JVP warns of year of trade union action

By Shane Seneviratne

The JVP yesterday sounded warning bells saying 2008 would be a year of trade union action. Addressing the seventh convention of the Agriculture Public Servants’ Union, the JVP’s trade union chief and parliamentarian K. D. Lal Kantha said many trade unions affiliated to the party would stage protests over the government’s poor performance.

“The only thing the present government is handling well is the war. In all the other areas, it is not functioning properly,” he said adding that the JVP’s actions would never jeopardise the military campaign to weaken the LTTE.

Mr. Lal Kantha said Agriculture Minister Maithripala Sirisena did not listen to the woes of agriculture workers while President Mahinda Rajapaksa would not implement promises though he discussed the problems with trade unions.“We will launch a major trade union action next month, in support of demands raised by employees of Ceylon Electricity Board. We will also agitate for the reduction of the size of the cabinet,” the firebrand JVP frontliner said.