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Should industrial action by trade unions be banned for the next five years?

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by Sanjeewa Jayaweera

A few weeks back, the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) United Trade Union Alliance announced they would resort to trade union action unless the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) agrees to suspend or abrogate the agreement to divest 40 per cent of shares of Yugadanavi Power Plant in Kerawalapitiya to New Fortress Energy (NFE) a US firm. They have now been joined by the Ceylon Electricity Board Engineers’ Union (CEBEU) who have stepped up its work-to-rule campaign, making six demands, including the cancellation of the deal with NFE and the continuation of the LNG tender process that had been progressing when this backdoor deal was struck.

Several other trade unions, including those from the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) and Sri Lanka Port Authority (SLPA), both critically necessary to the daily functioning of the country, have announced that they too would join in solidarity with the CEB unions.

Adding fuel to the fire, several constituent parties who are part of the government have announced that they too are opposed to selling the shares. One presumes that their opposition is more due to their socialist ideology. A prominent minister opposed to the sale of shares has slammed the Finance Minister for having included the cabinet paper under any other business and for not having circulated the same for study and comments at the cabinet meeting.

There is a lack of transparency regarding this transaction which no doubt contributes to the controversy. This, of course, is nothing new as successive governments are guilty of not placing sufficient information before the public and other stakeholders when it comes to important transactions or legislative enactments. It is a reflection of the sheer disregard and contempt for public opinion.

The Supreme Court will consider several Fundamental Rights (FR) petitions filed against the NFE deal on December 16.

In my opinion, the unions’ proposed industrial action is not the way to compel the GOSL to suspend the transaction as those who will suffer untold hardship from such will be the public. Many of us remember the sheer agony we went through for 72 hours in 1996.

In addition, the manufacturing sector serving the local and the export market will come to a standstill causing further financial losses in addition to those suffered due to the pandemic related lockdowns. The public and the commercial sector can ill afford to endure additional hardships.

Over several decades the unions attached to public utilities in our country have used their considerable power mainly through the threat of industrial action to prevent much-needed reforms. As a result, the CEB, the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) and the National Water Supplies and Drainage Board (NWSDB) have operated at a considerable loss to the taxpayers. I hasten to say that the losses are primarily a result of ill-conceived policies by successive governments. No organization can be operated profitably if, at a minimum, the cost of providing the service is not passed on to the consumers.

I believe electricity and water tariffs have not been revised for nearly four years despite incurred losses. Currently, the world over, the sharp increase in oil prices are passed on to the consumers through higher pump prices. In Sri Lanka, despite a recent hike, we are not doing so in line with world prices.

It is no secret that reforms are needed at the CEB, CPC and NWB, and all other state-owned enterprises (SOEs) to improve supply, service levels and cost management efficiency, all of which will benefit the consumer. As a result, the governments of most developed and developing countries have since the mid-1980s divested the utility companies to the private sector, albeit with regulatory oversight. That model has proven to be a winner, with cash strapped governments relieved of supporting loss-making enterprises and the sale raising funds and the consumers benefiting from efficient service.

However, the trade unions in Sri Lanka have successfully thwarted such reforms or, should I say, thought of such reforms! Although, to be honest, the trade unions have not had to do too much as successive governments have lacked the political will and intelligence to go through such an exercise. From 2001 to 2003, under Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga and Ranil Wickremesinghe, a study was undertaken with World Bank funding to work towards some reforms at the CEB and CPC. However, the dismissal of the government of RW by CBK resulted in the study being abandoned. Since then, nothing has been done, a sure reflection of why our country is in its current predicament.

The trade unions have used the threat of industrial action to negotiate wages, perks and work norms that are not in the country’s interests and, importantly, the consumers who are also taxpayers. A significant portion of the public is not aware of the high remuneration and benefits that employees at these enterprises earn.

In Sri Lanka, unfortunately, any proposed divestiture of government-owned assets is politicized. The often-used slogan is “apey sampath wikunanawa”, which means selling the family silver. It is a slogan supported by whichever party is in opposition, the left-wing parties, trade unions, nationalistically minded intellectuals and the media. As a result, the commercial benefits and necessities are forgotten. The abrogation of the undertaken given to India and Japan to allow their nominated parties to invest in developing the East Container Terminal (ECT) at the Colombo port is a classic example of how “thuggery” won over commonsense.

One only needs to appreciate the significant improvement in service levels achieved at Sri Lanka Telecom due to the part divesture and management control given to a Japanese investor in the 1990’s. Had that change not been made, I shudder to think how the country would have coped up with the rapid advancement made in the fields of communication and information technology in the last quarter-century. Many of the mobile communication providers in our country are foreign investors. This should not be lost on those who oppose foreign investment on ideological grounds.

