JVP members being intimidated - JVP

12 June 2011 01:35 pm Views - 3223

By Yohan Perera

JVP today charged that the Sri Lankan government is suppressing the rights of the opposition led trade union leaders.

JVP General Secretary Tilvin Silva told a news conference that pro- government forces have threatened some of its party members in Gampaha and its trade unions members in Colombo district forcing them to leave the union.

Mr. Silva said the leading member of the JVP led Inter Company Workers Union branch named Prematilake had been threatened with death forcing him to leave the trade union. The armed personnel who had responded to a questioned raised by Prematilleke as to why he should leave the union had told him that every thing in this country should be done according to the wishes of the UPFA government.

The JVP General Secretary said the phones of their members had been illegally tapped during the recent incident at the Katunayake Free Trade Zone.  He made this point in response to a recent statement made by the government that the phones were tapped during the incident where it had been able to uncover the JVP involvement in Katunayake incident where a young man was killed.

Mr. Silva said it was illegal for the government to tap the phones as approval of the courts has to be obtained for such a move. “Go ahead and disclose who is involved in the incident if you know the details?, “ he told the government stating that nothing would be proved as his party was not involved in the killing at all.

The JVP said the government had fallen pray to India and the international community as a whole though it is acting as a bully by suppressing the rights of the opposition

The party therefore charged that the visiting Indian delegation is trying to get the Sri Lankan government to sign trade agreements and applying more pressure to fulfill its interests.