Trade union leaders blame on government’s try to disregard workers’ rights in planning to prevent Sri Lanka from losing its opportunity to enter the European market easily.
A resolution passed last month in the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium, focused on the use of the Prevention of Terrorism Act to repress minorities.
Sri Lanka has also been widely criticized for various human rights abuses, including media repression, lack of the rule of law, disappearances, illegal arrests and deprivation of labor rights.
The European resolution risks depriving Sri Lanka of GSP + tax concessions as well as anti-terrorism assistance if it fails to deliver on its promises to protect human rights, including the repeal of the Prevention of Terrorism Act.
However, union leaders have avoided intervening in the repeal of the Prevention of Terrorism Act during talks with the government last week over a warning from the European Parliament that the GSP + concession would be revoked.
When the Minister of Labor stated that the European Parliament had set conditions only for the repeal of the Prevention of Human Rights Violations and Terrorism Act, the trade union leaders warned that if that was the position of the government, they would complain to the European Union.
Discussions with the government also revealed that the country’s trade union leadership had not taken action to inform the EU about Sri Lanka’s violation of workers’ rights until the risk of losing the GSP + concession due to Sri Lanka’s use of the Prevention of Terrorism Act to persecute minorities.
The EU resolution also focuses on protecting workers’ rights, even without a complaint from the union leadership.
The European Union (EU) has called on the Sri Lankan authorities to further strengthen the labor rights of workers in factories, including free trade zones, and to comply with the BOI’s Code of Labor Standards and the Code of Employment Relations in accordance with international law.
Minister of Labor Nimal Siripala de Silva has stated that “no issue has been raised” regarding the violations of workers’ rights in the European Parliament resolution, saying that “then there is no point to talk about”.
At a time when the European Parliament has decided to reconsider the GSP + concession, union leaders are seeking to discuss how a fair amount of the concession could benefit workers in the export sector. More than half of Sri Lanka’s exports to Europe last year were textiles and readymade garments.
The discussion was chaired by Foreign and External Affairs Minister Dinesh Gunawardena, Minister of Labor Nimal Siripala de Silva, and Anton Marcus, Co-Secretary of the Free Trade Zones and General Services Employees Union; Palitha Athukorala, President of the Sri Lanka Merchant Shipping Association and other trade union leaders were participated there.
Responding to the Minister of Labor’s comments, Anton Marcus, Co-Secretary of the Free Trade Zones and Public Service Employees’ Union, stressed that, although Sri Lankan organizations have complained to the European Union about human rights abuses in Sri Lanka, the unions have reiterated their concerns about the non-receipt of relief to workers. Since no complaints have been made, they have not been emphasized in the current discussions in the European Parliament. The senior trade union leader warned that if the ministers argued in this manner, they could immediately lodge complaints with their organizations to rectify the situation.
“Accordingly, we hereby request a specific guarantee to intervene now to get into practice and legally implement the International Labor Organization (ILO) Conventions signed by the Government of Sri Lanka on the GSP + concession,” said Anton Marcus.
The Labor leadership has proposed that the government take over the responsibility of fulfilling those promises in the future. “If employers do not acknowledge and act on them, the Ministry of External Affairs should appoint a tripartite inquiry committee with the power to intervene immediately to resolve any issues that may arise,” he said. Because our experience is that last time, in 2017, when the GSP + concession was restored, a similar committee was appointed and the Secretary to the Ministry of Labor was appointed as its operator. But it became a passive committee doing nothing. Because as the secretary he has to protect the work of the ministry.
Therefore, we demand that the Ministry of External Affairs, which is responsible for GSP +, should not be responsible for the benefits that GSP + should provide to its employees. ” According to trade union leader Anton Marcus, Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena has stated that the matter will be discussed and the decision will be announced later.