“Working masses should first select a red flag to commemorate the International Workers’ Day. The working masses then should select a red flag that struggles on behalf of them. The international symbol of the working masses is neither the elephant nor the hand but the hammer and sickle. It is necessary to commemorate the May Day with those who struggle to protect and win rights of the working masses but not with those who want to make the May Day a display of their strength,” says the Member of the Political Bureau of the JVP Comrade Lal Kantha. He made these observations at a press conference held at the head office of the JVP at Pelawatta today.
Comrade Lal Kantha said, “The government by increasing the tax burden has asked the working masses to reduce their consumption of goods and services. The theme the government has prepared for the May Day is a “May Day that displays the quality of sacrifice of the working masses.” The slogan that was in the May Day of the working masses was related to winning rights. The UNP, in its history, always held a May Day that prepares to slash rights. The working masses should know what sacrifices the government has made. They have the biggest cabinet of ministers in the world. If they want to have a coalition of parties they could always reduce the number of ministers to form the government. However, they do not make any sacrifice but want to hold a May Day to teach sacrifice to working masses.
At the last budget it was proposed to slash the pension right enjoyed by the working masses from this year. As such, the state employees now have a struggle to win their pension rights. A bill that has slashed the Rs.2500 promised to private sector employees has been presented. Hence, the private sector employees too have a struggle to win a fair salary for the amount they work. Amendments to laws that would slash rights of the working masses are to be brought in. The dialogue during the last elections was an aim to win pension rights for the private sector as well. However, the state employees also find that their pension rights have been slashed. A struggle to protect as well as win rights is before the working masses. The biggest injustice has been meted out for the estate community. The Prime Minister and the Minister of Labour have got together to put off signing the collective agreement by 4 months. It is a serious violation of rights. They have a struggle to make their daily wage Rs.1000. The collective agreement is not signed because if they do so they will have to give the daily wage the estate sector employees demand for. As such, the state sector, the private sector as well as the estate sector have a struggle against slashing the rights they have already won and another struggle to win other rights when this May Day is commemorated.
However, what is being discussed today is whether the working masses go to Kirulapane or to Galle. This is a tragedy. Issues of working masses are not discussed. Hence, we emphasize that a May demonstration and a rally that protests against slashing of a large number of rights of the working masses and struggle strongly to win more rights is necessary. We cannot allow this need of the working masses to be condensed to going to Kirulapane or Galle. There is a need to hold a massive May rally to defeat the tax policy that is to be implemented from 2nd May. If we fail to hold such a massive rally the working masses will have to sacrifice from the 2nd May a large portion of goods and services they have been consuming in this country in which the rulers do not know anything about sacrifice. Whether going to Kirulapane or Galle is not relevant to the working masses in this country. The government has also aimed a massive blow to media personnel, a section of the working masses. The Prime Minister and the President have begun to get heads as well as chief editors of media institutions to their official residences and threaten them. The freedom to use the pen and the camera freely is being obstructed. Despite calling their government ‘yahapalanaya’ people of all sectors are being attacked.
The bag of fertilizer that was Rs.1200 in the open market was increased to Rs.3500 by the government. As a result of massive farmer agitations it was brought down to Rs.2400. However, the price of a fertilizer in the open market has been doubled. Crops produced using fertilizer at this price has not come to the market yet. This government has thrown a massive challenge to working masses of all sectors. As such, what has been created for the working masses at present is to build a massive force that would be able to overcome all challenges confronted by them. This massive force cannot be built by going to Kirulapane, Galle or Campbell Park. Having colours of the political parties in their meetings is tolerable. However, working masses cannot commemorate the International Workers’ Day standing under green flags or blue flags. Getting to commemorate the International Workers’ Day under green or blue flags is misleading. When we make the working masses aware to carry out a struggle to protect and win their rights, the rulers mislead the working masses to carry out a programme of plunder. We ask the working masses to first select a red flag to commemorate the International Workers’ Day. The working masses then should select a red flag that struggles on behalf of them. The international symbol of the working masses is neither the elephant nor the hand but the hammer and sickle. It is necessary to commemorate the May Day with those who struggle to protect and win rights of the working masses but not with those who want to make the May Day a display of their strength.
Hence, we invite the working masses to participate in the May demonstration and the rally that struggle to protect and win rights of the working masses and strive for a new economy and a new society. It is the demonstration and the rally of the JVP. The two political parties that claim they are the main parties pollute the demonstration and the rally. They distort the May Day with drunkard quarrels and various ‘choka’ baila scenes. Both these parties have lost the value of the day even before the May Day. They have made May Day an occasion to display the power struggle in their parties. We appeal to the working masses not to rally with leaders who have distorted the May Day. We also ask the working masses to make the May Day a day to decide a series of struggles from the 2nd onwards that will lead to a general strike. We ask the working masses to make May Day a day to gather strength and determination to get the increased taxes reduced and win our rights.”