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Tea estate duel: Minister justifies rant; planters decry behaviour
View(s):By Ryan Cassiechetty
The serene environment at the Ratwatte Estate in Ukuwela, known for its high-quality tea, was disturbed last Sunday when a n angry cabinet minister yelled at an estate official and threatened to hit him.
At the centre of the row was an unauthorised hut built by a person who, estate officials said, was an outsider. The estate company, Elkaduwa Plantation Ltd., saw this as an encroachment and filed a complaint with the Kandenuwara Police. However, in a video clip shared on social media, the estate’s assistant manager is seen bringing down the makeshift hut and acting in a threatening manner while women and children cried.
Minister Jeewan Thondaman is seen arguing with Elkaduwa Plantation Ltd. General Manager, Suresh Navaratnam, and attempting to elbow him
The incident triggered a strike by a section of the estate workers and prompted Ceylon Workers Congress leader and Water Supply and Estate Infrastructure Development Minister Jeewan Thonadaman to visit the estate.
Upon being informed of the minister’s visit, the company instructed General Manager Suresh Navaratnam to be present at the site to explain what happened.
Mr. Thondaman, accompanied by six armed guards of the Ministerial Security Division (MSD), arrived at the scene and entered into an argument with Mr. Navaratnam, demanding that he apologise to the man who built the hut.
Eyewitnesses said that the minister turned abusive towards the general manager and was seen shoving him. The MSD intervened and brought the situation under control.
The incident drew protests from both planters and politicians representing the plantation sector. MPs representing the plantations sector staged a protest in Parliament, holding placards and demanding the arrest of estate officials.
The Planters’ Association of Ceylon vehemently condemned the minister’s verbal attack and called for an impartial investigation.
“The situation arose due to non-workers of the estate having put up illegal constructions, which the management wanted removed immediately. After reporting the matter to the police, the management exercised their authority to protect the state property as custodians of the land in accordance with the law,” the association said in a statement. 
“As the apex body of the plantation industry, we condemn such high-handed acts, abuse, and threats by a government cabinet minister. We call upon the Minister to allow the management of relevant plantation companies to resolve such internal issues in accordance with the laws of the land,” the association said.
Roshan Rajadurai, a spokesman for the Association, told the Sunday Times while they did not condone the assistant manager’s move to dismantle the structure on his own, the government also should be mindful that the estate management has a responsibility in protecting state land. “If you allow persons to encroach land it will be a difficult task to get them out,’ he added.
Dammike Kobbekaduwe, a member of the Ex-Planters Association of Ceylon, said he had urged President Ranil Wickremesinghe to initiate a full investigation into the incident.
He said the circumstances necessitated clarification on the custodial rights concerning state plantation lands.
Minister Thondaman, reacting to the allegations, said he had visited the scene in his capacity as a trade union leader.
“There is a huge failure in the plantation system in the country. The working community faces huge issues with the tea estate managers and officials. There is a lot of sexual abuse and harassment they have to face when living in these conditions,” Mr. Thondaman told the Sunday Times.
Commenting on his argument with the estate manager, he said, “It was out of utter frustration that I acted in such a manner.”
Estate management companies neglected the welfare of some 200,000 workers and more than one million people living on the estates in squalid conditions, he alleged.
The hut the estate officials brought down
Drawing attention to the video clip that showed the estate manager evicting the alleged encroacher and his family, the minister said legal action must be taken against the manager immediately.
He said the incident was a good awakening point for the estate worker community to tell the world about the injustice they experienced.
The minister, however, admitted that he could have dealt with this situation in a better way. “This was all done out of pure frustration”.
“Today there is so much of a ruckus over the dignity of one man as opposed to the dignity of my community,” he told Parliament this week.
“Today, I am sitting here and speaking out of pure emotion, and the only way it can be sorted out is if these people are given ownership rights over land,” he said, noting that he had already informed President Wickremesinghe and Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena about this. He said it was Plantation Minister Ramesh Pathirana who first made the proposals, together with Minister Harin Fernando and himself.
Minister Pathirana told parliament that the particular officer would be interdicted pending an inquiry. Dr. Pathirana was not available for comment on Friday, but Ministry Secretary Janaka Dharmakeerthi said he was not aware of the inquiry.
Meanwhile, Kandenuwara Police Station Officer-in-Charge Lewke Bandara told the Sunday Times the matter had been amicably settled.
Minister Thondaman on Tuesday visited the estate again and held discussions with the workers.
The Sunday Times learns that at a subsequent meeting, the estate management expressed regrets to the family and pledged to build a permanent home for the affected family within the estate. The company has also promised to build 11 more permanent homes for other estate families.
( Additional reporting : M.W. Somaratne)
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