DIG Anura Senanayake is a prime suspect in Museum robbery -Police sources say
(Lanka-e-News -28.Aug.2012, 9.00PM) The officers within the Police Force itself allege that Senior DIG Colombo, Anura Senanayake is involved in the recent museum robbery of valuable artifacts , based on the spurious drama he is enacting when directing operations to apprehend the culprits.

Hereunder are the revelations pertaining to this incident.
Before the robbery ….

1.The Institutions including the museum within the high security zone were for a long period under the purview of the Cinnamon Gardens Police.

The Museum was provided with security by the Cinnamon Gardens police post and the mobile unit for a long while duly. As evidence in support of this , there are the night patrol security duty register; a register of the stations of the chiefs and the deployment of officers ; the Register which records the Police station OIC ‘s views and ASP’s register recording his minutes .

2.While this was the prevalent Museum security situation , Anura Senanayake , with his promotion to the post of DIG , Colombo, some time prior to this robbery had , without adducing any reasons brought the security coverage of the Museum and the High security zone which belonged to the Cinnamon gardens police within the purview of the Colombo crime division (CCD) under him. The Cinnamon gardens police security post and the security night patrol providing security to the Museum also ceased functioning with that change. 

Though the CCD took over , neither the police security post nor the mobile security was carried on by it . There are no registers of the CCD to confirm that such security services were carried on. It is therefore a most vexatious question why , Anura Senanayake ( justifiably called as another suspect by the police officers) committed this glaring omission ? 

The CCD was originated by former IGP Late Lucky Kodituwakku to conduct operations regarding the special crimes raging in Colombo, and not to take over to the CCD the task of providing security to special Institutions , and to run police posts or mobile security units.

The next question is , what prompted Anura Senanayake to undertake this task without any reason ? The Minister Balasooriya in Parliament fiercely questioned why the police security post was withdrawn prior to the Museum robbery ? He stated there were only three officers of the dept. providing security to the Museum. In the circumstances , there had sprung up grave doubts that the notorious Anura Senanayake had deliberately created an environment conducive to the robbery .

 Full story >>

Expanding the Buddhist kingdom 


Tamil Guardian 28 August 2012A newly constructed shrine of the Buddha in the Vanni district has been unveiled by Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Defence.

The Ministry of Defence graciously reported that the shrine was built “in order to cater to the religious needs and spiritual upliftment of the people”.

They further added that the “meritorious act of building the temple was undertaken by the 56 Division of the Sri Lanka Army”. See our earlier post: The Buddha graces yet another Vanni district (25 August 2012)

See more on the proliferation of Buddhist shrines in the North in our piece Buddhist Stupas for Army to be built in all provinces  (06 February 2012) Last modified on: 8/25/2012 9:09:08 AM

New temple at Kanakarayankulam

In order to cater to the religious needs and spiritual upliftment of the people, a new Buddhist temple has been constructed at Kanakarayankulam. The Sri Sambuddha Raja Maha Viharaya was declared open on 20th August at the auspicious moment by Ven. Etambagaskada Kalyanatissabidana Nayaka Thero the Chief Sangha Nayaka of the Northern Province.

The meritorious act of building the temple was undertaken by the 56 Division of the Sri Lanka Army. Situated in a serene environment near the A-9 (Jaffna- Kandy) road provides a peaceful setting to the devotees to involve in their religious worships.

The ceremony was held under patronage of the Commander Security Forces Headquarters (Wanni) Maj Gen A.K.S Perera. Senior military officers, other ranks and devotees were present at the opening ceremony.

Animal sacrifice row again in Sri Lanka

 



VIDEO: ANIMAL CRUELTY OR RELIGIOUS CRUELTY?

A large number of Buddhist clergy and laymen marched towards the Kali-Kovil in Munneswaram today (Aug 26) in a protest organised by the Multi-Religious Alliance for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, against animal sacrifice at the annual feast of the Kovil. A heated argument between the representatives of the religious groups, Kovil priests and devotees and police officers ensued. The feast and the animal sacrifice of the Munneswaram Sri Bhadra Kali Amman Kovil in Chilaw are to take place on September 01. (Pic by Jude Samantha)

Sri Lanka’s War Crimes: US Should Not Dance Around UN And UNHRC

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VIDEO: ANIMAL CRUELTY OR RELIGIOUS CRUELTY?

