People who were in the Aragalaya without any political agenda were not harmed - Manusha Nanayakkara

Manusha Nanayakkara, the minister of labour and foreign employment, made a welcoming decision to amend the labour laws to permit school students to work part-time in a few specific industries. This will be especially helpful to families who find it difficult to survive due to the rising cost of living.  

The action may also help to wean young people away from risky behaviours like drug and alcohol addiction. Gainful employment would undoubtedly divert their attention from such temptations and cause them to concentrate solely on generating an income.  
Daily Mirror sat with Minister Manusha Nanayakkara to discuss the new initiatives taken by the Ministry and his views on the political climate of Sri Lanka.   

Most of the decisions that we take right now are not popular decisions. Due to the dark past that has resulted in this crisis, we were pushed to take harsh and unpopular decisions, and we will continue to make unpopular decisions

Q  Why did you renounce the SJB and join the Government first under Gotabaya Rajapaksa and then under Ranil W, both of whom you have rebuked in the past? 

My sole intention in getting into politics was to serve the citizens. Even before entering politics, I served the citizens as a journalist. If the political party I belong to does not serve the dire needs of the citizens, I have to decide. People have not rejected me up until now. True, I left the current President Ranil Wickremesinghe and joined the SJB because, at that point, the much-needed democracy was not prevalent. We continuously pushed Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa to get involved in finding solutions to the burning issues of the citizens. We strongly condemned the fraudulent acts of the Rajapaksas and wanted the culprits of the Easter Sunday Attack behind bars. But let’s look at what happened, people were dying in queues, and even now, they are starving, so we needed a solution for these before all of that. I believe we have brought back a hint of normalcy where people have fuel, at least to a certain extent, and the queues of essential items are no longer visible. Earlier our argument with Ranil Wickremesinghe was to give a chance to the person who had the most popularity to contest the elections. 

Now the majority wants an All Party Government to bring back the 19th Constitutional Amendment, and Ranil Wickremesinghe stands with that. We feel that Ranil Wickremesinghe has shed some of his weaknesses and is standing with the people. While the President has agreed to go with the 19th constitutional Amendment, some like Sajith Premadasa, Dullas Alahapperuma, and Anura Kumara Dissanayake are impeding that decision. A key clause of the 19th amendment was that the President could not dissolve the parliament until the expiration of a period of not less than four years and six months. But the party leaders aforementioned are strongly against this and are impeding going back to the 19th amendment that considerably curtails the powers of the President even though President Wickremasinghe supports it. This is simply double standards employed by them for short-term political goals. I believe I have made the right decision to serve the people of our country.  

Q  You and compatriot Harin Fernando were vociferous in your assertion that there was a major conspiracy behind the Easter Sunday attack. After crossing over, you seem to be silent on this matter. Can you explain?  

Actually not. Harin and I, as we went to Geneva, knew the seriousness of the issue. When we met the President with our proposals, we mentioned that we needed an international investigation to investigate the conspiracy behind the Easter Sunday Attack. Accordingly, the Scotland Yard Police is now checking whether our investigations were carried out systematically. The evidence we provided was based on the final report of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry on Easter Sunday Attacks and the Easter Sunday Attack parliamentary Select Committee Report.   

Q  Don’t you feel uneasy about sitting in the same Cabinet with many ministers from the SLPP who have been accused of various wrongdoings, with at least one of them a convict?

Yes, we do, as we were leading critics of them. But right now, the sufferings and the pain of the people are at the forefront, so even unwillingly, we have to sit with them.   

Q  Many say you crossed over for personal benefit and greed for power rather than any real desire to serve the motherland. 

True that I am a cabinet Minister, but I only take the salary of an MP. As politicians, we took a huge risk by crossing over, and it could have also been the end of our political careers. If it were not for the motherland and only for politics, this decision would not have been taken. President, as well as us, took these decisions based on the betterment of the country.  If not, we could have been backward like Sajith Premadasa and Anura Kumara. They are hiding behind the crisis as they secure their political careers. If they care about the country and the people, they should work together.   

Q  In any case, did Sajith Premadasa miss the bus for the Premiership and Presidency? Do you feel that he did not rise to the challenge?

Yes, he did miss the bus. We discussed going for the Premiership with him, but he rejected. He could have been the President had we accepted the challenge then. But If I were to be blunt, it is for the betterment of the country that he missed the bus. Had he become the Premier and, in case, got the Presidency, the economic situation would not have eased this soon. He would not have been able to normalize the country this soon and manage the situation as Ranil Wickremesinghe has done. Even now, if he does not join hands for an All Party Government, it will be proven that he only ponders his own political development.   

Most of the decisions that we take right now are not popular decisions. Due to the dark past that has resulted in this crisis, we were pushed to take harsh and unpopular decisions, and we will continue to make unpopular decisions. For example, we have to change labour laws and go for pay cuts which are not popular among trade unions. But Ranil Wickremesinghe is capable of taking those decisions as he does not brood over his political dreams. Another example is, during cabinet discussions, we discussed solving the Northern land issues and matters relating to the political prisoners of the North.  

We are also trying to expand the number and categories of job seekers. We will be discussing with Canada; we had discussions with New Zealand. They will soon open the market for us, and we will have talks with Germany and Switzerland. We are also trying to expand the UK opportunities

Q  There are accusations against President Wickremesinghe that he is suppressing the Aragalaya and the forces that helped him ascend to the Presidency he coveted all this time. What is your Comment?