We must also not forget the significant service efficiency and improvement in the operational and financial performance of the national carrier under the management of Emirates. As I remember, the opposition at that time, the United National Party (UNP), said that they would abrogate the share sale and management agreement when they came to power. That did not happen because they were aware of the benefits of the transaction. Unfortunately, in our country, the main opposition party, whoever it might be, opposes everything the government proposes despite knowing well of the benefits. They mislead the public to cause controversy and score some cheap points, and much-needed initiatives to take the country forward are delayed and at times discarded. The ultimate loser is the public, misled due to lack of information, transparency, and constructive debate and a misguided notion that these are our sampath.

In my view, very few people in our country understand and appreciate how disruptive and damaging the actions of trade unions in the public utilities, the GMOA and Teachers and Principals have on the nation viz a viz the public. Furthermore, the people are unaware that nearly all industrial action resorted to by these particular trade unions are motivated solely to maintain their high salaries (teachers and principals excluded), perks and insanely bloated numbers resulting in large scale inefficiency.

Unfortunately, successive governments are responsible for this state of affairs as they have repeatedly used state enterprises to give non-existent jobs to the “boys.” Instead of developing the economy with sound policies, they had taken the easy route by creating jobs when none existed. The SLPA employs nearly 10,000 staff to operate one terminal at the Colombo port. The other two terminals operated by private companies handling almost 70 per cent of volume manage their operations with a staff of less than 2,000. Incidentally, the former Chairman of the SLPA, a retired Army General, said that in his view, the maximum needed was around 3,000. The fact that the 7,000 employed in excess earn high salaries and perks at the cost of the taxpayers of this country is lost on the public.

The deplorable trade union action resorted to by the teachers and principals over several months impacting our children went on as long as it did due to the government’s failure to deal with it decisively. The GOSL continued to pay the striking teachers and principals their salaries despite not reporting to work. It is a fact that remuneration is a right when a service is provided. Therefore, it was necessary, or should I say mandatory, that GOSL should not have paid those not reporting to work their salaries.

Had the GOSL so acted, the strike would have been called off no sooner it started. I need to emphasize that I believe that our teachers are not paid adequately. It is agreed that successive governments have not invested sufficiently in education. The net result is that our educational system is in shambles. However, resorting to industrial action penalizing students during a pandemic and an economic meltdown is unacceptable. To make matters worse, they disregarded covid restrictions that the rest of us adhered to. I am not sure what sort of example they set the students who invariably look up to teachers for guidance.

In the private sector, dealing with unreasonable trade union demands more often results in wasted valuable management time and energy. Many initiatives needed to improve efficiency, productivity and cost management are either not implemented or delayed due to the intransigence of the trade unions. In most instances, the rank and file of union membership are amenable. However, those who hold positions in the union hierarchy at the National and Branch level pursue policies that are part of their own personal agenda and not necessarily their memberships’. There are many instances that I can share with the readers based on my 25 years in the private sector. Due to space constraints, I shall restrict it to just one.

In 2016 there was a sudden increase in demand for the products that the company I was working for was manufacturing. But, unfortunately, the manufacturing capacity was insufficient, and it was going to take the company over 12 months to order machinery from overseas and install additional capacity. So the senior management team of which I was part approached the trade union and requested that the practice of shutting down the production line for lunch be changed. Our request was for the workers to go for lunch in batches so that the production line could continue to operate, and the 40 minutes lost when shutting down the plant and restarting after lunch could be saved and utilized for much-needed production.

I was bewildered by the reply we got “For so many years we have enjoyed our lunch looking at the face (seated opposite) of my friend, and now you are asking us to agree to have lunch looking at the face of a person who may not be my friend? How can we enjoy our lunch?” I was livid by the response. The Managing Director pacified me a bit saying, ” Sanjeewa, you are lucky. They used to stand on the table of the Finance Director (my predecessor) previously when they were unhappy!”

Given the precipitous state of our economy, the GOSL and the private sector would need to make difficult and unpopular decisions in the future if some meaningful solutions are to be rolled out towards some recovery. In that context, I believe that the country will be well served if industrial action, particularly in those classified as “essential services”, is banned for the next five years. I am aware that some might not favour such a proposal saying that it will infringe on personal freedom. However, as a person who experienced and had to deal with stubbornness and lack of common sense from trade unions when trying to find solutions to commercial problems, I believe there is no alternative unless we collectively wish Sri Lanka to sink into extreme poverty.



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Features

Religious extremism set to gain from rising Israel-Iran hostilities

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The costs of extremism; the Twin Tower blasts of 9/11.

Many of the international pronouncements on the current dangerously escalating Israel-Iran hostilities could be seen as lacking in adequate balance and comprehensiveness. The majority of these reactions could be said to be failing in addressing the aspects of the conflict that matter most.

