lalkantha and his unruly ilk of Trade Union goons. Nonetheless the strike call has taken a sudden political turn betraying the so-called workers grievances and giving strong emphasis to political demands being collectively raised by all anti-war terrorist proxies and neo-colonialist hirelings to topple the government and halt the war.
Lalkantha’s sudden switchover to political demands and betrayal of the working class in the pretext of standing to win workers grievances is not something new in the Sri Lankan political arena. There had been many such betrayals by pseudo-champions of workers in the past since the first popular strike held in May-June 1947, in which Comrade Kandasamy was shot and killed. In the meantime Sri Lankan history is also replete with accounts of true comrades in the caliber of Kandasamys (1947) and Somapalas (1980) who laid down their life for the wellbeing of the working class.
Comrade Kandasamy was killed on 5th May during the 1947 General Strike. Authentic accounts indicate that on 5th June when Comrade Kandasamy and several thousand striking workers were on a procession led by Dr. N.M.Perera they were baton charged and shot at suddenly by the Police at Dematagoda, in which Comrade Kandasamy got killed and 18 others were injured. Extolling the sacrifice made by Comrade Kandasamy, the late Prime Minister Mr. S.W.R.D.Bandaranaike had said that "The shot that killed Kandasamy sounded the death knell of British Imperialism!".
The UNP has no moral right to talk about workers rights as UNP governments before and even after 1956 were not at all workers-friendly and never considered the workers as an important component of the national economy. Employers were given all patronage and workers were considered and treated as a lot of unimportant slavish mindless creatures. Even the demand for granting May Day as a Holiday was not granted and it is reported that the then Finance Minister J.R.Jayawardene ridiculed the “May Day”as an alien concept when this demand was presented.
The Working Class was only recognised as an indispensable important sector only after the advent of the 1956 government which installed people’s power replacing urbanite elite dominion. Trade Unions got their reasonable demands granted and Trade Union representatives gained access to the portals of power and participation in the nation’s decision making only under the SLFP and SLFP led governments. The UNP which ridiculed the very concept of May Day, utilised this internationally important event only to hold Musical Tamashas to please the culturally denigrated folk with imported musical groups and playback singers at State expense despite there is no dearth for them localy.
The UNP governments were always resolute to thwart workers demands even by using brutal force against the Trade Unions, and strikes were busted by force and intimidation. During the 1965 government, when the Postal Union demanded solace to their grievances the Union leaders were bought over by offering them foreign excursions and other forms of gratifications. The poor postal workers were forced to abandon all their hopes and return to work empty handed. Another major strike that was totally ignored was the Broadcasting Corporation strike. The strikers got there reasonable demands granted only after the United Front Government came to power in 1970.
The worst suppression of workers in Asia took place in 1980 under the J.R.Jayawardene government, when several thousand Private and Public Sector employees demanded a measly pay rise of Rupees Ten. The JVP Union betrayed the strikers at the last minute by refraining from participating in the strike, after having collaborated upto the day of the strike. In that instance several thousand strikers lost their jobs and the strikers were assaulted by the State Thugs with clubs and chains killing Sompala and seriously injuring several others including the current Western Province Governor. Thousands of such dismissed employees came under the Ministry of Mr. Ranil Wickremasinghe. Appeals to reinstate the dismissed employees were completely ignored by the authorities which forced thousands, mostly educated and qualified personnel either to flee the country or commit suicide.
Sri Lankan Trade Unions in the past had acted in civilised forms confining their demands and agitations primarily to demands relating to grievances in the realms of their profession. Although there were Trade Unions affiliated to political parties the general membership were not forced and intimidated to indulge in politics, thuggery and abhorrent destructive acts as it is rampant today. There was unhindered and liberal space for non-political Trade Unions such as CMU, GCSU, etc., to function independently.