By Colombo Telegraph -Warning Disturbing Images: New Footage Of Alleged War Crimes
The Colombo Telegraph received two disturbing videos form one of our sources. First video shows surrendered LTTE female cadres. The second footage shows hundreds of dead bodies and some of them are naked. Talking to Colombo Telegraph a Human Rights activist, who has seen the footages raised the question that’ how they ended up naked’ .We assume those footages were released by the Media Unit of the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam. Below we produce the two video clips.

Animal sacrifice row again in Sri Lanka

R. K. RADHAKRISHNAN -August 27, 2012

A Sri Lankan Minister, who in March this year threatened to break the limbs of journalists who went abroad and spoke ill of Sri Lanka, is in the news again: this time, he wants to stop an animal sacrifice ritual in a Hindu temple, for a second time in two years.

Last year, the Minister, Mervyn Silva, and his followers, descended on the Munneswaram kovil, and took away the animals brought there for an annual sacrifice ritual. This year, tempers are running high in Chilaw — a town just over 70 km north of Colombo on the West Coast — as Mr. Silva has again threatened a repeat of his act.

In normal circumstances, there would be no supporters for the much-abhorred practice; and anyone standing up against the sacrifice will be hailed a hero.

But then, when the sacrifice is in Sri Lanka, conducted at the Munneswaram kovil by the Hindu Tamil community, a minority, and when the opposition is almost monopolised by Buddhist monks, and a Minister who is more known for his brawn, the entire story is given a communal, Sinhala chauvinist angle.

The issue in question is the conduct of the annual animal sacrifice ritual at the Munneswaram Sri Badra Kali Amman Kovil in Chilaw. The temple Chief Priest insists that the “ceremony” would go ahead, and had also sought President Rajapaksa’s help to conduct it on September 1. Tamils in Sri Lanka seem much more devout and take their religion very seriously. They still hold on to many medieval practices, and are willing to undergo a lot more pain in a bid to placate their gods.

Some in the Tamil community told The Hindu that the move to prevent the sacrifice was a direct and calculated affront on the community.

The local Animal Welfare Trust is seeking a court order to prevent the ceremony from being observed; and Buddhist monks took out a procession on Sunday against the ceremony. For now, an uneasy peace reigns in Chilaw.

PLEDGE TO PROTECT STATE EDUCATION

by Nirmal Dewasiri

President

Federation of University Teachers’ Associations

( August 28, 2012, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) The Federation of University Teachers’ Associations (FUTA) held a historic convention at the Western Province Aesthetic Centre on 17 August 2012 on the current status and future directions of State Education in Sri Lanka or “free education” as it is popularly known. The convention was attended by representatives of over 50 national trade unions and civil society organizations who collectively pledged to safeguard State Education. We reproduce below the text of the preamble and the collective pledge along with a list of trade unions and civil society organizations which participated in this event.

PLEDGE TO PROTECT STATE EDUCATION

The idea of Education is central to the continuation and preservation of human society, materially as well as culturally. Education enables and sustains civilisations and promotes humanism and is a fundamental pillar of human rights, democracy, sustainable development and peace, and should become accessible to all (World Declaration on Higher Education for the 21st Century, 1998).

In Sri Lanka, public sector education or ‘free education’ as it is commonly known, is a fundamental feature of our society, a core value on which the modern Sri Lankan identity has been built. The philosophy that drove Sri Lanka’s education policy and state investment in education centred on the potential of education for addressing social inequality. Many of our achievements as a nation, for which we have won acclaim globally rests on the opportunities provided through public sector education. Over the past six decades, it has been the avenue by which the masses sought and achieved upward social mobility. More importantly, it was pivotal in bringing about a post-independence renaissance in the fields of learning, science, art and culture.

However, since the early 1980s, the notion of education has been slowly changing. Both the goals and outcomes of education are becoming primarily market-driven. The financial burden of education is slowly shifting from the state to individual students and their families and the objectives of education are becoming narrowly defined in terms of ‘employability’ or instrumental market needs. This has come at high cost: both in terms of financial burden for families as well as declining standards in state funded education at primary, secondary and tertiary levels. This shift has resulted in a diminishing appreciation of the social worth of education as well as the social responsibility to ensure education for all. The declining standards in education have also been accompanied by increasing political interference in the administration as well as academic aspects, such as curriculum design, recruitment, etc. of the education sector.

