Sri Lankan government prepares to suppress the struggles of workers

Addressing a public meeting on July 27 at Kandegama, the president declared: “It is the responsibility of everyone to save the country. No one has the right to betray the country’s security. Every trade union leader should be prepared to find solutions to the problems through discussions.” Speaking in Colombo on August 1, he again warned: “People should be more conscious of their responsibilities and also of their motherland prior to taking any step towards securing their rights.”

These appeals to “responsibility”, “national security” and “the defence of the motherland” have a definite political meaning and a long history in Sri Lanka. Throughout the country’s protracted conflict, the ruling elites in Colombo have repeatedly insisted that working people pay the costs of the war—in the carnage of battle and through the deterioration of living standards.

On August 13, Rajapakse held a meeting to enlist the support of the Sinhala chauvinist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and its National Trade Union Centre (NTUC). Gathered at his official residence were JVP MPs K.D. Lal Kantha, Piyasiri Wijenayake and Wasantha Samarasinghe, who are also union leaders.

The president appealed for the unions to solve industrial disputes through discussion and not by industrial action, “taking account of the prevailing situation of the country”. All the JVP leaders readily agreed. The party, which openly advocates ending the 2002 ceasefire, has been campaigning throughout the island on the theme “all for the motherland”.

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http://wsws.org/articles/2006/aug2006/sril-a22.shtml