Don’t join strike - Posts Minister

Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mahinda Wijesekera yesterday requested public servants and other workers not to join today’s strike because it had a more sinister political motive of toppling the Government other than the Rs. 5,000 salary hike demand made on the surface.

Trimming the Cabinet, cancellation of elections and calling for an end to media suppression are political demands rather than part of a worker struggle, he said.

Wijesekera addressing a press conference at his ministry yesterday said as a person who spearheaded students agitations and socialist democratic and humanitarian struggles he was not opposed to workers launching strikes to win their rights and demands.

But workers planning to join today’s strike should realise that it was impossible for the Government to grant a salary increase in the present environment of an ongoing war, global economic crisis and other factors imposing heavy financial burdens on an already overstrapped Government.

Wijesekara said he or the Government was not prepared to oppress the working class. Today the Government had faced a grave economic crisis owing to factors beyond its control. Due to global economic problems, the war situation and other factors the government would not be in a position to increase worker salaries even if they increased production.

Wijesekera said he too condoned that salaries should be increased in proportion to the rising cost of living. But the problem was how to do it amidst the current environment and the global context. The argument that poor economic management had caused this problem does not hold water, he added.

Wijesekara who emphasised that the Postal Department would not be privatised, said he would take all steps to grant postal employees their worker rights.

Those who wanted to join the strike could do so but they should not obstruct workers who are on duty manning their posts.

Lower rung officers joining the strike should do so after handing over the keys to higher officials. If they tried to close down departments it would be considered as an illegal act amounting to sabotage, he warned.

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JVP led strike will help Prabhakaran - JHU

The JVP led strike will only provide an escape route to Prabhakaran who has been cornered and is on the verge of total defeat. Although the month of July may provide political inspiration to the JVP which is engaged in utopian struggles clinging on to doctrinal agendas the workers should shed petty differences and join the last struggle against terrorism without committing the sin of helping Prabhakaran by engaging in the JVP sponsored strike said the Jathika Hela Urumaya in a press release issued yesterday.

The release signed by JHU General Secretary Ven. Omalpe Sobhitha Thera said those leading the strike had put forward a Rs. 5,000 wage hike as a bait.

There is no doubt that the country is facing an economic crisis and the workers were struggling to overcome the twin challenges of inflation and increasing cost of living. The JHU agreed that there should be a salary increase in proportion to the increase in cost of living.

However, the Government has agreed to grant a Rs. 1,000 salary hike as a temporary measure and as such workers should try to resolve this issue amicably through negotiations without resolving to strikes.

We should also think whether the additional funds needed for the Rs. 1,000 wage hike could be borne by the Treasury which was already saddled by economic problems.

The money needed for this increase could be easily used to provide to create another 10,000 job opportunities in the public sector.

The release said public were bearing all economic hardships with the sole intention of helping the country to defeat terrorism which was now breathing its last. But the JVP-UNP combine working according to anti-national foreign agendas were calling strikes to serve their political ends without any concern to the people’s wishes.

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GMOA not striking

Nadira Gunatilleke

The Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA) will not take part in today’s strike, Secretary, GMOA, Dr.B.T. Gunasekara said in a special statement to the media.

According to Dr. Gunasekara the GMOA is a non- political independent professional body which works purely according to the majority decision of its membership exceeding 12,000 which is nearly 99 per cent of the Government doctor population.