Therefore, as representatives of trade unions, professional bodies and civil society movements, we, the undersigned collectively resolve to:

• Work towards restoring the value of education as fulfilling a larger public good
• Lobby the government to recognise the importance of protecting and enhancing state funded education
• Work collaboratively to restore public confidence in the state education sector
• Advocate for the government to honour its commitments to enhance funding for education to reach at least 6% of GDP which is the minimum UNESCO benchmark for state support for education
• Resist and challenge political interference with the management of educational institutions

Federation of University Teachers’ Associations

Ceylon Teachers Service Union

Ceylon Teachers Union

Independent Ceylon Teachers Union

Sri Lanka National Teachers Union

Ceylon Pragathi Teachers Union

Education Professionals Union

General Teaching Professionals Union

Ceylon Piriven Teachers Union

Moratuwa University Workers Union

Inter University Students Federation

Arts Faculty Students Union, Colombo University

School Non-educational Services Union

Food, Drink and Tobacco Industry Union

Federation of Ceylon Trade Unions

Muslim Women’s Research and Action Forum

Law and Society Trust

Young Researchers’ Collective

Medical Faculty Student Action Committee

Sri Lanka Federal Health Services Union

Free March Organization

Free Trade Zone and General Services Workers Union

All Ceylon Nurses Union

Inter-company Workers Union

Kantha Shakthi Organizaiton

Equal Ground

Women and Media Collective

Federation of Media Workers Unions

All Ceylon State Management Support Staff Union

Telephone Operators Union

Ceylon Mercantile Union

United Workers Federation

Employed Graduates Union

Inland Revenue General Workers Union

Sri Lanka Railway General Workers Union

National Intellectual Professionals Collective

Sri Lanka Port General Workers Union

All Ceylon Transport Workers Union

Jathika Sevaka Sangamaya

Ports Authority Workers Union

All Ceylon Railway Workers Union

Telecom Engineering Diploma Holders Union

Professor Senaka Bibile Memorial Organization

Sri Lanka Public Health Inspectors Union

Alliance of Health Workers Unions

SRI LANKA: Drought link with kidney disease risk

Photo: Amantha Perera/IRIN

High prevalence of chronic kidney disease in paddy cultivation regions

COLOMBO, 28 August 2012 (IRIN) - Soaring temperatures in Sri Lanka’s dry zone in the northeast of the country are likely to heighten the risk of chronic kidney disease as residents increasingly consume poor quality drinking water, experts warn. 

More than a decade since the first cases of the fatal disease werereported, health experts are now blaming contaminated groundwater as the main cause. 

The illness slowly destroys kidneys, making it impossible to get rid of body waste or excess water, eventually requiring dialysis or a transplant. 

Wide areas of Sri Lanka’s North Central, Northern and Eastern provinces have recorded a high prevalence of chronic kidney disease in the last two decades. Recently published research by the New Delhi-based Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) estimated affected areas cover 17,000sqkm where 2.2 million people live. 

These provinces are also the island’s main rice-producing regions. CSE found male farmers at highest risk with at least 15,000 currently affected. 

From 2009-2011 in the north-central Anuradhapura District, health officials reported that the number of registered patients with chronic kidney disease diagnoses increased by 25 percent to 1,424. The district reported some 1,600 chronic kidney-disease-related deaths from 2003-2010. 

Drinking water 
CSE officials told IRIN that water consumption is high in the dry zone and likely to increase during droughts. 

Research carried out in 2011 by Sri Lanka’s University of Peradeniya, Central Province, found the farmers most at risk spent long hours working alone without hired help. 

Dhammika Dissanayake, a researcher at the university who co-authored the November 2011 report, said farmers sometimes spent 12 hours a day in extreme heat. “Field studies showed that they did not take enough water. If the temperatures are going up, the situation is likely to worsen.” 

According to the Ministry of Environment, there were 1,400 reported droughts nationwide between 1985 and 2004, mainly in the dry zone, with the most severe being in 2001, 2004 and this year when the monsoon rains arrived almost one month later than usual. The country has two monsoons annually, with the next one expected to arrive in December and ending next March. 

“[Farmers] need to take in more water to flush out the chemicals, but they don’t. Sometimes we just can’t imagine the extreme heat they work in,” Dissanayake added. 

