Wimal slams govt over attacks on SLRC workers

The whole country was aware about who was behind attacks and threats on the employees of the Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation but it was a total surprise that the police have not been able to arrest even one of the attackers since the first attack was reported after the Minister Mervyn Silva went to the SLRC with some thugs, JVP group leader Wimal Weerawansa said in Parliament .
He said the continuing assaults and threats on the SLRC employees was pushing them as well as the employees of the other government institutions towards trade union action. These attacks cannot be taken in isolation as aimed against the SLRC employees but were a feature of the breakdown in the democratic process. The very fact that employees of government corporations have to fight for their security showed that strong action had to be taken.
He said this was a time at which certain foreign forces as well as their local collaborators were trying to intervene in the internal affairs of the country on the pretext that human rights were being violated and attacks on SLRC employees would strengthen the hands of such forces.
The President of the JVP trade union at the SLRC is now warded in a hospital after the latest attack by thugs. A government that cannot provide security for its own employees cannot be expected to provide it for its own citizens. If the government cannot provide security to the SLRC employees and the fact that attacks continue clearly show that the government condones it. Therefore all progressive forces of the country will have to take counter measures and "we warn the government that we will take such steps as are necessary in this regard," Weerawansa said.