By : A.A.M.NIZAM – MATARA.

This is to provide a roundup of news items and comments on the State sponsored attacks carried out by a group of goons on striking worker of the Petroleum Corporation on Wednesday.

State sponsored Thugs attacked Ceypetco Trade unionists in front of inactive Police

The National Freedom Front vehemently condemn the brutal Police and State sponsored thug attacks, alleged to be carried out by Marikkar’s thugs on the oil sector workers.

Given below is translation of the communiqué issued in this regard by the National Freedom Front.

Bogus discussions on one side and Thug Attacks on the other side

All clothes of Yahapalana removed.

We in the National Freedom Front vehemently condemn the shameless acts carried out by the government to suppress the strike launched by the oil sector workers against handing oer of the Oil Tank Farm in Tincomalee to India and the Oil Tank Farm in Hambantota to China.

When there was an agreement between the oil sector Trade Union leaders and high ranking officers of the tri-forces at the time the tri-forces personnel came to undertake distribution of fuel following the fuel distribution as an essential service, in respect of supplying fuel to essential services including hospitals and tri-forces, the government deploying the Police pulled out those Trade Union employeeswho went into the Petroleum Corporation prmises to assist the armed forces.  After that the workers who were pulled out by the Police were brutally attacked by gang of thugs belonging to thug named ‘Marikkar’.

When this was happening, Minister Duminda Dissanayake, as the representative of the President held a discussion with the oil sector Trade Union leaders. What the Trade Union leaders who came out from this bogus discussion saw was Police inhumanly attacking the striking workers with high pressured water cannons and a group of thugs belonging to a thug named ‘Marikkar’ armed with  iron rods, clubs, wooden poles and swords attacking the male and female workers in violation all agreements reached at the aforementioned discussions.

What happened to the Trade Union leaders who attempted to explain to the Police about the decisions arrived at the discussions with the Minister who held discussions with them as the representative of the President? Assaulting them severely, after forcibly herding them into Police vehicles, and when they were taken to the Welikada Police Station.

These workers who launched a strike acting against the sale of the resourccs of the country received bugus discussions from the yahapalana President and thug attacks from the side of the Prime Minister.  The final outcome of this incident was the yahapalana becoming fully naked by getting all its attires removed.

Mohamed Muszammil

Propagaanda Secretary

National Freedom Front.

A complaint should have been made to arrest thugs who assaulted oil sector workers – Police Media Spokesman

The pro-UNP Police Media Spokesman Ruwan Gunasekera who is notorious for making highly politicized statements has said that in order to arrest the thugs who are alleged to have assaulted oil sector worked there should have been a complaint made to the Police  He has made this comment at a media conference held at the Police Headquarters. (niz)

Oil workers have stopped work when the country is facing a critical situation – Ranil

The plutocratic Ranil Wickremasinghe who has no sympathy for working masses and who is suspected to be the brain behind the thug attack on oil workers blamed the oil workers for having a work stoppage when the country was making efforts to curb the spread of dengue. Addressing the Parliament he said that several important services such as the health service including the transport of hospital staff, operation of ambulances, power generation, and public transport will be disrupted if the fuel distribution comes to a standstill. Issuing a warning to oil workers he said that the government is committed towards safeguarding democracy and upholding human rights and it is not prepared to surrender to mischievous elements who are out to disrupt peace and destroy democratic values.

No oil worker has been assaulted – I surfed Websites till 1.00 a.m. – Kiriella.

The Leader of the House (the notorious and shameless guy who said that any bull can fight a war and ridiculed our war heroes) the Minister of Highways and Higher Education Mr. Lakshman Kiriella in response to a question raised by the leader of the National Freedom Front in the Parliament said that he surfaced websites till 1,00 a.m. in the morning and none of the websites reported that oil sector workers have been attacked by thugs.

I do not have thugs, thieves or drug addicts and my hands are clean –  Marikkar.

Parliamentarian Marikkar who has been branded as Kolonnawa Thug Marikkar” following the assault of oil workers by a group of thugs and drug addicts at Kolonnawa rejecting allegations saying that it was his thugs who attacked the oil workers in Kolonnawa has told the parliament that he has been attacked because his opponents are jealous about the developments that are being carried out in Kolonnawa.

He has said that if it is flooded, if the garbage mountain collapsed, or if the oil workers stage strikes they talk about Marikkar but they did not talk about Marikkar when he provided flood assistance to 27,000 affected families.  He has said that there were a lot of people to shed tears when the garbage mountain collapsed but they all went away and it was only him who remained to get compensation and assistance for the victims.

Speaking further he has said that when the government is having a yahapalaanaya after establishing democracy those who were indulged in thuggery in the past were shedding crocodile tears, and it was not from the front side they have to laugh about it.  There is a political programme to destabilise the government by holding demonstrations and strikes. There had been more than 1100 demonstrations and strikes after this government came into power and those activities hindered the development of the country.

It is because they cannot digest the development activities being carried out in Kolonnawa they brand him as a thug, but the people of Kolonnawa know very well what is being done by Marikkar.  He said that his hands are clean and he does not have thugs, thieves, or drug addicts with him and their political journey is always through democracy.

Oil workers were attacked only by general public  – Harin Fernano

Speaking in the Parliament Minister Harin Fernando has said that the government is acting democratically and it is not cowardice to act in this manner and the oil workers were assaulted not by thugs but by the general public.

Island Editorial

Meanwhile the Island editorial (28^th July) upholding the media ethics of writing without fear and favour has urged to arrest the goons.  It says that the present day leaders in the run up to the last presidential election promised a new political order but two and half years on pro-government thugs are operating openly in full view of the Police assaulting protesters with absolute impunity and accuses that the Police shamelessly shielded the goons by its inaction.

The editorial adds that many civil society outfits, trade unions etc, threw their weight behind the yahapalanaa campaign promising to restore rule of Law and democratic rights and asks where are those ardent champions of democracy and states that their silence is deafening.

In conclusion it states that the goons can easily be identified and they must be arrested for their serious offence and th government must ensure that the Police acts without delay and calls upon all civil society organizations, human rights groups, and trade unions to crank up pressure on the government to do so.  It also reminds the opposition of the need to act as a counter weight to the government which signals left and turns right.

Also appended below are some comments made by veteran journalists and politicians on this strike and were published in ‘The Island’ dated 28^th July, 2017.

• Government’s new strong arm approach –  In view of the CPC strike the army and the STF were deployed at the Kolonnawa and Muthuraawela oil storage facilities on Wednesday,   Many persons armed with clubs etc were seen threatening and attacking the strikers at Kolonnawa.  Veteran Journalist C.A.Chandraprema.
• More trade unions to join agitations against goon attacks on CPC workers – The Ceylon Teachers’ Union (CTU), Free Trade Zones and General Services Employees Union (FTZGSU) and several other associations are currently discussing action to be taken against the suppression of workers’ rights
• Strikers were assaulted by angry public – Joker of the three idiots gang Cabinet spokesman Dayasiri Jayasekera who has earned the opprobrium as ‘Rilasiri’ due to somersaulting from party to party
• TNA endorses government action on public sector strikes. MP Sumanthiran said that workers should exercise their trade union action in a very responsible and constructive manner.