Welfare of plantation community our main aim -Sivalingam

BY P. KRISHNASWAMY

THE Ceylon Workers' Congress (CWC), led by Arumugan Thondaman MP, the largest TU-based political party of the plantations decided to back UNP presidential candidate Ranil Wickremesinghe at the November 17 presidential poll, although it remained an ally of the UPFA Government led by President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga until recently.

The CWC representing plantation workers has six Members in Parliament with considerable representations in Provincial Councils, Pradeshiya Sabhas and other local Government bodies in the plantation areas.

The party supported President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga's candidature at the 1994 and 1999 Presidential Polls.

Its founder leader, late Saumyamurthy Thondaman, who championed the cause of the downtrodden plantation sector was the first Minister of the Plantation Infrastructure Ministry, established for the first time by the 1994 PA government for the welfare of the plantation community.

The party has over six decades of history as a trade union and political movement of the workers of the plantations.

The Daily News interviewed party stalwart and former Minister Muthu Sivalingam MP.

Following are excerpts of the interview:

Q: The CWC remained an ally of the UPFA government until recently having taken over the Ministry of Estate Housing, Infrastructure and Community Development.

You and your colleague M.S. Sellasamy were actively engaged in measures towards the welfare of the plantation community in your positions respectively as Minister and Deputy Minister. What were the reasons that influenced your party to support the UNP Presidential candidate Ranil Wickremesinghe in the upcoming Presidential poll?

A: As a political party which is primarily concerned with the welfare of the plantation community, we were closely observing all developments with regard to the presidential poll, mainly focusing on the stance which the candidates of the two leading national political parties would take on the problems of the Tamil and Muslim minorities and the national ethnic problem.

Although UPFA candidate PM Mahinda Rajapakse and UNP candidate Ranil Wickremesinghe weighed equally at the initial stages and there were possibilities that we would decide on supporting the former - the polls alliance which he entered into with the JVP and the JHU was very disappointing.

Both the JVP and the JHU were political parties which stood against the legitimate rights of their minority communities from the inception.

The polls alliance was unrealistic in the context of the current political situation where an endorsement of the stand of the majority fundamentalists who have been refusing the rights of the minorities throughout the post-independence period.

So we decided that PM Mahinda Rajapakse would not be able to handle the crucial national problems appropriately, if he became President because of his alliance with the JVP and the JHU.

The existence of an ethnic problem in Sri Lanka is known all over the world. The international community has been insisting on the need for a negotiated settlement in the best interests of the country. Peace talks have been held.

The JHU denies the existence of an ethnic problem. This is another reason why we could not take a stand in favour of PM Mahinda Rajapakse. His approach on these national issues is quite different from that of President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga whom we supported in two previous presidential polls.

Q: Estate workers have been beneficiaries of various welfare measures under the administration of President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, including the creation of a separate Ministry for the plantation community. In that context, did you put forward your demands with regard to your community to PM Rajapakse and, if so, what was his reaction?

A: Yes. We held discussions with him and he agreed to most of our demands. We also held discussions with UNP candidate Ranil Wickremesinghe and he agreed to all our demands.

But PM Mahinda Rajapakse did not release his election manifesto until the day of nominations whereas Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe released his manifesto before that date, incorporating some of our significant demands in it. He has also apprised us of measures he was planning to take for resolving crucial national problems.

Q: What have you been able to achieve as a Minister under the UPFA government ?

A: Within our short period of 13 months as Minister of Estate Housing, Infrastructure and Community Development, the Ministry has constantly insisted on resolution of the unemployment problem of our community and landlessness among them.

A Gazette notification for the recruitment of teachers against vacancies in schools in the plantation areas was published, applications were received and written tests were also held. But the matter is now pending in the SC consequent to a HR petition filed by certain persons.

Cabinet approval has been given for the recruitment of 2000 Tamil Language facilitators from among the plantation youths to State sector institutions in the plantation areas. Steps have been initiated to appoint 50 percent of them during the current year.

Arrangements have also been initiated for the door to door delivery of mail to the plantation workers. Cabinet approval has been granted for this extended postal service to them.

A Technical College for the plantation youth is to be established at Kotagala. Discussions have already been held and a consensus reached that 50 per cent of the total admissions to the Sri Pada College of Education would be children of planation workers. This would increase the number of their admissions by an additional 105.

Q: What are the main features of your agreement with Wickremesinghe with regard to the welfare measures for the plantation community as well as problems of the minorities ?

A: Estates under the management of the Janatha Estates Development Board (JEDB) and the State Plantations Corporation (SPC) are running at a loss.

Under our agreement with the UNP leader, these estates will come under the management of two companies with the participation of the workers. Our leader initiated the construction of 1,500 twin upstairs houses earlier.

This year 300 twin (model) houses without upstairs have been constructed in 14 - 20 perch lands at Poyston Estate, Dickoya, Dessford Estate, Nanu Oya and at Kahagalla Estate, Haputale. Ranil has undertaken to build at the rate of 20,000 houses each year beginning next year following the success of these twin projects.

Our stance is that the Post-tsunami Operational Management Scheme (P-TOMS) is for delivery of foreign funds for tsunami relief and rehabilitation and, therefore, it should not be disbanded under any circumstances. This has been accepted by Ranil. He has also accepted that the North-East problem should be resolved without any delay through talks.

Q: According to a recent report, CWC leader Arumugan Thondaman who was annoyed over UNP election posters because they featured party frontliner R. Yogarajan together with UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe, has protested against it and left for India. Will he take part in election campaigns?

A: The report in question was totally false and fabricated by interested persons. Our leader only left for India on an urgent private visit and returned the following morning and did not stay back even a single night in India.

He will directly participate in propaganda campaigns which we are now staging.

The CWC has estate level committees and estate leaders in all estates where we have members. We are canvassing in all estates throughout the country.

We are explaining to the workers the reasons why they should support the UNP candidate.

The campaigns slackened last week on account of the Hindu religious festival 'Deepavali' but will resume in full vigour from next week.