Port workers' union calls off planned strike

The All Ceylon General Ports Employees Union (ACGPEU) have temporally called off their trade union action scheduled for tomorrow (28) until August 1

The ACGPU’s General Secretary Chandrasiri Mahagamage said that they took the action after the President agreed to call meetings with both them and the the unionists of the petroleum sector to discuss new amendments to the agreement on leasing the Hambantota Port. 

“We await the President’s amendments and hope they be benificial to country rather than providing more benefits for foreign companies," he said.

He added that the Government's motive was to lease the port for 99 years, but it had not devised ways to bring ships into the port.

"From 2014 politicians claimed that ships are not coming to the port but the real situation was that the politicians failed to bring investments of shipping companies due to shortcomings,” he said .

Mr Mahagamage said that the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) provides most of the foreign revenue and according to the area where Hambantota Port is situated, the ships will come if oil bunkering is done in partisanship of SLPA and the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC). 

If a foreign company gets hold of Hambtota Port with their superior technology, they will make huge profits for themselves as well as depriving revenue for the Colombo Port, he pointed out. 

The agreement between Sri Lanka and China Merchants Port Holdings Company on the Hambantota Port was due to be signed on Saturday (29).   

By Kasun Warakapitiya

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