May Day message of the JVP

Tuesday, 01 May 2012

Today is May Day. Its history is the bitter struggle carried out by the working people sacrificing their lives, shedding their blood and sweat and making boundless sacrifices to win an eight hour working day.

On May Day, the day commemorating the heroes and heroines who made the supreme sacrifice in the struggle, the masses all over the world amasses their strength. The working people in Sri Lanka with the leadership of the JVP clasp their hands with the people all over the world who commemorate May Day today.

Sri Lanka, at present, under the leadership of pro-imperialist, capitalist Mahinda Rajapaksa regime is confronted with a number of massive social, economic and political crises. The country is going through a colossal foreign exchange shortage. As such, the country is trapped in a foreign debt snare. The government that depends on loans by imperialist institutions such as the IMF has fallen to the level of begging more loans to pay the interest of loans already obtained. As a condition for such loans Sri Lanka rupee has been depreciated against foreign currency including the US dollar. Meanwhile, local industries, businesses, agriculture and services breakdown rapidly. Under these circumstances the government raises its income by levying heavy taxes and imposing heavy fines that are unbearable for the masses. The government also prints money in billions.

The masses have reached a state that they no longer could bear the rapidly increasing cost of living. Today 53% of the population earns a petty income only enough for a single meal a day.

Mahinda Rajapaksa regime, that has failed to protect sovereignty and dignity of Sri Lanka, has belittled the country before US imperialism and Indian hegemony; Imperialists have been given a leeway to interfere in the internal affairs of the country. This has created a risk of Sri Lanka becoming a prey for the imperialists.

Mahinda Rajapaksa regime that wrests democratic and human rights of the masses is suppressing the country and masses under the dictatorship of the Rajapaksa family.

The government that failed to fulfill basic needs of masses in the North and the East and establish national unity, equality and reconciliation is laying out an environment to strengthen communalism and separatism.

Social issues have escalated and crime has increased as Rajapaksa regime is unable to provide the basic needs of the masses such as food, water, shelter, clothes, medicine, education employment etc.

Unable to create an environment for the masses to live without fear or mistrust, Rajapaksa regime has failed to prevent crime and has dragged the country towards an abyss of immorality.

It is certain that UPFA led by pro-imperialist SLFP that has teamed up with IMF and other imperialist institutions to make the country bankrupt economically, politically socially and ethically and the two factions of the UNP would never be able to set the country free from the precipice it has been pushed to. Sri Lanka could be liberated from the crises it is confronted with at present and from imperialist interferences only through the victory of the anti-imperialist and anti-capitalist struggle carried out by a broad anti-imperialist people’s movement. The working people in Sri Lanka led by its working class should take the lead in creating such a broad anti-imperialist people’s movement. This should be the resolution of the working people on this May Day.

Hence, the JVP invites the working people, farmers, fisher-folk, women, youths, students, professionals, technologists, artistes, democrats, humanitarians and environmentalists to ideologically and organizationally rally around the anti-imperialist, anti-capitalist broad front being built with the leadership of the JVP.