May Day moves away from workers

Anarchists, socialists, communists and workers of Chicago who banded themselves into a labour organisation late in the 19th century and our own A. E. Gunasinghe, Victor Corea and Bala Tampoe must be spinning in their graves.

Poor souls, no peace even after death though they did so much for the working classes. And why pray? Because the First of May which was set aside as International Workers’ Day or Labour Day to celebrate labourers and the working classes and later to expose their grievances, has been stolen completely by modern day politicians, at least in Sri Lanka.

When you read this, blues, reds, greens and others will be gathering men and women, flags, slogans and the JVP Reds their floats to congregate in their chosen sites to shout politics, and nothing but politics.

Perhaps some may mouth a weak aside to workers. This year there is a further feature: the blues are split into two – one group gathering in Galle and the other in Kirulapone - the former blue-m-blue, the latter blue dyed with a bit of red producing a nondescript purple with the kurakkan satakaya prominently worn by a large contingent of brothers and sons.

Early May Days

May 1 was celebrated from long ago starting in Europe as a spring festival. It saw plenty of fun, imbibing, dancing and singing and selection of a May Queen. However, on this day in 1886 in the USA, 300,000 workers from 13,000 businesses across the country vacated their jobs and gathered together in various towns, but mostly in the Haymarket in Chicago, asking for an eight-hour working day, instead of the twelve to sixteen hours that was the norm. The protests were vociferous but peaceful until shots were fired in the Haymarket, causing the christening of the Haymarket Martyrs. Thus the birth of the formal International Workers’ Day though the protest had started as early as the 1860s.

In Ceylon, Alexander Ekanayake Gunasinghe starting off as a protestor against colonial rule turned his attention to workers when he saw the poverty in the slums of Colombo and how badly workers were treated.

He became their champion with Victor Corea joining him. Their protest started with a few men shouting against the tax of Rs 2.00 per year that was levied, by the British rulers. Non-payment meant imprisonment.

Then started a cry for increase in wages which were anything between 30 cents and one rupee. In 1922, the Ceylon Labour Union was founded and in 1927, the first Labour Day or May Day was commemorated. It became a public holiday in 1956 under the premiership of S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike.

This cat, shame to say, though she knew Gunasinghe’s second daughter, was not aware that AE – was born in Kandy on May 1, 1891. He had his education at Dharmarajah College and worked as a railway clerk soon after schooling. He them moved to journalism and founded the journal Search Light to promote the national movement for freedom. The Lanka Workers’ Union was his brainchild, forerunner to the formation of worker organisations and trade unions. He was appointed Minister of Labour in Prime Minister D. S. Senanayake’s government in 1947.

Lotus eating spreading among idlers

I wonder whether political parties which make such a hue and cry even bother to remember A. E. Gunasinghe, the father of the trade union movement in Sri Lanka, and lay a wreath at his statue at Olcott Mawatha, Colombo.

We remember that during the height of power of the Mahinda Rajapaksa regime, poor DS, the Father of the Nation, was almost forgotten on Independence Day and no flowers placed at his feet at Independence Square. Such is our gratitude!

Jolly good that May 1 falls on Sunday. No public holiday to add to the more than 32 we lazy irresponsible Sri Lankans enjoy (some of us conscientious ones ‘suffer’).

Tardier

This time the Sinhala New Year stretched for most merry makers for thirteen solid days: April 12 to 25. Almost two weeks of work shut down. Then comes Vesak and people suddenly get very pious and need extra days on either side of the Poya day and the day following it.

We are getting tardier and tardier, this cat feels. She remembers working in a private school where extra days off were not taken, not only because it was frowned on by the principal and one feared to face her quiet, cold disapproval, but because teachers felt it was totally unfair by the school and students since they had weekends off and long vacations.

Another private establishment forbade all leave taking to attend funerals unless the dead person was an immediate relative – a member of the family. In contrast when working for a semi-government institution this feline remembers the entire office being closed because the office aide’s grand-aunt died and the funeral was in Kegalle.

Yours truly said she would stay back and at least keep the library open. Whispers. A friend advises you’d better come too or you will be misunderstood; they might think you are uppity. This feline was not brave enough to face censure though it was so absurd and unjustified.

When May Day is over and the UPFA split into two or the breakaway limb proven paralytic, it would be good if President Maithripala Sirisena turns his attention to tardiness and whips every officer and worker to work and not just carry away a monthly salary, now increased, after twiddling thumbs or reading newspapers while files pile up on the IN side. The word ‘whips’ brought a smile to this cat’s smug face. The Prez does have a whip – remember!

See you again, safe and same coloured as pre May 1 after the hurly burly and the battles lost or won of Wanse-Gaman and Company!

- Menika