For example, there is the recent UN General Assembly resolution on the crisis which calls for an ‘immediate, unconditional and lasting ceasefire in the Gaza’ and which goes on to urge ‘Member States to take necessary steps to ensure Israel complies with its international legal obligations.’ An immediate and durable ceasefire is indeed the number one requirement in the Middle East today but could it be ‘unconditional’? Could it ignore the principal requirement of Israel’s security? These posers need to be addressed as well.

Besides, it is not only Israel that should be compelled to meet its ‘international legal obligations.’ All the states and actors that feature in the conflict need to be alerted to their ‘international legal obligations’. While it goes without saying that Israel must meet its international legal obligations fully, the same goes for Iran and all other Middle Eastern countries that enjoy UN membership and who are currently at odds with Israel. For instance, Israel is a UN member state that enjoys equal sovereignty with other states within the UN fold. No such state could seek to ‘bomb Israel out of existence’ for example.

As a significant ‘aside’ it needs to be mentioned that we in Sri Lanka should consider it appropriate to speak the truth in these matters rather than dabble in what is ‘politically correct’. It has been seen as ‘politically correct’ for Sri Lankan governments in particular to take up the cause of only the Palestinians over the decades without considering the legitimate needs of the Israelis. However, a lasting solution to the Middle East imbroglio is impossible to arrive at without taking into account the legitimate requirements of both sides to the conflict.

The G7, meanwhile, is right in stating that ‘Israel has a right to defend itself’, besides ‘reiterating our support for the security of Israel’ but it urges only ‘a de-escalation’ of hostilities and does not call for a ceasefire, which is of prime importance.

It is only an enduring ceasefire that could lay the basis for a cessation of hostilities which could in turn pave the way for the provision of UN humanitarian assistance to the people of the Gaza uninterruptedly for the foreseeable future. There is no getting away from the need for a durable downing of arms which could engender the environment required for negotiations between the warring parties.

Meanwhile, some 22 Muslim majority countries have ‘warned that continued escalation threatens to ignite a broader regional conflict that could destabilize the Middle East’ and called ‘for a return to negotiations as the only solution regarding Iran’s nuclear program.’ This statement addresses some important issues in the crisis but one hopes that the pronouncement went on to call for negotiations that would take up the root causes for the conflict as well and pointed to ways that could address them. For instance, there is no getting away from the ‘Two State Solution’ that envisages peaceful coexistence between the principal warring parties.

The ‘Two State Solution’ has been discredited by sections of the world community but it outlines the most sensible solution to the conflict. As matters stand, the current escalating hostilities, if left unchecked, could not only lead to a wider regional war of attrition but bring about the annihilation of entire populations. There is no alternative to comprehensive negotiations that take on the issues head on.

Besides, all who matter in the current discourse on the crisis need to alert themselves to the dangers of appealing to the religious identities of communities and social groups. When such appeals are made religious passions are stirred, which in turn activate extremist religious outfits that operate outside the bounds of the law and prove difficult to rein-in. This was essentially how ‘9/11’ came about. Accordingly, speaking with a sense of responsibility proves crucial.

In fact, it could be argued that a continuation of the present hostilities would only benefit the above outfits with a destructive mindset. Therefore, comprehensive and constructive negotiations are of the first importance.

The above conditions should ideally be observed by both parties to the conflict. Israel, no less than the Islamic and Arab world, needs to adhere to them. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has no choice but to say ‘No’ to extremists within his cabinet and to ‘show them the door’, inasmuch as hot-headed extremists in the Islamic and Arab world need to be opposed and alienated by the relevant governments.

Meanwhile, the US is on a duplicitous course in the Middle East. Whereas it has no choice but to rein-in Israel and convince it of the need to negotiate an end to the conflict, it is choosing to turn a blind eye to Israel’s military excesses and other irregularities that are blighting the Gazans and the ordinary people of Iran. It ought to be plain to the Trump administration that it is promoting a barbaric war of attrition by continuing to provide Israel with the most lethal weaponry. Currently, it is anybody’s guess as to what the US policy on the Middle East is.

The Islamic and Arab world, on the other hand, should come to understand the imperatives for a defusing of tensions in the region. Decades of conflict and war ought to have made it clear that the suffering of the populations concerned would not draw to a close minus a negotiated peace that ensures the wellbeing of all sections concerned.

As pointed out, the security of Israel needs to be guaranteed by those quarters opposing it. This will require the adoption of a conciliatory attitude towards Israel by state and non-state actors who have thus far been hostile towards it. There needs to be a steady build-up of goodwill on both sides of the divide. If this is fully realized by the Arab world a negotiated solution will be a realistic proposition in the Middle East.

