At the end of July, tens of thousands of workers of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation went on an indefinite strike over plans to privatise part of their sector. The Sri Lankan government responded by mobilising the army to take over operations and prevent workers from organising and demonstrating. With the arrest of over 20 labour activists, the government was able to break the strike. While much of the commentary suggested that the workers were opposed to the sale of Sri Lankan facilities to other countries, the reality was that workers saw this sale as another attack on their conditions.
At the end of July, tens of thousands of workers of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation went on an indefinite strike over plans to privatise part of their sector. The Sri Lankan government responded by mobilising the army to take over operations and prevent workers from organising and demonstrating. With the arrest of over 20 labour activists, the government was able to break the strike. While much of the commentary suggested that the workers were opposed to the sale of Sri Lankan facilities to other countries, the reality was that workers saw this sale as another attack on their conditions.
