Catholic, Anglican religious support jobless protesters in Sri Lanka

(March 19, 2010) About 300 jobless workers in Sri Lanka demonstrated on Thursday in front of the Fort Railway in Colombo, demanding the government do something to enforce their rights. Catholic priests, nuns and an Anglican pastor joined the protest to denounce the authorities’ overall indifference towards people’s actual problems. Fr Sarath Iddabalgoda, who works as an adviser at the Manawa Himikum Piyasa Centre, a legal aid group that advises workers from Free Trade Zones, told AsiaNews that workers lost their jobs, some as long as 25 years ago and are still waiting for a settlement. These workers want existing laws to be enforced. As Fr Iddabalgoda pointed out, “if you lose your job, you have a right to severance pay.” Sadly, “no one listens to these workers,” said Sister Beatrice Fernando, who took part in the protest. The Manawa Himikum Piyasa Centre has been involved with workers for many years. At present, it is working to defend their legal rights before the courts.