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She deserves the crown

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We had no luck coming our way at the Miss World 2025 contest – not even our immediate neighbour, India – but I’m glad that Miss Thailand was crowned Miss World 2025 as Thailand happens to be my second home … been to Amazing Thailand many times, courtesy of the Tourism Authority of Thailand.

In fact, even before the Miss World 2025 grand finale, which was held at the beautiful venue of the HITEX Exhibition Centre, in Hyderabad, Telangana, India, my colleagues at office all predicted that Miss Thailand, Opal Suchata Chuangsri, would emerge as the winner.

Yes, indeed, Miss Thailand not only won the hearts of millions but also became the first ever Thai to claim this much sought-after title.

Prior to winning the title of Miss World 2025, Opal Suchata was Thailand’s representative at Miss Universe 2024 and took home the third runner-up title.

Her Miss Universe crown, unfortunately, was subsequently forfeited, due to a contract breach, but she did not let that demotivate her, though, and went on to compete and win the title of Miss World Thailand 2025.

Coming from a family that was in the hospitality industry, her upbringing, in this kind of environment, made her aware of her culture and helped her with her communication skills at a very young age. They say she is very fluent in Thai, English, and Chinese.

Obviously, her achievements at the Miss World 2025 contest is going to bring the 22-year-old beauty immense happiness but I couldn’t believe that this lovely girl, at 16, had surgery to remove a benign breast lump, and that made her launch the ‘Opal For Her’ campaign to promote breast health awareness and early detection of breast cancer, which also became the topic of her ‘Beauty with Purpose’ at the Miss World 2025 contest.

Opal Suchata intends to leverage her Miss World title to advocate for other women’s health issues, as well, and sponsor a number of charitable causes, specifically in women’s health.

Her victory, she says, is not just a personal achievement but a reflection of the dreams and aspirations of young girls around the world who want to be seen, heard, and create change.

What’s more, with interests in psychology and anthropology, Opal Suchata aspires to become an ambassador for Thailand, aiming to represent her country on international platforms and contribute to peace-building efforts.

She believes that regardless of age or title, everyone has a role to play in inspiring others and making a positive impact.

And, what’s more, beyond pageantry, Opal Suchata is an animal lover, caring for 16 cats and five dogs, making her a certified “fur mom.”

She also possesses a special musical ability—she can play the ukulele backwards.

Opal Suchata is already a star with many expressing admiration for her grace, leadership, and passion for making a difference in the world.

And there is also a possibility of this head-turner, from Thailand, entering the Bollywood film industry, after completing her reign as Miss World, as she has also expressed interest in this field.

She says she would love the opportunity and praised the Indian film indstry.

She akso shared her positive experience during her visit to India and her appreciation for the Telangana government.

Congratulations Opal Suchata Chuangsri from Amazing Thailand. You certainly deserve the title Miss World 2025.

What is important is that the Miss World event is among the four globally recognised beauty pageants … yes, the four major international beauty pageants for woment. The other three are Miss Universe, Miss Earth and Miss International.

Unfortunately, in our scene, you get beauty pageants popping up like mushrooms and, I would say, most of them are a waste of money and time for the participants.

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Wonders of Coconut Oil…

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This week I thought of working on some beauty tips, using coconut oil, which is freely available, and quite affordable, as well.

Let’s start with Coconut Oil as a Moisturiser…

First, make sure your skin is clean and dry before applying the coconut oil. This will allow the oil to penetrate the skin more effectively.

Next, take a small amount of coconut oil and warm it up in your hands by rubbing them together. This will help to melt the oil and make it easier to apply.

Gently massage the oil onto your face and body, focusing on dry areas or areas that need extra hydration.

Allow the oil to absorb into your skin for a few minutes before getting dressed.

Start with a small amount and add more if needed.

* Acne and Blemishes:

Apply a small amount to the affected area and gently massage it in. Leave it on overnight and rinse off in the morning. Remember to patch test before applying it to your entire face to ensure you don’t have any adverse reactions.

* Skin Irritations:

If you’re dealing with skin irritations, coconut oil may be just what you need to find relief. Coconut oil has natural anti-inflammatory properties that can help soothe and calm irritated skin.

Simply apply a thin layer of coconut oil to the affected area and gently massage it in. You can repeat this process as needed throughout the day to keep your skin calm and comfortable.

* Makeup Remover:

To use coconut oil as a makeup remover, simply apply a small amount onto a cotton pad or your fingertips and gently massage it onto your face, in circular motions. The oil will break down the makeup, including waterproof mascara and long-wearing foundation, making it easy to wipe away.

Not only does coconut oil remove makeup, but it also nourishes and hydrates the skin, leaving it feeling soft and smooth. Plus, its antibacterial properties can help prevent breakouts and soothe any existing skin irritations, so give coconut oil a try and experience its natural makeup removing abilities, and also say goodbye to acne and blemishes!

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