By Ishankha Singharachchi

MOST estates located near the wet zone are situated within the majority Sinhala villages. There is a clear ethnic divide, with Tamil workers living in the estate’s line rooms and Sinhalese workers coming to work on the estate from nearby villages. 

Therefore, the attitudes and actions of the people in the surrounding villages are highly influential in the daily lives of the workers.

“There is a long-term relationship between the Sinhalese people of Morathanna and Gonagaldeniya and the Tamil people of Morathanna Estate. Both groups participate in and support every cultural and religious event in the village, as well as in every task on the estate,” says P. Devarajah, a social activist at Morathanna Estate, who adds that there is a strong bond between the two communities.

An example of this cooperation is the recent struggle of rubber workers in Rambodagalla, Delhena-Raddalgoda, where the cooperative relationship between the village and the estate was evident. 

The generous support of villagers from the surrounding areas was instrumental in leading the 45-day struggle to victory. After the plantation managers cut the workers’ food rations, the nearby villagers stepped in to provide food. Out of 544 people in 101 families, 144 labourers were working on the estate, 66 of whom were female workers. The United Democratic Estates Workers Union and the Progressive Women’s Front led the struggle.

However, the situation is slightly different in the rubber estates of the Kalutara, Ratnapura, Moneragala and Matara districts. The experiences faced by Matugama Estate workers over the years highlight the changing political landscape.

“Matugama, Agalawatta, Kalutara and Horana electorates were once dominated by leftists like Colvin, Chamli and Anil Munasinghe. They garnered the votes of estate workers, but after 1977, this situation changed. Now, racism is practised openly. They don’t even allow a Tamil song to be played at the Lathpandura junction in Baduraliya,” said a worker who asked not to be named.

Estate workers have harboured resentment towards the recently deceased former state minister Palitha Thewarapperuma, who was the United National Party organiser in Matugama. His alleged coercion and violence against the estate workers have instilled a sense of inferiority among the workers in the area.

Moneragala Rubber Estate workers move with fear and doubt when they enter areas where the majority of Tamils live, such as Passara and Lunugala on the border of Badulla District, as they must pass through the surrounding Sinhalese villages. As they say, peace of mind is only achieved by leaving the Sinhalese villages as soon as possible.

Violence against estate workers

Violence against workers has been prevalent throughout history, driven by economic and working conditions, as well as ethnic and racial oppression. After independence from the British, the situation became more serious, with a recent incident reported at Dumbara Estate, owned by Dunhinda Plantation Company.

“On May 6, the deputy general manager, field officer and watchman of the estate attacked a female worker for not reporting to work. Due to this attack, she was treated at Horana Hospital for about three days. Although a complaint was made to the Kiriella police station, the accused evaded arrest by giving various false reasons for four days. However, due to the influence of civil organisations, political authorities and villagers, the accused eventually surrendered to the police. After being produced in court, the police did not oppose bail, and they were released,” alleges Chandrakumar, a political activist, adding that the trial against the accused will continue.

A similar incident occurred recently at Delathura Estate, next to Dumbara Estate. The watchman of Delathura Estate and two accomplices brutally beat a worker’s husband because his wife did not come to tap rubber on the estate. Thanks to Chandrakumar’s protest, the accused were not granted bail and were remanded for two weeks.

“The watchman and his thugs hit this man with a beer bottle. He was treated in hospital for five days. The police did nothing for three days. Later, the three accused were arrested and brought to court. Unlike in Dumbara, we opposed bail through lawyers,” alleges a worker.

Estate workers are regularly subject to such abuse by plantation authorities. In recent history, they have also been frequent victims of anti-Tamil violence, particularly in 1977, 1981 and 1983.

The Sansoni Commission, appointed by President J.R. Jayewardene, revealed extensive information about attacks on estates in Ratnapura, Kiriella, Nevada, Matugama, Galle, Kurunegala and Kegalle. These included burning line rooms, attacks on Hindu temples and churches, looting, sexual coercion against women, injuries and killings. According to the report, nearly 500 Tamils were killed in the August 1977 violence.