The water farmers are drinking is contaminated with high levels of calcium, fluoride and dissolved solids due, in part, to geography, CSE reported. 

“High temperatures in Sri Lanka and long working hours in the paddy field mean that there is a high consumption of [contaminated] water, which is readily filtered by the kidney but not readily secreted by the renal tubules.” 

According to the National Water Supply and Drainage Board, 80 percent of the population has access to “safe” water sources, but only 30 percent has access to piped water, which health experts say is safer than the more commonly used hand-dug wells.

Sri Lanka has been going through a severe dry spell since mid-April with temperatures in some of the areas reporting chronic kidney disease, including the north-central Pollonnaruwa District, reaching 34-35 Celsius. Though rains have arrived in the country’s south, they have yet to reach the central-northern dry zone. 

“Temperatures are on the rise and will keep rising, even after this dry spell is over,” said Malika Wimalasooriya, head of the climate change unit at the Department of Meteorology, who attributed rising temperatures to changing global weather patterns. 

The more extreme heat has sped up surface water evaporation and shrunk groundwater resources, he added. 

Other researchers point to unregulated use of fertilizer and pesticide as causes. “But water is at the heart of the problem,” said Channa Jayasumana from the faculty of medicine at Rajarata University in North Central Province, who explained how farmers try to salvage heat-withered crops with often incorrectly used fertilizer and pesticide. 

Since the leading causes of chronic kidney disease worldwide are diabetes and hypertension, the fact that doctors reported the cases in Sri Lanka’s dry zone as water-related makes comparisons with other outbreaks difficult, said CSE's deputy director, Chandra Bushan. 

The closest comparison he noted is Balkan Endemic Nephropathy, a kidney disease (the causes of which remain unconfirmed) affecting farmers in parts of the former Yugoslavia. No new cases have been reported since the 1990s. 

What to do? 
Bushan calls for providing clean water through water purification units in the short term and piped water in the long term to the population at risk as well as improving medical facilities to handle kidney complications. 

Though doctors conduct mobile clinics in high-risk areas, researchers say early detection is still weak overall. Treatment at government hospitals is free. 

There are renal units at North Central Province’s main Anuradhapura Hospital, smaller units at two city hospitals in the province, a larger facility at Kandy hospital in neighbouring Central Province and a standalone national kidney unit in the capital, Colombo.

Jayasumana from Rajarata University told IRIN the government should regulate fertilizer and pesticide imports and use nationwide due to what he calls “rampant” unrestrained use of the products - an idea that has not received official backing. 

On 22 August the Sri Lankan government announced it will begin distribution of water purification units in affected areas. 

“The most effective way to curb the spread quickly would be to educate those at risk [on a regional level] on the dangers and the importance of water quality and water intake,” said Dissanayake. 

ap/pt/cb 

Theme (s): Environment, Health & Nutrition,

[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

From The Inside Out: Reconciliation Is More Than Possible

By Voices for Reconciliation -August 28, 2012

What’s in a name?

We chose our name ‘Voices for Reconciliation’ after much deliberation, because we felt it went to the heart of our aims: the creation of a safe space for the sharing of different viewpoints, to encourage constructive and collaborative dialogue through which people could understand each other better. However, we soon began to realise that our view of what constitutes ‘reconciliation’ was just one in a host of interpretations being voiced in the discourse on post-war Sri Lanka. The dialogue workshops we run with Sri Lankans living in the UK have thrown up further proof that the word carries different meanings for different people, and we therefore think that it is vital to explore the concept further.

Since our philosophy is about sharing opinions, this article includes quotations that we have heard along the way from a diverse range of individuals. While we do not always agree with them, we do respect and value them, since they clearly illustrate that ‘reconciliation’ is not as simple a concept as people often assume.

One way to tackle this definitional dilemma is to look simply at the word itself. To re-concile seems to imply an act of healing after an injury, of mending a rupture, bridging a rift. In other words reconciliation can only occur after a trauma has been suffered. And this trauma, more often than not, seems to be relational; only opposing, antagonistic groups need ‘reconciling’. This highlights one aspect we have found key: reconciliation should be people-focused. It is about bringing together opposing groups and restoring amicable, or at least peaceful, relations between them. But what exactly does this entail?