Rowdyism and politicisation in the Sri Lankan Trade Union Movement is a new phenomenon and was undoubtedly introduced by the JSS under the patronage of the 1977 J.R.Jayawardene Government. It surfaced on the very first day of the 1977 Government, and reached a disgusting level during the 1980 General Strike. It was a true fact that many who participated in the 1980 strike was compelled to do so due to intolerable harassment and intimidation by the JSS Cadres in their work places. Extensive JSS involvement in UNP’s Tamil Progrom of 1983 is a fact known worldwide and it was due to this catastrophe that Sri Lanka is embroiled in the terrorist aggression for the last three decades financed by the victims of this progrom.
Lalkantha has taken over the mantle left over by the JSS goons to radicalise the Trade Union Movement drastically to achieve political objectives of the JVP which is faced with a drastic erosion of its popularity. His vicious misleading has resulted in students becoming unruly and undisciplined shattering the dreams of their parents, teachers who were held in high esteem by the society becoming cruel and merciless, those who have taken the oath of Hypocrates to cure the ill and save human life becoming a bunch of incorrigible charlatans who do not care for human life, the so-called followers of Florence Nightingale becoming a band of criminals who does not even hesitate to force feed their companions with glass-powder mixed drinks, and workers of other categories as potential destructors of their own work places.
It is pertinent to expose here a bit of the true nature of Mr. Lalkantha who attempts to present himself as the great champion of the working class. According to reliable sources during a visit to U.A,E when he was a Government Minister he had given only preference to his image building efforts and had failed to visit the labour camps although an appeal was made by inmates of labour camps in the Mussaffah area who were not resourceful enough to meet him in the main city Abu Dhabi. Also in a dinner hosted by a group of Sri Lankans in Abu Dhabi, this pseudo working class champion had partaken dinner with fork and spoon while all the others partook their meal with their precious hand in the true Sri Lankan style. At this dinner he has told those present, which was a selected crowd that they will go along with the government as long as it was conducive to their socialist objectives and thereafter would resort to other methods,
It is the duty and the responsibility of all Sri Lankans to help the government at this critical juncture in whatever way to eliminate the terrorist menace which had been plaguing this country for the last three decades. Despite the tremendous expenditure required to successfully eliminate the terrorists the government is continuously making every effort to develop the rural areas and raise the living standards of the masses. At the same time it has also taken a number of measures to help the Private and Public Sector employees, including raising the minimum basic salary and enhancing the allowances and promised to look into other grievances. Many Trade Unions after meeting with the President realising the predicament being faced by the country have decided not to participate in the threatened strike.
The JVP Union not only rejected the President’s invitation for negotiations but persist in their threat. Their main demand of Rs. 5000 salary increase is a dangerous step that would spiral the inflation drastically shooting up prices of all consumer goods and services making life impossible to many. JVP and the UNP know very well that such foolish salary increase could not be expected from any sensible government but insist on it for mere political reasons.
Their only objective is to create an atmosphere against the terrorist war and mislead the working class with misinformation that they are unable to get their salary increases because of the war and it would become possible only if the war is halted. They have made it a means to organise the working class against the war. This contention is proved by the fact that the JVP does not speak any more about the need to defeat the terrorists and continue the war. JVP has shamelessly become the new entrant to the antiwar bandwagon struggling to halt the war and save Prabhakaran and his criminals.
|
||||||||||||
|
|
Disclaimer: The comments contained
within this website are personal reflection only and do not necessarily
reflect the views of the LankaWeb. LankaWeb.com offers the contents
of this website without charge, but does not necessarily endorse the
views and opinions expressed within. Neither the LankaWeb nor the individual
authors of any material on this Web site accept responsibility for any
loss or damage, however caused (including through negligence), which
you may directly or indirectly suffer arising out of your use of or
reliance on information contained on or accessed through this Web site.
Copyright
© 1997-2004 www.lankaweb.Com
Newspapers Ltd. All rights reserved. |
|||||||||||
