January 16, 2010

Time to Change 62 Years of Corrupt Capitalist Rule - Siritunga

Shantha Liyanaarachchi
Kalutara District Committee member
USP

At an election meeting held in Kalutara, Western Province of Sri Lanka, USP Presidential Candidate Siritunga Jayasuriya heavily attacked the two main stream capitalist candidates.  Introducing Siritunga to the audience, Srinath Perera the Editor of ‘Ratu Tharuva’ news paper explained why an independent working class candidate like Siritunga should be chosen instead of the two representatives of the capitalist class, who have driven the people of the country into a miserable situation.

Anoma Adhikaram, USP Kalutara District Trade Union organizer, provided an analysis of the situation in the working class, especially on the issues of those who work in the poorly paid private sector. She questioned the promises made by both candidates which are out of sync with the reality of the situation. Her speech threw light on the dilemma of the unemployed, women, and young people with disabilities, for whom the rival capitalist candidates Mahinda and Fonseka have no solution to offer. Anoma emphasized that only a socialist solution can lift the living standards of the masses from dire poverty, unemployment and war. Her well prepared speech ended with a call for vote to Siritunga Jayasuriya who is standing on a Socialist Programme.

Siritunga Jayasuria, the final speaker of the evening, declared that the time to end 62 years of post-independent capitalist misrule filled with corruption, nepotism and gangsterism of both SLFP and UNP has come. He ridiculed the attempts made by some left-wing parties which are trying to differentiate between Rajapakse and Fonseka by tagging one to be more ‘democratic or progressive’ than the other.

“As far as the oppressed people in Sri Lanka are concerned, we have no distinction between these two candidates, they constitute, represent and work for the same capitalist interests”, said Siritunga. One could not see any difference between these two until three months ago; they lived together, they carried out the commandments of the war together against the Tamils, bought the arms together, and shared the commissions. Greed to come to power has put them into rival camps of the same capitalist class and there is no difference whatsoever between the marauders of our class.

Kalutara USP Free Trade Union Leader Anoma Adhikaram addressing at the election meeting