Economic versus Political Reconciliation                                    Read More

Jayalalithaa asks PM to respect Tamil sentiments

Chennai, Aug 28 (IANS) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa Tuesday expressed surprise at the central government's declaration that India would continue to train Sri Lankan defence personnel.

Jayalalithha reiterated that the two Sri Lankan defence personnel being trained at Defence Services Staff College, Wellington in Tamil Nadu, should be sent back.

In a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Jayalalithaa said: "I am surprised to learn that the Government of India has openly declared that the said training will go on since Sri Lanka is a friendly country. This betrays the total insensitivity on the part of the Government of India towards the views of my government as well as the sentiments of the people of Tamil Nadu."

Minister of State for Defence M.M. Pallam Raju said Monday that Sri Lanka was a friendly country and India would continue to train military personnel from that country.

"The government of India should give up such a condemnable attitude and show more consideration and regard for the sentiments of the people of Tamil Nadu by sending the defence personnel back to Sri Lanka immediately," Jayalalithaa said.

Karunanidhi takes on Delhi over Sri Lanka

Chennai: The DMK, a senior member of the ruling coalition at the centre, has said the Prime Minister must intervene to stop India from training defence personnel from Sri Lanka. The DMK chief, M Karunanidhi, said that the sentiments of Tamil Nadu and its people have been hurt by the Centre's stand on the issue.

Yesterday, Minister of State for Defence MM Pallam Raju's  said to reporters,"Sri Lanka is a friendly foreign country and the training will go on. Sometimes there are objections raised by local governments which we have to be taken into consideration."

Political parties in Tamil Nadu hold the Sri Lankan forces responsible for atrocities against the island's minority Tamils. 

In July, after unanimous opposition by all political parties in Tamil Nadu,  nine Sri Lankan air force officers who were training at the Tambaram Air force Station near Chennai  were shifted by the centre across the border to the Yalahanka base in Bangalore. 

"How can India say Sri Lanka is a friendly country when China is giving six times more help to Sri Lanka than India?  It can be termed as one-sided and how can it be considered as
cordial?" Mr Karunanidhi said today in a statement released to the press in Chennai.

Mr Karunanidhi said two Sri Lankan defence personnel undergoing training at the Defence Staff Services College in Wellington in Tamil Nadu should be sent back to their country immediately.

In July, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa had said, "Tamils want action for war crimes against Sri Lanka. We will not accept the training of Sri Lankan airmen anywhere in India," she said. "This is anti-Tamil and inappropriate at a time when the whole world is seeking action against Sri Lanka for violations in the war," she had added.

The alleged discrimination against Tamils in Sri Lanka by the majority Sinhalese is an emotional issue in Tamil Nadu. Last year, parties together pressured the centre to vote against Sri Lanka at a UN Human Rights session. The resolution adopted there asked Sri Lanka to extensively investigate atrocities and human rights violations in the last few months of the country's civil war in 2009.

DEATH ROW INMATE COMMITS SUICIDE

August 28, 2012 
A prisoner sentenced to death over a murder incident has committed suicide by hanging himself inside a cell at the Bogambara Prison this morning, police said.

The inmate arrested by police over a murder which had taken place in the Gampaha area had been sentenced to death after being produced at court.

Investigations by Kandy Police and prison administration authority into the alleged suicide are ongoing. 

Death threat on NTC Chief

TUESDAY, 28 AUGUST 2012
National Transport Commission (NTC) Chairman Roshan Gunawardene said he had received several death threats from anonymous sources suspected to be extortion gangs involved in the illegal route permit fraud in the inter-provincial bus services in Chilaw

He said he was subjected to threats over the phone and through letters and that even those close to him had been threatened.

Mr. Gunawardene said the threats were likely because of the investigations into illegal bus permits in the area following a large number of complaints by individual bus owners and associations.

He said President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa and the Private Transport Ministry had been notified of the threats, which were being investigated. He said he complained to the Narahenpita police on Monday.(Olindhi Jayasundere)

Sri Lankan government shuts universities to break strike

By Kapila Fernando 
28 August 2012

On August 21, Higher Education Minister S. B. Dissanayake ordered the closure of all Sri Lankan universities, except for medical faculties, in an effort to break the nearly two-month-old university teachers’ strike.

