Minister intervenes over CTTU action

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 29 June 1999, 13:49 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Minister of Education and Higher Education, Mr.Richard Pathirana has intervened to settle the proposed trade union action by the Ceylon Tamil Teachers' Union on July 2 in the North-eastern Province.

The Minister has instructed his secretary Mr. Andrew de Silva to submit a report to him on the nine demands put forward by the CTTU. after holding talks with the Union representatives.

Mr. Andrew de Silva has invited the Ceylon Tamil Teachers' Union for talks on June 30 at 2.30 p.m. at his office, said sources.

The three-member delegation of the CTTU, led by its President, S.Kumarakuruthasan.

The other members of the delegation are: T.Mahasivam, the CTTU's General Secretary, and S.Saravanapavananthan, its Administrative Secretary.

The Ceylon Tamil Teachers' Union has put forward nine demands, including the removal of the ban on transporting computers and other equipment needed for teaching and learning in schools in the areas of the Vanni not held by the Sri Lanka Army, the immediate withdrawal of two history textbooks in Tamil which the CTTU says contain distortions of history, and that non-Tamils should not be appointed as Principals to Tamil schools and all vacancies for Tamil medium teachers in north-east schools be filled without further delay.

The Ceylon Tamil Teachers' Union has already issued an ultimatum to the Sri Lankan President, the Minister of Education and Higher Education and the North East Governor that all the nine demands should be met before June 30.

If this does not happen, a protest campaign would begin when all Tamil teachers in the province would send a sick note on July 2, Friday, and would not attend schools.