Sri Lanka Election: Who Will the Country's Tea-Pickers Vote For? | Vantage with Palki Sharma

Sri Lanka Election: Who Will the Country's Tea-Pickers Vote For? | Vantage with Palki Sharma

The tea industry is the backbone of the Sri Lankan economy. But tea pickers in the island nation are the lowest paid and have horrible working conditions. So, this election, Sri Lanka's tea pickers are determined to use their powerful vote to choose a president this month who will change grim working conditions for good. Who will they vote for? Palki Sharma brings you a ground report.

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Sri Lanka | Tea | Economy | Finacial Crisis | Inflation | Ranil Wickremesinghe | Sri Lanka Elections 2024 | Sri Lanka Presidential Elections 2024 | Firstpost | World News | News Live | Vantage | Palki Sharma | News

#srilanka #tea #economy #srilankaelections2024 #ranilwickremesinghe #srilankapresidentialelections2024 #firstpost #vantageonfirstpost #palkisharma #worldnews

Vantage is a ground-breaking news, opinions, and current affairs show from Firstpost. Catering to a global audience, Vantage covers the biggest news stories from a 360-degree perspective, giving viewers a chance to assess the impact of world events through a uniquely Indian lens.

The show is anchored by Palki Sharma, Managing Editor, Firstpost.

By breaking stereotypes, Vantage aims to challenge conventional wisdom and present an alternative view on global affairs, defying the norm and opening the door to new perspectives. The show goes beyond the headlines to uncover the hidden stories – making Vantage a destination for thought-provoking ideas.

Vantage airs Monday to Friday at 9 PM IST on Firstpost across all leading platforms.
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[suniljayaweera-wbsr]

Your report is partly biased. The UNP, SLFP, SJB, CWC, and other parties that claim to represent tea pickers do not want these communities to escape poverty or gain education. If these people become independent thinkers, the political parties that exploit them can no longer bargain with the major parties. The NPP, however, isn't widely popular among these communities—only a small fraction supports them. I believe the Indian government prefers this status quo since it can manipulate the parties representing tea pickers for its own benefit. If the NPP comes to power, this entire dynamic will shift, and that's why India is concerned.

[Theprasanga]

Palki is one of my respected journalists but I lost that seeing her biased reports in last couple of days. SL election law prohibit candidates promoting themselves in two previous days leading up to the election day. This period is known as the silent period. But Palki did an interview with Ranil on silent period which is not ethical.

[rukshanliyanage]

That's why we need to change those Two parties.

[UdiDol]