P. Perumal, a rubber tapper at Pindeniya Watta, Kegalle, testified before the Sansoni Commission about his suffering: “On August 19, when a gang came and attacked line rooms, another gang came the next day and attacked us. Four lines of rooms, comprising 41 units, were destroyed. They were looted, and family members were attacked.”

Selvarani Kulendai, a working woman residing in Gasnewa Estate, Nelumdeniya, was gang-raped by a group of villagers, she told the Sansoni Commission. On August 19, the estate superintendent warned the workers to seek a safe place as there was a possibility of an attack. 

Accordingly, she accompanied her mother to Gunapala’s house at the edge of the garden. That night, a mob broke into the house and attacked Selvarani and her mother. They took them behind the house, where six men allegedly raped Selvarani. When she returned to her line room the next day, one of the robbers had been there. On August 22, she lodged a complaint with the police, identifying those who had committed sexual crimes against her. All of them lived near the Gasnawa Estate and were about 20 years old at the time.

K. Egambaram, a labourer at St. George’s Estate, Mathugama, testified that on August 23, when a mob attacked the line rooms, the frightened workers fled, but his uncle Gurusamy, who was attacked, succumbed to his injuries the next day. Testifying before the commission, Egambaram stated that even though he had informed the police before and after his uncle’s death, the police did nothing and said, “When our police officers were killed in Jaffna, why did you kill your people?” As a result, he had to bury his uncle’s body without a post-mortem. 

A worker named Velu, who was in another nearby line room, was also shot and injured; he received treatment in hospital for four days.

In 1981, estate workers in Sabaragamuwa province were particularly targeted during the anti-Tamil violence. The attacks escalated following the no-confidence motion brought by the government against Appapillai Amirthalingam, the opposition leader at the time. Armed gangs boarded buses belonging to the Ceylon Transport Board and entered estates in Kahawatta, Rakwana, Nivithigala, Pelmadulla and Balangoda. They attacked the workers, damaged and burned property, looted, sexually assaulted women and killed people. Around 15,000 workers became displaced after the attack on 43 rubber and tea estates.

According to a report issued by the National Council of Ceylon Labour Congress on August 29, 1981, women and men, holding their children, fled to safety in the middle of rubber plantations. They later emerged from the forests, journeying from Balangoda to Bogawantalawa. Antony Masilmani, an eight-year-old survivor of a series of violent attacks, shared his harrowing experience with the media for the first time.

“In July 1981, 30 children from the surrounding estates came to Saint Anmal Church in Kahawatta for Holy Communion. I also came from Nivitigala. When a group of thugs from Kahawatta started beating people in the church, all thirty of us children huddled together in a small room behind the altar until they left. By the time the thugs finished their operations, they had hacked to death seven others, including a small child who had been involved in the church’s activities. The shock that Masilmani and his colleagues felt after seeing the corpses scattered all over the church garden is still heartbreaking.”

“People on estates were attacked the most in ’77, ’81 and ’83. Tamil people in cities were the primary targets, but the estates were not spared,” says Mehala Shammugam, an activist from the Home for Human Rights organisation who hails from the Pinkanda Estate in Kegalle. She emphasises that justice has not been served for the victims in any case.

“Rubber-tapping workers live in Pinkanda Estate, which was attacked in ’77, ’81 and ’83. In 1977, when my father, a field officer on this estate, and a thug group entered our house, we escaped to the forest. A group of people, including the estate’s tractor driver, gang-raped a girl on the estate. Everyone knew about this crime but were too afraid to complain. Even the police protected the criminals. Many such incidents were heard of in those days. These sexual crimes were planned under the guise of providing protection,” Mehala alleges, adding that such crimes cannot be forgotten, even if they are suppressed over time.

Pointing out that racist attitudes persist in the plantation areas of Kegalle District, she says, “A boy from the plantation is still not allowed to park an autorickshaw in a designated place. Even if he manages to park, he won’t be allowed to hire it out. We need to build harmony between plantation workers and village people first.” – September 5, 2024.

Ishankha Singharachchi is a freelance journalist from Sri Lanka.