Large anti-Govt. rally held by JVP-backed unions at Hyde Park
The Trade Union Co-ordinating Centre (TUCC) and the Combined People’s Movement (CPM) staged a protest rally yesterday (27) backed by the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) at the Hyde Park in Colombo, making several demands of the Government and President Ranil Wickremesinghe.
The demands included providing adequate allowances to public, private, and estate-sector employees, stopping the Government’s suppressive programme, revoking the Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act (PTA), and ensuring the people’s right to free health and education.
The protest commenced at 3 p.m. and was attended by several political party representatives, trade union activists, civil activists, and religious leaders. Among them were Ceylon Teachers’ Service Union (CTSU) General Secretary Mahinda Jayasinghe, Inter-Company Employees’ Union (ICEU) President Wasantha Samarasinghe, College of Medical Laboratory Science (CMLS) President Ravi Kumudesh, Attorney-at-Law Manoj Nanayakkara, and Catholic priest Jeewantha Peiris.
Activists who spoke during the rally said that yesterday’s rally was the best example of the fact that the “aragalaya” (the people’s struggle) at the Galle Face Green which began by demanding the resignation of former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is not yet over. They mentioned that even though the Government under the leadership of Wickremesinghe is trying to suppress the people by using the Police and the security forces, the Government will not be allowed to fulfill their needs by scaring the people through those programmes.
“The people’s struggle is not dead yet. Wickremesinghe and other politicians should know that the people will not always tolerate suppression. They will not always tolerate the Police and the Army attacking them. The events that happened in the country on 9 May and 9 July made that very clear. They are not ready to behave like cowards in front of politicians. Therefore, politicians including Wickremesinghe and the officials who act according to their orders seeking various gains such as promotions should remember that,” they said.
They further stated that the Government led by Wickremesinghe does not care about the fact that the people are suffering without being able to meet their food and other basic needs. They said that instead of providing solutions to the people’s issues, the Government is working to suppress the people who take to the streets to demand solutions to their problems. They said that Wickremesinghe, who entered Parliament through the National List and then became President with the support of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) which has been rejected by the people, has no power or moral right to suppress the people.
“We must commit ourselves to establishing a regime that will reclaim everything from people such as Gotabaya Rajapaksa, former Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa, former President’s Secretary Dr. P.B. Jayasundara, former Finance Ministry and Treasury Secretary S.R. Attygalle, and former Central Bank of Sri Lanka Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal who destroyed the country, by bringing them before a court. For that, a General Election must be held immediately. The people should be given the opportunity to appoint a Government that they need. We have no faith in this Legislature. No matter what we do, they do what they want inside Parliament. They try to pass suppressive Bills,” claimed the activists.
The main demands that were pointed out by the activists included the provision of an adequate allowance to all Government, private and estate-sector employees, stopping the repressive programme of the Government led by Wickremesinghe and the protection of the right to expression, revoking the PTA, ensuring the better management of institutions pertaining to the sectors of fuel, ports and electricity, ensuring the right of the people to free health and education, sufficiently providing for the universities and higher education sector, and holding a Parliamentary Election as soon as possible.