The government is now trying to define what terrorism is and it has named trade union activists as terrorists, Ceylon Teachers' Union (CTU) Secretary Joseph Stalin said.

While addressing the media, he said the government had already named terrorism against the Tamil people, terrorism against the youth in the South, terrorism against the Muslim community, and now named trade union activists also as terrorists.

Therefore, the CTU asks the government how it had received such power to define terrorism.

Ranil Wickremesinghe was elected president without a mandate, and he has no authority to define terrorism.

"Aragalaya (struggles) and uprisings of the people are defined as terrorism by the President. This is the real joke by the government.

"The working community in the country is coming forward; they are the people who are organizing, and they are the people who demand salaries."

"The government had introduced this Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA)," Stalin said.

As the CTU, we have made all necessary arrangements to take legal action against the Act.

"The people who are against the Anti-Terrorism Bill and the PTA should re-investigate their behaviours. This government used to pass legislations for its own benefit, not for the people. Therefore, why should we stand on behalf of the government," Stalin questioned.

"Therefore, we cannot let the government define terrorism," he said.

"We have been opposed to the introduction of this Anti-Terrorism Bill from the beginning and will oppose it in the future as well. We should defeat this bill legally," added Stalin. (Chaturanga Pradeep Samarawickrama)