Thwarting Strike
Record attendance at Environment Ministry
Chamikara Weerasinghe
The Environment and Natural Resources Ministry has announced that it
has registered better worker attendance yesterday than on any other day.
The Ministry said that 97.83 per cent of the workers reported to duty
inspite of the strike action. Ministry’s Secretary M. A. R. D.
Jayathilaka said, there are 7420 persons working at various departments
and institutions of the Ministry and of them only 161 persons have not
reported for duty.
The attendance percentage on a normal day is 90 to 91 per cent, he
said. “Hence this is by far the record attendance, with 98 per cent of
the worker reporting for duty,” he said.
Strike a damp squib
S. M. Jiffrey Abdeen Kandy south group corre
The one day token strike launched by the JVP yesterday turned out to
be a damp squib in Kandy.
There was no disruption in the transport services. A spokesman for
Kandy Railway station said that all trains both long distance and short
distance including the inter city trains operated as usual. The
attendance of workers was good.
The state bus services of the Mahanuwara Bus Company Limited which
includes Kandy South Depot, Kandy North Depot and Yatinuwara Depot
operated normal services including the school services.
The private bus services also operated normal services though fewer
buses were seen on the roads in the early hours.
The schools functioned as usual though there was a drop in
attendance, with the parents taking a precautionary measure. Divisional
Superintendent of Posts, Kandy, said that the postal services were
normal.
There was a good attendance of staff and normal delivery of letters
were effected with the postmen and the messengers going on their rounds.
But the people seen in the town was less than in other days in the
morning but normal business activities went on. Government offices also
functioned as usual.
An officer who wished to remain anonymous said that strikes are not
the need of the hour. Strikes have a crippling effect on the economy.
What is required is to increase production which will help the employers
to give more benefits and facilities to their employees.
Normality prevails in estate areas
P. Rajaratnam in Nuwara Eliya
Plantation workers on a number of estates have struck work, according
to estate managements.
The prevailing price hike of essential items of which they claim were
the most affected due to the fact they continue to be daily paid
workers. The managements of estates say they kept away from work despite
the major unions including the CWC’s appeal not to participate in
yesterday’s strike.
The police intensified security arrangements in the estates and there
was no incidents reported, although 40 per cent of the estates, workers
have reported for work. Meanwhile, in all other sectors including the
transport normality prevailed in the entire district.
Strike, a total failure - NFF
The July 10th strike jointly engineered by the pro JVP and UNP trade
unions along with the ‘Leftist Peace’ trade unions has been a total
failure, states a national Freedom Front press release.
Organisers failed at least to cripple such public utility services as
transport, electricity, petroleum, health and port. The Tamil National
Alliance too supported the strike.
Right from the beginning though we supported the demand for salary
increases, the people as well as the workers suspected a sinister and
conspirational force active behind the strike.
So the country’s workforce who were committed to the overthrow of
separatist terrorism did not support the strike, the NFF said.
JVP, UNP strike:
No impact on hospital, transport services
Gamini Jayasinghe, Kithsiri Wanasinghe and Senerath
Bandara Kulasekera
All medical, paramedical and other staff had reported for duty in the
Anuradhapura Teaching Hospital, according to hospital director, Dr.
Sarath Weerabandara.
The strike had no impact on the hospital services and arrangements
had been made to meet any emergencies. Staff in all hospitals were
readily available to attend to any war casualties, it was reported.
Meanwhile, all city and long distance bus services were operated as
usual despite the JVP sponsored strike, according to the Raja Rata Bus
Company. Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, Kebitigollewa, Dambulla, Kekirawa
and Horowpatana depots ran its full fleet, it is reported. All drivers,
conductors and other staff had reported for duty.
Strike most unsuccessful in history
The strike action summoned by the JVP jointly with the UNP is an
utter failure and a highly futile attempt, said former Chief Minister
Berty Premalal Dissanayake.
Speaking to the Daily News the former Chief Minister said Ranil
Wickremesinghe and his group joined by the JVP Parliamentarian Lal
Kantha and his colleagues have become humiliated and helpless in the
presence of the working class.
The token strike the JVP endeavoured to stage using their traditional
rhetoric and boasting underestimated the real mentality of the
Government and private sector employees being supported by UNP is a real
mockery, one of the most unsuccessfully strikes in the country’s
history,” Berty Premalal stressed further.
The former Chief Minister and the SLFP Chief Ministerial candidate
for North Central Provincial Council thanked all categories of
Government and private sector employees who didn’t heed to the
politically motivated requests by the JVP and UNP to join the strike at
a time our war heroes were successfully proceeding in their forward
march to eradicate LTTE terrorism.
Polonnaruwa district normal despite strike
Elahera group correspondent
Normal services were maintained in all Government Departments and
Hospitals in the Polonnaruwa District despite the strike, states
Polonnaruwa District Secretary Ranjith Wijetilleke. Although some
sections of teachers and hospital employees struck work, services
continued uninterruptedly.
Strike fails to halt Matara
Bandula Gunasekara and T. K. Ariyadasa, Malimbada
group corr.
In Matara district the strike staged by National Trade Union Centre (NTUC)
was a total failure, according to Police.
Attendance in state and private institutions remained normal and
public transport services in all the routes in Matara district were
operated as usually, the depot managers of CTB and private bus operators
union in Matara reported.
The schools, hospitals, state and private banks in the district
functioned smoothly. |