To my knowledge, people who were truly in the Aragalaya without any political agenda were not harmed. Law was enforced on certain factions who tried to push the country into turmoil. But none of them were kept for long durations in custody. 
It was done to avoid the country falling into chaos. There is no intention of moving the cases unnecessarily forward. Certain decisions were taken with the sole aim of saving State Property. When we look at the history and how governments have controlled such movements, there was no such suppression of the Aragalaya. That is why the President also replied to the American ambassador about his measures, stating that we did likewise the same way America secured the State Property during the January riots in the US.   
Anyhow the Government has no intention of suppressing the Youth and pursuing revenge as we all expect a system change. So certain factions of the Aragalaya are now working with the Government via the Mahajana Sabhawa to make the system change a reality.   

Q  SLFP General Secretary Dayasiri Jayasekara has said that President Wickremesinghe has become a prisoner of the SLPP since he came to this position with 134 votes, mainly from the SLPP, and has to dance according to their tune. What do you think of this?

Now everybody will have to dance according to the beat of the people. That dance will lead to fixing the country from the current economic and political downfall. Why should the President dance according to the SLPP tune as he is the executive President? Even if the parliament is dissolved, he still has two and a half years to function as the President. Myths are created saying Basil Rajapaksa runs the entire plan behind the stage. But there is no such thing.   

Q  Do you think an All Party Government is the best solution at this hour? 

Yes, it is the best solution to face the international community and go forward as a legitimate government. Politicians as well as people, both sectors are responsible for the state that we are in. Why I say that is; People elect and decide the personnel that lead the country Gotabaya Rajapaksa is the best example of the people’s wrongdoing. So now, with an All party Government, everybody can share the responsibility. With an All Party Government, the agenda matters, not the people involved.   

Q  Many political parties seem skeptical of the APG and demand a General Election as soon as possible to seek a fresh mandate from the people. Is it a viable proposition at this time?

Only three parties have requested a general election, and a request for a general election has also come from the masses. Yes, we need a general election, but the question is whether we will be able to get the desired result under this electoral system. Currently, there is a preferential voting system. If we go with this system, the same people will contest the election from villages and come to power as they will be using the allegedly stolen wealth. After spending billions, the same faces will come again. We should also remember that as we all aspired for a new face last time, the masses voted in favor of Gotabaya Rajapaksa, and we fell into total chaos. So those things should also be kept in mind when we vote. In my opinion, the people want a system change, but new faces will not come into power with the current electoral system. So let us go forward in this manner and do the necessary amendments within the next two years and then go for a general election.   

"School-goers between 16 and 20 will be eligible to work in selected jobs for four or five days a week, with a maximum of 20 hours. Most of the positions will be in hotels, supermarkets, or the cleaning and washing industries, eradicating any stigmatization of labor and treating rich and poor equally as common workers"

Q  Now, to turn to your Ministry, you have won plaudits even from your opponents for some initiatives, including granting leave for public servants to go to the private sector or overseas. Won’t this result in a brain drain?

Yes, a brain drain may happen. But it was a calculated decision made after looking at the situation of the country., It was one of the best solutions which we could arrive at. The decision was about calculating the damage due to brain drain vs. the suffering of Sri Lankans due to the economic malaise, and we assessed that brain drain was less damaging to the country. And also, when the country returns to normalcy, we will be able to get back the people who went abroad. This is about sending people for work, but on the other hand, educated people are migrating at a higher rate, and the country’s current situation is the basis for that. The brain drain mostly happens not with the set of people sent by the Ministry but with educated professionals who have decided to leave the country. 

So to summarize, as the Ministry of Labour, we must send our workforce and get down Forex to stop the brain drain. Via the Ministry, only a few professionals seek opportunities abroad as the working force is primarily semi-skilled and low-skilled,  
When we look at the private sector, it is expected that around five hundred thousand will lose their jobs. We also have a major problem regarding paying the salaries of the government sector employees now.  

Q  Are you planning to seek any new destinations for overseas job seekers?

Yes, we are working on it. We are also trying to expand the number and categories of job seekers. We will be discussing with Canada; we had discussions with New Zealand. They will soon open the market for us, and we will have talks with Germany and Switzerland. We are also trying to expand the UK opportunities. We will also have opportunities from Poland and Hungary. Meanwhile, expanding the European Market is also needed to improve and create smart jobs for the Gulf Region. So the Ministry is trying to expand the international market in every way possible, holding discussions with numerous embassies.  
And also, most importantly, all this has been done while sending housemaids. We have developed it now to the NVQ 3 level. We are planning not to send our people as housemaids in the near future but as housekeepers with higher pay.   

Q  You have proposed allowing children aged 16-20 to do part-time work in many countries. Do you think this will substantially impact the economic situation of many families with children in this age bracket? Any legal impediments in this regard?

This is a common scenario in western countries, although it is new to us. School-goers between 16 and 20 will be eligible to work in selected jobs for four or five days a week, with a maximum of 20 hours. Most of the positions will be in hotels, supermarkets, or the cleaning and washing industries, eradicating any stigmatization of labor and treating rich and poor equally as common workers. However, they will be prohibited from the 72 hazardous and harmful professions. We have prepared a draft, and steps have been taken to prepare the legal background in this regard. This is not mandatory; the students or parents can decide it. So we have not yet done any discussions with the Education Ministry because we believe that there is no need for it.