About 4,000 teachers in 14 universities and other higher education institutions have been on strike since July 4, demanding a 20 percent pay rise, improved university facilities and an increase in education spending from 1.8 percent to 6 percent of gross domestic product. This is the third strike called by the Federation of University Teachers Associations (FUTA) since May last year, amid growing opposition among academics to the government’s rejection of their demands.

In a media release, Dissanayake reiterated the government’s oft-repeated accusation that the FUTA had a “hidden political agenda”. He said the strike sought “to create instability and a political crisis leading to a regime change, we guess.” This was a thinly-veiled threat that the government would use even more draconian methods to suppress the teachers’ campaign.

Even though Sri Lankan university teachers are the lowest paid in South Asia, the minister categorically rejected a pay rise. He claimed that the government had awarded salary increases of 36 to 83 percent through allowances and payments. However, these payments are not included in salaries and are not counted when calculating pension entitlements.

Speaking in parliament, Dissanayake bluntly declared that “we cannot increase salaries.” He made no mention of the demand for higher education spending. He stated that any salary rise “may create many discrepancies and anomalies in the national salary structure, creating other repercussions.”

This reflects the government’s fear that other sections of workers will push their long standing wage demands, which have been suppressed with the help of the trade unions.

President Mahinda Rajapakse’s government froze wages, with the support of the unions, during the war against the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and diverted billions of rupees into the war effort. Then, after defeating the LTTE and obtaining a loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in June 2009, the government imposed austerity measures, including a continued wage freeze, privatisation and increased prices for fuel and other essentials.

As well as slashing budget allocations for education, the government has deliberately allowed the state university system to deteriorate, in order to push an agenda of privatising higher education. This attack on the right to free education is part of an overall assault on the working class and poor.

The government prepared a bill to privatise tertiary education but faced widespread opposition from university students and academics. It unleashed a witch-hunt against students, via the so-called Anti-Ragging Bill of 2010, which attacked the democratic right of students to protest. University authorities dissolved student unions on several campuses. Hundreds of students were suspended, and scores arrested.

Further demonstrations erupted in recent months after the government denied places for eligible students to enter universities. In response to the protests, the higher education ministry postponed the admission of new entrants. It also cut back English and IT proficiency courses for new students.

More than 2,000 university teachers and students marched and rallied in Colombo last Thursday after the government shut down the universities. However, FUTA leaders and other speakers opposed any fight to overturn the government. Instead, the union is now seeking to end the strike, as it has before, on the basis of flimsy promises from the Treasury.

Indicating the FUTA’s hostility to any political fight against the government, union president Nirmal Ranjith Dewasiri declared: “The winning of our demands is not in any way an overthrowing of the government.”

The rally featured discredited trade union bureaucrats, as well as outright supporters of the government and the right-wing United National Party opposition. Speakers included Ceylon Mercantile Union leader Bala Tampoe and Ceylon Teachers Union leader Joseph Stalin, who have helped betray previous struggles for wage increases and other demands.

Another FUTA leader, Dambara Amila Thera, said he had supported the government in 2005, but had joined “a fight like Nandikadal” with teachers and students. “Nandikadal” was a reference to the government’s forces’ final offensives against the LTTE, in which tens of thousands of innocent Tamils were killed. The FUTA’s embrace of such right-wing forces only serves to divide workers along communal lines and obscure the political issues at stake.

FUTA leaders have held futile discussions with Dissanayake, the president’s secretary Lalith Weeratunga and Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapakse, the president’s brother. FUTA president Dewasiri told the media that talks with Rajapakse on Tuesday were “fruitful” and there was a possibility that the strike would be called off this week.

FUTA leaders were scheduled to meet Treasury Secretary P.B. Jayasundera last Friday to obtain a “written promise” from him, in order to end the strike. This supposed undertaking to meet some of the strikers’ demands was meant to appease union members.

Jayasundera did not call the union leaders on Friday, however, and gave no reason. Even if such a letter were issued, it would only be to provide FUTA with a pretext to betray the strike. The government’s record is one of repeatedly breaking such promises. Confronted by deepening economic and political difficulties, it has instead resorted to police-state methods to crush any resistance to its policies.

University teachers and students should reject the FUTA’s attempts to betray the strike and their demands. They form their own independent action committees and turn for support to other sections of workers on the basis of a fight for a workers’ and peasants’ government and socialist policies. This is the only means for defending the rights of students to free, high quality education and university teachers and employees to a job with proper pay and conditions.