"The history has told these tea pickers, not hope for much!". This we cannot agree. The history reading cannot start from the end date and cover just a few days prior to that. History says that these tea estate workers were imported from Indian mainland, selectively from poverty ridden villages through the brokers of the British Raj, who were also speaking the same language, worshiped same idols and had same religious beliefs, but they were categorically slave traders. Those intermediaries, who held administrative jobs under British Planters selected the village folk and send them to Sri Lanka, the then "Ceylon" which was under the British. The conditions they transported were really bad and many died enroute, at the sea voyage and on land walk towards the highlands. Many also died of malnutrition and not adjusting to the climate after they arrived here, though the condition of their original land was quite similar to the conditions of Sri Lanka highlands. The reasons for such deaths could have been lack of medicines to treat the sickness they got after long and difficult travel.
Thereafter, they were set to clear the land and prepare for tea plantation, which involves a lot of manual labour. They sweat a lot in Sri Lanka soil and all of them were mixed with the soil without fulfilling their aspirations under the colonials. A fate that was similar to those indigenous highlanders, lands of whom were taken by force and houses and crops burned down and forcibly administered by the planters assisted by British armies. The middlemen became rich and the life style of the village folks were completely destroyed. So, what to say about these newly arrived tea plantation labourers.
There developed a set of management and administrative level officer cadre within the plantation sector. From the to most level to the ground level supervisors were taking maximum work from the laborers. These administrators did not treat them well and never differentiated men and women when allocating work. However, the tea pluckers were mostly women, but they had to do the other soil maneuvering, ground cleaning, planting and plant nursery maintenance as well.
The time passed, and Ceylon got independence and then converted to a republic and became Sri Lanka. A part of the tea estate work force, the people of subsequent generations were selectively given the Indian residence permits left Sri Lanka. In 1978, the then elected government gave the estate workers, the right to vote and so they became a community that will be recognized by the political authorities. Even then the powers of the tea estate management were not treating them right. fortunately, for centuries the indigenous people never illtreated these estate workers but maintained very cordial relationship and they were living without fear within the old generations of Sri Lanka. Some of the estate workers shifted from tea estate work ( only a small percentage) came to cities selling their labour and and only a handful became traders, teachers and so on. Later they were getting more facilities for education came to higher education and even to Universities and so on. But the majority remained within the estate work and were almost slaves (sorry to say that). They were indulged in heavy drinking of alcohol and used up whole of their salary for liquor and they were to destroy themselves and their voting rights were used by a few of their rulers to comfort themselves and only on the election day, they became important people. Their party organizers were not any other but their own people. They did it for money and power. The common labourer was kept at his level as if he was working the tea estates, a hundred years ago. Whom should we blame?, only to those who connived with the estate management.
Estate management changed hands from British to government owned companies and then back to private companies, but the estate worker remained the same and they were looking voluntarily serving in the estates, a self imprisonment, you could say. The main reason was the politicians who lead them and who robbed their votes to make kings, while keeping their voter base almost as slaves.The separatist war began and the friendship between the majority Sri Lankan community was never broken with the estate workers. Rarely they became terrorists and, Yes! they were not well taken by the other fighting groups who declared that they were fighting for the just cause of their race. The estate workers were a race within a race, but well accepted and integrated in to the society as human beings, though their plight was not different from their parallel poor villagers who were also unable to come out of the ;poverty created by the colonials.
So, Our friends must look at the mirror and see the Neelagiri area of estates and then come and see here. We are improving the villagers life and estate workers life, as a Nation but you know we have failed in both. But the fact remains, that the estate workers of Indian origin is amalgamated heavily within our society, and gained a lot of respect and are gaining recognition as equals in society and in law courts and in most of the places. So, need not worry on their lives and their aspirations, as they will be well off, once they break away from the self imposed mental restrictions( inculcated by their intermediary controllers, who had used their labour and their vote for their success) and join the mainstream politics.
Any attempt to disrupt this natural process by creating an inferiority complex within their new generation and taking them as baits to control Sri Lankan politics will be really useless. When we see the repercussions had on the unnecessary involvement of Indian Central Government to create uncertainty through the youth of the North ( to satisfy the Southern India's Politician's election wish) which really wasted three decades of our life time, such effort will be futile. Let these people get in to Sri Lankan society as equals through (a slow though) a steady process and refrain from inculcating bad ideas on them, which will not be good for Sri Lanka and finally for India (a threat one would not visualize). "Enough is Enough" is a slogan used by the West to instigate violence and to get one Nation against the other, one community against the other and which could easily used within a family to engage with one against the other member and therefor a highly dangerous stance and an obvious trap to eternal sufferance of both sides involved in it.

Thanks!

[AjeAccounting]

It is highly appreciated that you give voice to these voiceless citizens….

[R-msuo]

Is this woman really think india is similar to switzerland. I have never seen any chinese or any foreign medias throwing mud at us.

[nampath]

No to 13th amendment.
No to a bridge across Sri Lanka with India.
No to Indian rupee in Sri Lanka.

[moonlightmystique]

This should be done before election why wait until now to make a change in their lives poor people
With soo many hopes for a better tomorrow 😢
AKD will make a change in their lives for sure

[ninersnation]

palki should do a report on superpower india's farmers. I heard the indian farmers are struggling too..

[real-vwgp]

what ever happens more than 76 year they keep voting same corrupted please 😂😂😂😂

[rosejohnson]

Heart breaking to know. May they find a way to change and improve their lives.

[ssnjan]

They were brought from India under British rules. Still they are working under British. First, they need to be freed from British rules. Then, SL can solve their problems. Otherwise They have to rectify it with their owners from British.

[kuruppuhevagenishantha]

🤣🤣🤣🤣 you'r supports to Ranil, its pretty much obvious 😂😂

[SmallHead-sb]

Its NPP this time.. the people will feel it .. the crooked are leaving the country as we speak 😊

[keyaswann]

Hwo told you AKD is marxist.this is wrong information.

[YeploGuyina]

Sri Lanka's tea plantations are drying the underground water sources and other water resources in the hill country. This is an issue of colonial damage. The transpiration is very low due to extensive deforestation. It is an ecological disaster the world has been made to forget because of mismanaged ignorance

[john_____]

What about 100 Millions of Tea Pickers in India

[sunethchandi]

Now I know the India is a Swisterland of Asia.

[dimuthudaundasekara]

This Palki Sharma is very bias reporter... she even when im WION.

[ramdaya]

There is an voice disturbance while u r voice is playing, kindly resolve it ..thank you