Many unions and parties refrained from conducting meetings or hold rallies ain connection with May Day as a mark of respect for the Easter attack victims and for reasons of security.
The Daily News yesterday spoke to politicians and leaders of various parties and trade unions on how International Workers’ Day will be celebrated in the country.
Leader of the Lanka Sama Samaja Party Tissa Vitharana said, “We will be holding a May Day rally, but the crowd will be limited to the due the prevailing situation of the country. After the rally, we will gather for a meeting which will be held in a hall in Kotte. We have informed security agencies about the details of the rally and meeting.”
Communist Party of Sri Lanka Leader D.E.W. Gunasekera said, “The meeting and rally which we initially planned has been cancelled due to the prevailing situation in the country.
We want to stand with the nation at a time like this. Since the first May Day, we have been celebrating and this is the first time we are not having a rally. We can’t risk the safety of others by conducting rallies.”
The SLPP’s Gamini Lokuge said, “There will be two meetings in the Kotte Municipal Council hall and another at the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna office. The meetings will have a limited number. The Kotte meeting will have around 300 people.”
from daily news